All posts by Jenny Henningsen

#112: Fermi math warm up

Math Mini Sparks

If you have read the book Counting on Frank by Rod Clement then you are aware already of how a vivid imagination can bring to life a wide array of mathematics related to estimation, number, space, measurement, and chance and data ideas. In this math mini spark you will explore the story and work through some challenge problems.

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #112: Fermi math warm up

2. Listen to this story. On your recording page make a list of the 5 examples that are presented in the story. Which of the facts presented in the story do you think would be the hardest to prove. Why?

3.  Look over these questions. For each one, make a list  of the information you would need to find out if you were to figure out the answer.

How many sheets of paper could be stacked from the floor to the ceiling?

How many bricks are on the exterior of a school building?

How many kernels of popcorn would it take to fill your classroom?

4.  Write 5 of your own challenge questions that require estimation to solve.

5. Share your math mini spark recording page with your teacher or EY coordinator.

The type of math you learned about in this mini spark is called Fermi math. Check out the FERMI math badges at the EY website.

 

#112: Fermi math-warm up

Early Enrichment

 

If you have read the book Counting on Frank by Rod Clement then you are aware already of how a vivid imagination can bring to life a wide array of mathematics related to estimation, number, space, measurement, and chance and data ideas. In this math mini spark you will explore the story and work through some challenge problems.

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #112: Fermi math warm up

2. Listen to this story. On your recording page record 10 of the facts that he presents to you.

3.

4.  Open this document or print it if you would like. Complete the math thinking on your recording page or on the document.

5. Share your math mini spark recording page with your teacher or EY coordinator.

 

The type of math you did in this mini spark is called Fermi math. Check out the FERMI math badges at the EY website.

 

 

Contest-Name a Snowplow

Events & Contests, Other Events & Contests

We need help naming 16 snowplows in the Nebraska Department of Transportation’s fleet. Now through October 3, students in grades K–6 can submit their most imaginative, silly, or clever names for a chance to see their idea featured on one of NDOT’s 600 snowplows—trackable in real time at 511.nebraska.gov. Two winners will be selected from each of NDOT’s eight Districts. View the district map here.

Contest Details

  • Who can enter: Nebraska students in grades K–6
  • Deadline: Entries due by 11:59 p.m. Friday, October 3
  • Privacy: Student and teacher names will not be shared publicly — only winning plow names and their schools will appear in NDOT promotions.
  • How to submit:

LInk to Contest Information

Reach out to your teacher or EY coordinator if you would like help with your submission.

 

#40: How Small is an Atom?

Science Mini Spark

You probably already know everything is made up of little tiny things called atoms or even that each atom is made up of even smaller particles called protons, neutrons, and electrons. And you’ve probably heard that atoms are small. But I bet you haven’t ever thought about how small atoms really are.

Spark your thinking!

1. Set up your Science mini spark recording page: #40: How Small is an Atom

2.   Watch this TED-Ed video to learn more about the topic. Record 5 facts from the video.

3.  The Kids Should See this webpage has created a lesson about the world’s smallest movie.  Read this information and write 3-5 details on your recording page.

Magnifying carbon monoxide (CO) atoms to over 100 million times their actual size, arranging them into a series of 242 still images, and then animating them together, scientists at IBM Research have made the smallest movie ever. Wait, how small is that again?

“If an atom was the size of an orange, then the orange would be the size of the whole planet Earth.”

atom
You will watch a a 60-second movie, “with a frame size of only 45 nanometres by 25 nanometres (45 x 25 billionths of a metre)”. It is called A Boy and His Atom. In 2013, it was Guinness World Records-verified to be the smallest stop-motion film in the world:

“Individual molecules of carbon monoxide were “placed” as pixels on a copper sheet to create each frame of the film. The molecules were positioned using a Scanning Tunnelling Microscope (STM), which uses an ultra-fine metal tip to move the molecules with electrical charge… Once the molecules of carbon monoxide were in place in each frame, the STM took 4 min 53 sec to scan the whole frame to build up the image recorded on film. This process was meticulously repeated for each frame.”

4.  Watch the movie, A Boy and His Atom. On your recording page explain what makes this movie so unique.

5. Finish up this mini spark by watching the making of the the world smallest movie video. How did the scientists feel about the project? How did they get the atoms to move?

6. Share your science mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.

 

STEAM NIGHT @ MCC, Dec. 5th 2025.

Events & Contests, Other Events & Contests

 

 

Join us for an exciting STEAM Night at MCC! This hands-on event is designed to ignite curiosity and inspire a love for Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math. Families will have the opportunity to engage together in interactive stations, creative challenges, and fun activities, fostering stronger connections and a shared excitement for learning. Don’t miss this fun-filled evening!

STEAM Night at MCC
Friday, December 5, 2025, 5:30 – 7pm
Yates Adult Ed/ESL Classroom 210

#89: 10 Sentence Story Challenge- Figurative Language

Reading Enrichment

 

Follow the steps given in this mini spark to practice your writing.

Spark your thinking!

1. Set up your language arts mini spark recording page: #89: 10 Sentence Story Challenge-Figurative Language

2. Read this teaching page. On your recording page, write down your OWN example for each type of figurative language listed.

3.  If you want to print out this handout you can, or open it up to look at as you write. Read the page from top to bottom. How many stars would you give the sample story. 5 stars is the best, 4 pretty good….and so on.

4. Work on your story.  Check off each step from the handout as you write.

5. Go back to your story and underline each of your literary devices.

6.   Turn in your language arts mini spark to your teacher or EY coordinator.

#39: Lizard Mazes

Science Mini Spark

How do lizards find food to eat? Learn about this and more in this science mini spark 

Spark your thinking!

1. Set up your Science mini spark recording page: #39: Lizard Mazes

2. Read this introduction to what you will learn in this mini spark. On your recording sheet, write a summary of what you will learn. 

What is your hide-and-seek strategy? Maybe you search one area at a time, look for signs of movement, or even listen to see if you can hear your friends. Wild animals use lots of different strategies when they search for food. Guatemalan beaded lizards come from a desert valley surrounded by rugged mountains. They like to eat bird and lizard eggs, as well as insects, baby birds and small mammals. These can be hard to find! We wanted to know what strategies these lizards use when they are hunting for their next meal. We designed a maze experiment to help us figure it out. We placed food in a maze and watched how the lizards navigated the maze. We found that they were good at remembering where they’d already looked. They did best when there was a scent trail for them to follow. They did not do as well when they had to detect airborne scent from a distance. These experiments help us know more about the strategies these lizards use in the wild!

3. Read this article carefully.  Make a mini dictionary on your recording sheet with at least 8 words with a short definition.

4. Choose 2 of these questions to answer from the point of view of a lizard. 

What kind of foods do Guatemalan beaded lizards eat in the wild? 

How did we make sure that the animals felt comfortable? 

How did we determine whether the lizards were using their vomerolfaction ability? 

Imagine that you are on a game show where you need to find prizes in a maze. What strategy will you use to find them?

5. Share your science mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.

The Hidden Life of Spices Poetry Contest

Other Events & Contests

The Nebraska Section of the American Chemical Society (ACS) is sponsoring an illustrated poem contest for students in Kindergarten through 12th grade.

Write and illustrate a poem using the ACS theme, the 2025 theme is “The Hidden Life of Spices”.

Who: Students in grades K-12

What: Illustrated poem contest

Deadline: Oct 26th 

Contest Details: This event has very specific instructions for how to prepare your poem. Go to the website and look over the details carefully.

LInk to Contest Information

Reach out to your teacher or EY coordinator for help.

Prizes: Local winners advance to the national contest for a chance to win cash prizes. ACS will award $300 to first-place and $150 to second-place national contest winners in each grade category!

Check out the 2024 Winning Poems for inspiration!

 

#38: Dry Erase Marker Science

Science Mini Spark

How do dry erase markers work? Learn all about the science in this mini spark. 

Spark your thinking!

1. Set up your Science mini spark recording page: #38: Dry Erase Markers

2.  Read this article and list a few reason why schools use white boards instead of chalk boards. 

3. Learn more about dry erase markers. Take notes while watching. Record information that is new to you, interesting, or sounds important. 

4.    Watch this experiment.  Write a few sentences explaining why the image will come off of the glass and go into the water. 

5.  OPTIONAL: Do the experiment yourself. Take a video of the end result.

6.  Share your Science mini spark recording page with your teacher or the EY coordinator in your building.