At James Morris School, mathematics is all around us. All students have opportunities to participate in engaging opportunities that allow them to construct meaning of mathematical concepts while developing skills that will enable them to be life-long problem solvers. We strive to provide students with authentic opportunities to use their mathematical skills. Please visit this page often to see some of the many mathematical moments happening at JMS.
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First Graders "Compete" in Measurement Olympics
Mrs. Barger's class concluded their unit on measurement by participating in a classroom measurement olympics. Students had the opportunity to "compete" in four events: the feather blow, the cotton ball throw, and the long jump. They first estimated distances and then used various nonstandard units such as pencils, crayons, markers, and wiggle worms to find the actual measurements.
Popsicle Sticks: A Fun Measuring Tool
Kindergartens explored the skills required for arriving at an accurate measurement. They used popsicle sticks to find various lengths in their classroom. Students worked together to make sure that they were measuring in a straight line, working from end to end, and leaving no gaps or overlaps between units.
Cheerios Engage 3rd Graders In Understanding Multiplication
Mrs. Maritano's students explored the meaning of multiplication by creating arrays. They didn't just use pencil, crayons, or markers to create representations of multiplication expressions; they used Cheerios. The students enjoyed lining up columns and rows of Cheerios that created arrays that matched their multiplication expressions. I am sure that these students will not forget this tasty activity!
Surveying Peers and Representing the Collected Data
Grade one students conducted a survey on the best name for a dog. Students were given three choices to choose from and got to vote for their favorite. Students had to create a plan on how to collect the data, find out their peers' responses, decide what name the class chose based on their data, as well as create a representation to support their decision. It was amazing to see all of the different ways that students did this. Tally charts, tables, organized lists, pictographs, and bar graphs were a few of the representations that I saw.
Exploration of Area through Pixel Art Design
The Region 6 students of all three elementary schools came together at JMS to engage in grade level activities following a cultural awareness assembly. The 3rd and 4th grade teachers provided students with the opportunity to explore the concept of area through the creation of images in the form of pixel art. Students were thoroughly engaged in creating an image of interest to them and then determined the area of their creations. Some chose an image to copy while others opted to create their own. This activity lent itself to great discourse in the comparison of the area of their images as well as strategies used to determine the area. It was a great opportunity to let their creativity shine!
Measurement Exploration: Is It Longer or Shorter?
Kindergarteners in Ms. Phelan's class compared the lengths of various objects to their block towers. They had to find objects that were longer and shorter than their towers by comparing their lengths. They recorded their findings on their papers.
It's Okay to Write on the Walls Here!Students in grades 5 and 6 have the opportunity to work out their mathematical thinking on the wall of Miss Maillet's classroom due to a special paint that allows dry erase markers to be wiped away. This opportunity gets students excited to show their thinking while getting them to share and compare their work with their peers which helps strengthen their understanding. Here we see some fifth graders working on a division problem with two different approaches. They are able to work together to see if their strategies worked.
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Spoonfuls of Peas and CarrotsMrs. Barger's first grade students did some role playing to explore how to create various combinations that equaled the number 7. They were challenged to see how many different arrangements of peas and carrots they could find to fit on a spoon that could only hold 7 vegetables.
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How Big is 100,000? |
Lending a Hand to Problem Solve |
4th graders in Mrs. Layman's class explored how big 100,000 really is. They assembled grids of 100 squares into strips of 1,000 which were then connected into strips of 10,000. When they had 10 strips of 10,000, they knew they achieved their goal of 100,000. They brought the strips to the gym to see how far around the strips would go. This activity provided them with an experience of how big 100,000 really is.
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Mrs. Leonard's 2nd graders are learning how their hand can be a helpful tool to help them in remembering the important steps of the problem solving process in math. They are recording their learning in their math journals which they will be able to reference throughout the school year.
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One Problem, Many Different Approaches
Students in Mrs. Leonard's 2nd grade class demonstrate how they solve a word problem. As you can see, the word problem is the same, but the strategies that each of these students used are different. Although each student arrived at the same answer, each approach shows a different level of understanding that student has with number relationships and computation.
Factors and MultiplesMs. Maillet's 6th graders explored that the ways in which gears work is based on the relationships of the mathematical concepts, factors and multiples.
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JMS Summer Math AdventuresStudents and staff have been sharing how they have encountered mathematics during their summer vacations by sending in postcards of their adventures.
(Students can still share their postcards.) |
6th Grade TransitionsMs. Maillet's 6th graders spend their first day of school rating various transitions with decimals, fractions, and percents to track growth. A great mathematical connection!
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