All posts by lspady

#103: Combinatorics 

Math Mini Sparks

Combinatorics is a branch of mathematics which is about counting – and we will discover many exciting examples of “things” you can count.  You can use combinatorics to calculate the “total number of possible outcomes”. 

Spark your thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #103: Combinatorics

To do this mini spark you need to know a little about factorials. Steps 2 and 3 will review them for you.

2. The factorial function (symbol: !) says to multiply all whole numbers from our chosen number down to 1. Example: 4! = 4 × 3 × 2 × 1 = 24.

Complete these two problems so that they look similar to the example:

Example: 6! = 6 x 5 x 4 × 3 × 2 × 1 = 720

5! =

9! =

Scroll to the bottom of this post to see if you are correct. If you got it correct, add a star. Add the correct answer if needed.

3. Watch this short video that show you how to divide factorials. Don’t worry. It isn’t hard. Do the problems with the teacher on your recording page.

4. Study this teaching page.  Write the type of the formulas and the formulas on your recording page.

5.  Watch this video. Do the first two math problems with the teacher on your recording page. Try the last problem by yourself on your recording page. The answer is at the end of this post.

 

Advanced: Check out this teaching page. Each of the sections has a mini lesson, a practice problem, and a solution.  Read each lesson and try the problem on your recording page. Check your work. If you complete this, talk with your EY teacher about using this as a badge option.

Factorials

Permutations

Combinations

Combinatorics and Pascal’s Triangle

Combinatorics and Probability

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

 

 

 

 

5! = 5 x 4 × 3 × 2 × 1 = 120

9! = 9 x 8 x 7 x 6 x 5 x 4 × 3 × 2 × 1 = 362,880

 

 

50 people are in a race. How many ways can gold, silver, and bronze be awarded?

Wonderverse Poetry Contest

Other Events & Contests

Wonderverse is a poetry contest guaranteed to ignite your imagination. Enter the Wonderverse, where anything is possible and imagination and creativity come alive!

Closing Date: Friday Dec 20, 2024

What is Wonderverse? It’s an exciting world of poetry and anything you want it to be!

Dive into creativity to write a poem about any topic, using any style or technique. Write about incredible worlds or fantasy creatures, express their inner thoughts or emotions, describe their favorite people, places or hobbies, or write about your class topic.

Use these handouts to guide your writing

Student Guide

Poem Guide

Rules

To make sure your entries are valid, please follow the rules listed below:

Closing Date: Friday Dec 20, 2024

  • Only one entry per student.
  • There is no limit to the number of entries per school. Teachers please submit your entries altogether where possible!
  • Ask your students to write their poem (or an adult can scribe/type it), ensuring their name, age and school name are included.
  • Work can be on the entry form or a letter-size sheet of paper or typed (on a computer or in the Online Writing Portal).
  • Students’ poems must be their own work!
  • Please note on the entry if there is anything we need to take into consideration when reading the work.
  • No line limit
  • Poems can be written in any style
  • US entrants only.
  • Free to enter.
  • Ideal for 6-13 year-olds. (Students outside this age range are welcome to enter.)
  • Copyright remains with the author.

Reach out to the EY coordinator in your building if you need help with your poem or your submission.

 

#83: All about storytelling

Uncategorized

Storytelling has been an important part of human cultures for a very long time. For thousands of years, storytelling was the main way to pass on cultural knowledge and beliefs from one generation to the next. Stories teach and entertain, which has helped keep traditional ways of life going. Cultural ideals, medical practices, folk wisdom, historical accounts, and religious beliefs have all been shared through stories told by many people over the centuries. Storytelling is still important today, even though the ways stories has evolved. 

Spark your thinking!

  1. Set up your language arts mini spark recording page: #83: Storytelling
  2. Watch this interview from PBS. Record at least 5 important details from the video.
  3. Read this article.  Choose 3 questions to answer with 2-3 sentences.  Remind your teacher that the answers are in the LA mini spark folder. 
  • What is the main purpose of storytelling according to the passage?
  • What is the earliest evidence of storytelling mentioned in the text?
  • Describe the different forms of oral storytelling that are discussed in the passage.
  • How did the tradition of oral storytelling originate for works like The Iliad and Aesop’s Fables?
  • What are some reasons why people are drawn to stories according to the passage?
  • What are some ways that stories can help people develop empathy for others?
  • Why does the passage suggest that storytelling has been important for human cooperation and survival?
  • What does the passage suggest about the enduring nature of storytelling throughout human history

4. Share your language arts mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.

#82: The Story Spine!

Reading Enrichment

We are all storytellers. Good storytelling involves captivating an audience through the effective use of narrative elements, such as compelling characters, vivid imagery, and an engaging plot.

Spark your thinking!

  1. Set up your language arts mini spark recording page: #82: The Story Spine!
  2. Watch this video Pixar in a Box: Introduction to Storytelling. Pause the video to record 5-10 ideas about storytelling and what is needed to make a good story.

 

3. Watch this video about the story spine. Write the story spine prompts on your recording page.

 

4. Use a story you have just read or a story suggested by your teacher. Use the story spine template and fill it in for your story.

5. OPTIONAL: Create your own story idea using the story spine prompts.

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


Check out the Pixar in a Box badge on the EY website

# 81: Origin Myths-Fire

Reading Enrichment, Uncategorized

An origin myth is a special story about imaginary people meant to answer difficult questions such as, “Where did the seasons first come from?” or “How was earth was formed?”. Myths are passed generation to generation in order to teach a lesson about a people’s customs or virtues. In each of the myths you will hear a story from a different tribal group.

Spark your thinking!

1. Set up your language arts mini spark recording page:  #81: Origin Myths-Fire

2. Read these two paragraphs. 

Native American or Indigenous peoples of North America do not share a single, unified body of mythology. Each of the many different tribal groups has developed their own stories about the creation of the world, the appearance of the first people, the place of humans in the universe, and the lives and deeds of deities and heroes.

Despite the great variety of Native American mythologies, certain common mythic themes, characters, and stories can be found in many of the cultures. Underlying all the myths is the idea that spiritual forces can be sensed through the natural world—including clouds, winds, plants, and animals. Many stories explain how the actions of gods, heroes, and ancestors gave the earth its present form.

On your recording sheet answer these two questions. What is the purpose of myths? What are some common elements in myths? 

3.  You will use a chart for the step 4.  You can create one on your recording page, print out this PDF, or make your own digital copy to add to your digital recording sheet.

4. Listen to or Read these 4 myths about how fire was created. Fill out your chart for each story. 

The First Fire – Cherokee

 

Coyote Brings Fire to the People – Shoshone

 

Fire Race- Karuk

 

How Beaver Stole Fire – Nez Percé 

How Beaver Stole Fire from the Pines

5. For the last task, decide which two origin stories that are the most similar.  On your recording page record the titles. Make a bulleted list of 5 ways the stories are the same and then list 5 ways that the stories have differences.

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

Americanism Essay Contest-Deadline Dec. 15

Other Events & Contests

“What Does Patriotism Mean To Me?”

Omaha Elks Lodge #39 of the Benevolent and Protective order of Elks is sponsoring an Americanism essay contest.

Who is Eligible?  5th-8th Grade

What are the Requirements?  300 words or less, typed or legibly printed in ink

What are the Prizes?  There will be a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place in each division with CASH prizes.

When is the Deadline?  December 15, 2024

More Information?  Click HERE

#60: Hidden Figures

Social Studies Enrichment, Uncategorized

“Hidden Figures” is a biographical book about four African American women who worked as mathematicians at NASA during the Space Race and played pivotal roles in the Apollo program. Their contributions were essential in advancing America’s space exploration efforts, particularly during the historic Apollo missions to the Moon

Spark your thinking!

1. Set up your social studies mini spark recording page: #60: Hidden Figures

2. Record the names of the mathematicians you will learn about in this mini spark on your recording page: Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson, and Christine Darden.

3. Listen to Hidden Figures: The True Story of Four Black Women and the Space Race.  For each of these dates you hear in the story, pause the story and write a phrase about that date.

1943, 1945, 1951, 1953, (1950s), 1957, 1961, 1962, 1967, 1969

 

4. In 3+ sentences explain how Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson, and Christine Darden participated in some of NASA’s greatest successes. Use details from the story. Add your response to your recording page.

5. Read more about Katherine Johnson at this Wonderopolis page. Make a mini timeline on your recording sheet. Add 5 dates with information.

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

Check out the Mission to Mars badge and Space traveler badge at the EY Website.

#102: Friendly Numbers

Math Mini Sparks

Friendly numbers are a special type of number that have a unique connection with other numbers. To understand this relationship, we will add up all of the factors of a number and then we look at the index of a number and compare it to the index of another number.  Check it out in this mini spark.

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #102: Friendly Numbers

2. Read this paragraph to review what “Factors” are.

Factors are numbers you multiply together to get another number. A factor of a number divides the number evenly, with no remainder.

What are all the factors of the number 8?         1 2 4 8

What are all the factors of the number 24?      1 2 3 4 6 8 12 24

Write the factors of the number 40 on your recording sheet.

3. Scroll down to the bottom of this page to see if you have the correct numbers for step 2. If you do put a star on your page. If you do not, add the correct numbers.

4. Look over these 6 questions before your start watching the video.  Number your paper from 1-6. As you watch answer each of the questions.

  1. Stop the video at 2:57. In two sentences, describe how 12 and 234 and are friendly numbers.
  2. How many perfect numbers are there. How has this number changed since 2011?
  3. What is is called if you don’t have a friend? Name a few of these types of numbers.
  4. Pause the video at 8:40 and write down all of the friendly numbers on his chart.
  5. What are the yellow numbers?
  6. What is 10’s index?

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

 

 

 

Answers for step 3

Factors of 40 are 1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 10, 20, 40

Scary Tales-Creative Writing Contest

Events & Contests, Other Events & Contests

Closing Date: Friday Nov 1, 2024

 

There is nothing better than reading a thrilling story, one that grips you so tightly and puts your senses on alert simply through the power of words. Spooky Sagas is a fantastic way to practice writing in this way by using tension, suspense, and atmosphere.

Write a mini saga (a story told in up to 100 words) can be funny or creepy, scary or odd, but must be your own work.

Read the student info page for more ideas.

Student Planning Sheet

Writing Samples

More information 

The contest closes on Nov 1. If you would like help with your submission, make sure to get your story to the EY teacher in your building before this date.