MATHCOUNTS provides engaging math programs to US middle school students of all ability levels to build confidence and improve attitudes about math and problem solving.
Check out these sample questions:
The WMS Math Counts Team is forming now! If you’re interested, take the 10-question qualifying test linked below. NOTE: You are not obligated to join the Math Counts Team if you take the qualifying test, however, there will be a prize for the top 3 scores on the test!
Take the qualifying test by Oct. 15 to be considered for the team and to be entered for the prize drawing!
You were all so creative in your stop motion creations!
Our favorite was Emmett and Oliver’s Athena and Poseidon creation. Check it out below!
Here are some of our other favorites!
Don’t stop creating! Whether it’s another stop motion or a project from another Weekly Challenge, continue to share your work with your EY Coordinator and it might just show up on the blog!
For this week’s weekly challenge, you’ll need a few materials. Feel free to experiment with other materials you have at home as well.
8 identical water glasses
water
a set of measuring cups
food coloring (optional)
1 plastic spoon
1 sheet of paper
Tape
pen/pencil
Instructions:
Use a measuring cup to fill each of the glasses with the correct amount of water. Use the image below as a guide.
For fun, you can add a drop of food coloring to your glasses or two drops to make green, orange, or purple.
Label your glasses. Use the image below as a guide.
With a plastic spoon, gently tap each glass and listen for the sound it makes.
Notice which glass makes a lower sound and a higher sound.
Try playing these simple songs or create your own.
For your submission, you can make a video of yourself playing a song with your glasses or you can create a Pic Collage with pictures of your process. You may also choose another creative way to display your learning. Submit your work using the link below.
The science of sound is all about vibrations. When you hit the glass with the spoon, it vibrates and it’s these vibrations that ultimately make the sound. You probably noticed that tapping an empty glass produced a higher-pitched sound than tapping a glass full of water. Adding water to the glass dampens the vibrations created by striking the glass with a spoon. The less water in the glass, the faster the glass vibrates and the higher the pitch. The more water you add to the glass, the slower the glass vibrates, creating a lower pitch.
The oldest glue in the world is over 8,000 years old and comes from a cave near the Dead Sea. Today, we have enough types of tape and glue to build and repair almost anything. But what gives glue and tape their stickiness? And is one stronger than the other?
Spark you thinking!
1. Set up your science mini spark recording page: #3: Glue or Tape?
2. Watch this video. Record at least 10 science words that you hear.
3. This is a vocabulary rich video. Create a mini dictionary with at least 8 terms and definitions to go along with the video.
4. Choose one project to complete
Write a short speech from the point of view of tape or glue explaining why it is better than the other.
Who invented Scotch Tape? Do some research to answer this question. Use at least 5 sentences.
Why would you want to use duct tape to hold a chain of bowling balls together instead of glue? Explain this using 5 sentences.
Make a list of all of the the types of tapes and glues that you know about. try to come up with at least 15. Don’t forget those made by nature.
5. Share your science mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.
Plastic is not just used for milk jugs and bottles of soda…it’s EVERYWHERE! Watch the video below about the history of plastic and then do some further research on something specific mentioned in the video.
Spark your thinking!
1. Set up your social studies mini spark recording page: #38: History of Plastics
2. Watch this video. Record the names of plastics along with dates that they are invented, if mentioned.
3. Choose 2 questions to answer after watching the video. Remind your teacher that the answer key can be found in the social studies mini spark folder.
Who invented celluloid, and in what year did this invention occur? Describe the characteristics of celluloid that made it unsuitable for billiard balls.
What two substances were combined to create Bakelite, and why was it considered an improvement over celluloid?
List at least three types of plastics that were developed after Bakelite and briefly describe their uses.
Explain the process of the manufacturing technique was invented that allowed for rapid production of plastic items?
How did the production of plastics change during World War Two?
Discuss some of the environmental issues associated with plastic production and usage as mentioned in the video.
4. Check out Jeff Kirschner’s TED Talk. Learn more about the environmental impact of plastics and other litter and how solutions as being spread around the world.
The task for this step is to record the cities or countries Jeff Kirschner says in the video on your recording sheet. There will be 6 in total. ***Note: The last two places mentioned at the very end of the video. They are cities, and they both start with H.
5. Look over your list. Scroll to the bottom of this post to see if you have them all recorded. Put a star next to those that you can find on a map easily. Put a check by those places that you need to look up. Use a map to find those places. Change your checkmark to a star..
6. Share your social studies mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.
According writersdigest.com, a blackout poem is when a poet takes a marker (usually black marker) to already established text–like in a newspaper–and starts redacting words until a poem is formed.
If you’re not familiar with blackout poetry, this 5ish minute video provides a good overview.
You can also “Google” blackout poetry” and find a plethora of images/examples.
Contest Rules
Create a blackout poem. You can use a newspaper, magazine, book that you own (the EY Team has some to choose from), etc.
The oldest glue in the world is over 8,000 years old and comes from a cave near the Dead Sea. Today, we have enough types of tape and glue to build and repair almost anything. But what gives glue and tape their stickiness? And is one stronger than the other?
