Solving Equations

In Reading this morning we talked about how we can learn about the "character" of a narrative nonfiction book like we would a character in a narrative fiction book. We can look at the "character"'s  struggles and roles and compare the "character" to others and our self.

In Math we worked on solving equations. We learned that an equation is nothing more than a balanced scale. The golden rule is that whatever I do to one side I must do it to the other side. The goal is to have the variable on one side and a simplified number on the other. We will keep practicing so that we can be ready for our test next Thursday.

Have a lovely weekend!

Problem of the Day 49

Lena has 80 stickers. She gives 5m stickers to her friends and shares the remaining stickers equally with her 2 brothers. How many stickers does she give each brother in terms of m? If m=4, how many stickers does each brother get?

Negative Numbers

In Math today we had a bonus lesson today on negative numbers. We talked about how to add, subtract, multiply and divide them. Though this is part of the Grade 6 program a lot of students were asking questions and it fit well in our theme of simplifying algebraic expressions. Tomorrow we will work on solving equations.

Here is a video for some extra help:

Problem of the Day 48

A printing company charges a fixed fee of €30 for printing wedding cards and an extra €2 for printing each card. Mr. Johnson wants to print x wedding cards. How much money will Mr. Johnson pay in terms of x? If Mr. Johnson wants to print 200 cards, how much will he have to pay?

Simplifying Algebraic Expressions

In Reading we continued to work on our research projects by collecting information for our 50 note cards.  We talked specifically how to make the cards today.

In Math we took the next step in Algebra by simplifying expressions with like terms.
Here is a video with more information:

Combining like terms: In simple addition we learned to add all the numbers together to get a sum. In algebra, numbers are sometimes attached to variables and we need to make sure that the variables are alike before we add the numbers.

In Band we wroked on Feliz Navidad while in Technology we finished our photography unit.

Problem of the Day 47

A box of crackers has a mass of p kg. When empty, the box has a mass of 200 grams. What is the total mass of the crackers in 5 such boxes? Express you answer in kg. (Answer will have a variable)

Algebra and a Research Project

These past two days in Math we are introducing a new chapter on Algebra. We have learned that letters can represent unknown values in expressions. We can plug in a value to evaluate the algebraic expression. We also worked on converting real-world problems with unknowns into algebraic expressions.

In Reading we are starting to collect information for our research projects. We need to collect 50 facts, quotes, summaries from our research and put them on "cards" or "notes".
Here are the project details:

Grade 5 Research Project

Due December 18th, 2014

Name: ________________________________________

Big Idea: Write a 5 paragraph research project on the topic of your choice.

Deadlines:

1. Choose Topic:  __________________________ November 28
2. Choose 3 subtopics (December 2)
1. _________________________
2. __________________________
3. __________________________
3. Read articles and books about topic collecting 50 cards from at least 3 sources (quotes and summaries) (December 9)
1. At least 10 for each subtopic
2. At least 10 quotes
4. Make Outline (Dec 11) for 5 paragraphs
5. Rough Draft with bibliography (Dec 15)
6. Final Draft (Dec 18)

Grade:

1. Deadlines met (_________/ 30  )
2. Organization (_________ / 30)
3. Grammar/Spelling ( _______/ 30)
4. Creativity (_____/ 10)

Final grade:   ________   /  100

In Science today we shared our projects that we have been working on. We will have a photography lab next week!