Today’s age is filled with a wide variety of forms of entertainment. Television shows and movies are some of the most common forms today. Usually we don’t associate math with these however there have been some movies and episodes with a focus on a math topic. One such movie is Good Will Hunting. The movie has a particular math problem in which an MIT professor claims it took him years to solve. The problem basically is to draw all shapes that fit the description. There are ten shapes in total. MIT is one of the best universities in the world. Are you able to solve the problem that supposedly took an MIT professor a long time to solve in a day or less? Find out!

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #51: Movie Math.
2. You are going to watch the video that introduces a problem and explains how to solve it.  Pause around 2:30 so you don’t see the answers until after you attempt the problem. Good Will Hunting Math Problem

3. After pausing the video, try drawing all 10 trees. You can check your answers near the end of the video in which he shares the answers

4. On your recording page, write about something new you learned. 

5. Share this video with your parents, friends, and/or adults and ask them if they can solve the problem as well

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

*Inspired by the movie Good Will Hunting

Music is a powerful communication tool–it causes us to laugh, cry, think and question.  Music is also connected to math!

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page:#48: Music and Math
2. In this You Tube video,  drummer Clayton Cameron breaks down different genres of music and shows how different styles of music rely on math. Watch Clayton Cameron’s video and write about something new you learned.

3. Read this Kennedy Center article about math showing up in music and record a few new ideas.

4. Watch this video about the Fibonacci Sequence and how it shows up in music. Record 3 ideas on your recording page.

**Advanced option-this article goes into much more detail music and the Fibonacci Sequence.

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

Go ahead…play some games on your iPad! For this mini spark, we want you to play some games.  That’s right, games!

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #47: iPad Math

NOTE: For this mini spark you need to get your teacher’s permission before you start.

2. Make 4 sections on your recording page.

3.  This site has several math games intended for the iPad.  You will choose 4 games to play for this mini spark. For each game you play you will follow the same process

• Set your timer for 5 minutes
• When the timer goes off, write a short review of each game
• Include this information for each game:

The name of the game you played               

The grade level you think the game is appropriate for

The hardest part about the game.

The easiest part about the game.  

Did you like the game?  Why or why not?

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

Several of you have caught the “Hopscotch Bug” and are creating AMAZING things in Hopscotch!  For this week’s Math Minute, you’ll be using Hopscotch to draw some polygons. Please email the EY coordinator in your building about creating a Hopscotch account.

How can you spend your Math Minutes this week?

• Start by watching this video
• Copy the chart from the video onto a piece of paper, or create the chart on your iPad.  NOTE:  You can go past a 12-sided figure if you want.
• As the video suggests, fill in the chart with the remaining information (polygon names and angles).
• Send a picture of your completed chart and a screenshot of the polygons you created in Hopscotch.

• Explore this website by increasing and decreasing the number of sides on a polygon.  Watch the angles change as you do this.  While on the website, explore and find the answers to the following questions:
  • What are regular polygons?
  • What are convex and concave polygons?
  • What are supplementary angles?  What does that have to do with this activity?
  • How did you figure out which number to enter for the degrees in the Turn Command in Hopscotch?
• Leave a comment with the answer to one of the questions above and/or post any new information you learned/observations you made.   Remember when leaving a comment to include your first name, grade, and school (i.e. Trevor, 3, Sunset).

Happy Coding!

Car brands are making impressive advances in the field of self driving cars. These breakthroughs combine advanced safety systems to help reduce driver fatigue by assisting with acceleration, braking and steering. There are also high tech adaptations that can help people with disabilities accommodate their driving needs.

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #45: High Tech Cars
2. Read this article about self driving cars. Record the level names and a short definion for each.
3. Check out this video of Sam Schmidt’s High-Tech modified corvette!  The 3 minute video is chock-full of speeds, measurements, and high-tech components!  Imagine being able to drive a car without the use of your hands and legs! On your recording sheet, document any numbers mentioned in the video (speeds, measurements, etc.).

5. Read this article to find out more about Sam Schmidt and the semi-autonomous motorcar he drove.  Write about something new you learned or a new question you have after reading the article.

6. Read about flying cars at Wonderopolis.  Make a list of 3 pro and 3 cons of having flying cars in the city you live in.

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

TO INFINITY AND BEYOND!!!

This famous line from the beloved Disney Toy Story Movies became a common phrase for children in the mid 1990’s.  But what are we really saying when we declare our desire to take off on this infinite voyage?

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #44: Infinity
2. Check out this TED Ed video on infinity.  Record 5-10 details from the video on your recording page.

3. Knowledge can be infinite!  Check out this link to expand your knowledge on this topic! Write about something you learned.

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

This mini spark is about fractions and multiplying cheese and milk.

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #42: Multiplying Cheese and Milk

2. This is a clip from my absolute favorite Home Improvement episode.  Most of you are probably too young to remember the show, but you can catch re-runs sometimes or find them on You Tube.  This particular episode is related to math and talks about some of the “crazy” rules and words mathematicians use

3.  The steps to multiplying fractions can be confusing.  Watch this video as a reminder. Do the math along with the teacher in the video. 

4. Figure out the answer to Jill’s “cheese milk” recipe:  1 1/2 lbs of cheese x 1 1/2 gallons of milk. Record the all of the math and the answer.

5. There are times when a math item can be called different names.  In the video above, they called mixed numbers, compound fractions. My favorite math word is radical! It can also be called root symbol. I like it so much I had a shirt made! Do a little research and find some math terms that go by more than one name.

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

Will future spacecraft fit in our pockets?  Learn about  this small technology and how scientists are exploring our world.

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #41: Future Spacecraft
2. Watch this video, write about some of the calculation scientist must make for these tiny spacecraft to be created. 

3. Think about the following:  NASA provides opportunities for students, researchers and industry to launch their small satellite payloads on NASA’s own launches.  What type of small satellite would you build and what type of data or experiment would you carry out if you could send a small satellite to space?

4. Read about Specific Impulse on this site.  It’s some higher level math, but try to read through it and pick out at least one new thing you can write about on your recording page.

5. Read about SmallSats and CubeSats at NASA. Record some details on your recording sheet.

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

Wait…is this a Math Spark or a Science Spark?  Math and science are so intertwined that it’s hard to tell sometimes whether you’re doing one or the other.  Many times it’s both!