Category Archives: Learning Opportunities

#35: The Math Behind the Solar Eclipse

Math Mini Sparks

Taken from NASA.gov:  One of the reasons that ancient peoples could not predict total solar eclipses was because they did not appreciate the mathematics involved in forecasting. Also, many of the parameters needed to accurately predict eclipses had not been astronomically measured until the first century CE.

Spark your math thinking!

  1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #35: The Math Behind the Solar Eclipse
  2. Go to this site to read about eclipses. Then click the arrows to go through the quick facts. Record several details.
  3.  Watch this video, The Coincidental Geometry of a Total Solar Eclipse, to learn more about the math involved. Take notes while watching.

4. Read and take notes about total solar eclipses at National Geographic Kids. 

5.  *Advanced: Take the NASA Challenge X Marks the Spot Linear Equations. Print out the activity sheets to get started.

6. *Advanced: Take the NASA Challenge Exploring Angular Diameter.

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

#34: Pizza Math

Math Mini Sparks
Where is your favorite place to eat pizza?  My Top 3 are Sortinos, Mama’s Pizza, and Papa Johns.  Of course whenever we eat pizza as a family, we have to make up some math problems!  Explore some “pizza math”!
Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #34: Pizza Math

2. Watch the video, Pizza Pi, and add details on your recording page.

3. Now watch this video, The Twitter Pizza Equation Explained ,and add details to your recording page showing the math behind the pizza sizes.

4. Omni has a great site with information on pizza math and an pizza size calculator. On the left side there are a few articles about pizza. Record the title of each article and 3 details from each one on your note taking sheet.

5. Now try out the calculator. You can use the measurements from one of the videos or create your own and see what the comparisons are. Record what you find.

6. OPTIONAL: Calculate the area, circumference, and price per square inch of the next pizza you order.  Make a display of the math/calculations.

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

 

#33: Math Madness

Math Mini Sparks

March Madness is an exciting time for basketball fans, where 68 college teams compete in a single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion. But did you know that math plays a crucial role in understanding and predicting the outcomes of these games?

Spark your math thinking!

  1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #33: Math Madness
  2.  Read an short article about March Madness from DOGO news. Add 3 pieces of information to your recording sheet from the article.
  3. Watch this video about the perfect bracket.  On your recording page answer these questions: What are the chances of choosing the winner of every game in the entire tournament?  What are some of the ways that the kids picked the teams that they thought would win?
  4. Print out this activity from Yummy Math Activity: Does Seeding Matter? Read the page and do problems #1-#5. (ask your teacher if this needs to be modified) Reminder for your teacher-the answer key to this activity can be found in the math mini spark folder.
  5. Advanced option: Complete the entire worksheet Does Seeding Matter.
  6. Share your math mini spark recording page and Does Seeding Matter activity with your teacher/EY coordinator.

#18: Ireland

Social Studies Enrichment

This mini spark is all about the Emerald Isle! Ready to discover one of Europe’s most beautiful countries?

Spark your thinking!

1. Set up your Social Studies recording page: #18: Ireland Information

2.  Set your timer for 3 minutes. Study this map of Ireland. Record 10 details on your recording page.

3. Read a teaching page all about Ireland at National Geographic Kids.   Record at least 8 facts that you did not know.

4. Do research to determine if these are Irish cities, counties, rivers, or mountains. Record your answers on your recording page. (Don’t peek until you have done the research)

  • Liffey
  • Galway
  • Shannon:
  • Belfast
  • Cork
  • Slieve
  • Bray
  • Erne
  • Wicklow
  • Killarney

When you are done, scroll to the bottom of this post to check your work.

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

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  1. Liffey: The River Liffey is a major river in Dublin, Ireland, that flows through the city and is an important part of its geography and history.
  2. Galway: A city on the west coast of Ireland known for its vibrant culture, arts scene, and as a gateway to scenic areas like Connemara and the Cliffs of Moher.
  3. Shannon: The River Shannon is the longest river in Ireland, flowing through several counties and known for its beautiful landscapes and recreational activities.
  4. Belfast: The capital city of Northern Ireland, known for its rich industrial history, cultural landmarks, and as the birthplace of the RMS Titanic.
  5. Cork: A city located in the south of Ireland, famous for its historic architecture and as a center for food and music.
  6. Slieve: Refers to the Slieve Mish Mountains, a mountain range in County Kerry, known for its rugged beauty and hiking trails.
  7. Bray: A coastal town near Dublin, known for its scenic seafront and the nearby Bray Head mountain, popular for walking and stunning views.
  8. Erne: The River Erne is a river in the northwest of Ireland that flows through counties Fermanagh and Donegal, known for its lakes and fishing.
  9. Wicklow: A county in Ireland known for the Wicklow Mountains, which offer beautiful landscapes, hiking opportunities, and rich biodiversity.
  10. Killarney: A town in County Kerry, famous for its national park, lakes, and mountains, making it a popular destination for tourists and nature lovers.

#28: Fairy Tales

Reading Enrichment

What are Fairy Tales?  According to Merriam-Webster, a fairy tale is “a story (as for children) involving fantastic forces and beings (as fairies, wizards, and goblins) – called also fairy story”.  

Spark your thinking!

1. Set up your language arts mini spark recording page: #28: Fairy Tales

2. Have you seen Beauty and the Beast? Watch this short clip from the animated movie. Record 4 characters from the clip and explain how they are magical.

3. The original Beauty and the Beast (French: La Belle et la Bête) is a traditional fairy tale written by French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and published in 1740 in La Jeune Américaine et les contes marins. Read this article about this fairy tale. On your recording sheet record 5 details.

4. Please read this Wonderopolis article, How Old are Fairy Tales?  Make a 5 question quiz and answer key to go along with the article.

5. Go to this website and choose 2 more fairy tales to read. Record the title and a short summary of the story on your recording page.

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

#32: Narcissistic Numbers

Math Mini Sparks

A narcissistic number is a number that is the sum of its own digits each raised to the power of the number of digits. It is also known as a pluperfect digital invariant (PPDI), an Armstrong number (after Michael F. Armstrong) or a plus perfect number. 

Narcissistic Numbers aren’t actually that confusing if you know how to do a couple things.  Check out this math mini spark so that you can learn more about these peculiar numbers!

Spark your math thinking!

  1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #32: Narcissistic Numbers
  2. Watch this video by Numberphile. Take notes on your recording page.

3. Look at the list of Narcissistic Numbers on Wolfram Alpha. Record several of them.

4. Pick a Narcissistic Number to “work out” on your recording sheet to prove it works.  See example below.

IMG_1376

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

#31: Super Bowl Math

Math Mini Sparks

Whether you’re a football fan or not, it’s interesting to look at the history of the Super Bowl.  This math mni spark has you predicting, collecting, and displaying some data related to the Super Bowl.

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #31: Super Bowl Math

2. Make some predictions.  Without looking online for the answers, predict how much a 30 second ad cost to run during the Super Bowl in the following years:  1962, 1972, 1982, 1992, 2002, 2012, 2022.  Record these predictions on your recording page.  Next to your predictions, use this site to record the actual cost for those years.

3. Why is the Super Bowl in roman numerals? Read this article to find out. Record what you learned.

4. Choose 1

Pictograph idea Pick 5 NFL teams and write those on the x-axis of your graph.  Using this site, record how many Super Bowls each team played in.  Use a helmet, a football, or some other picture to display the data.  Make sure to include a key for your graph (i.e. 1 football = 1 Super Bowl).

Scatter plot idea  Use the data on this site.  Use the x-axis to represent the year and the y-axis to represent the cost of a 30 second ad.  There are several tools you can use to make your graph including Numbers (app on the iPad), Create A Graph website, Scatter Plot Tool, and others.  Share your completed graph with the EY Coordinator at your building.

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

#27: Interjections!

Reading Enrichment

According to grammar-monster.com, interjections are “words used to express strong feeling or sudden emotion. They are included in a sentence (usually at the start) to express a sentiment such as surprise, disgust, joy, excitement, or enthusiasm.”

Spark your thinking!

1. Set up your language arts mini spark recording page: #27: Interjections!

2. Watch the Schoolhouse Rock cartoon about interjections. Record several interjections on your recording page.

3. Practice your new knowledge by taking this 6 question quiz.  Record your score on your recording sheet.

4. Listen to the story If You Were an Interjection. There are some punctuation rules to use with interjections correctly. On your recording page write about when is the right time to use each of the following punctuation marks with interjections : exclamation point, comma, question mark, and period.

NOTE: Pay attention to how the sentences were punctuated in the video. You will need to pause the video to look at the words closely.

5. Study this grammar page. Add in 5 more ideas about interjections on your recording page.

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

#17: Jesse Owens

Social Studies Enrichment

Jesse Owens, son of a sharecropper and grandson of a slave, achieved what no Olympian before him had accomplished.

Spark your thinking!

1. Set up your social studies mini spark recording page #17: Jesse Owens

2. Read this information and make a timeline with at least 8 dates.

Who was Jesse Owens?  Track-and-field athlete Jesse Owens won four gold medals at

the 1936 Olympic Games. His achievements were important for himself and for many other people at the time. The Games were held in Berlin, Germany. Nazi leader Adolf Hitler was in power there. Nazi banners draped the sports field. The Nazis believed white athletes were best. But Owens proved that they were wrong.

James Cleveland Owens was born in Oakville, Alabama, on September 12, 1913. His family later moved to Cleveland, Ohio, in search of better opportunities.

Jesse became a track star at a young age. In 1928 he set track records in the high jump and the running broad jump (long jump). In 1933, while he was in high school, he broke three other records. He then went to Ohio State University.

In the 1936 Olympics Owens won gold medals for the running broad jump, the 100- and 200-meter races, and the 4 × 100-meter team relay. He also set new Olympic and world records.

Owens graduated from college in 1937 and worked for the Illinois Athletic Commission. He later got involved in guidance activities for young boys. He also made goodwill visits to countries in Asia for the U.S. government. Owens died in Phoenix, Arizona, on March 31, 1980.

3. To learn more about Jesse Owens, watch the video below.  Record 1 idea you would like to remember, 2 words to describe Jessie, and 3 facts.

4. This information page has more detailed information about Jessee. What is the most important thing you learned about Jesse Owens? Respond with several thoughtful sentences. Add this to your recording sheet.

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

 

#35: Animal Enrichment

Early Enrichment

Did you know that you are not the only person that gets to do enrichment activities? Animals do, too! It may look like they are just playing or eating, but these enrichment activities challenge the animals’ brains and get then moving around. 

Spark your thinking!

  1. Set up your Early Enrichment Mini Spark recording page: #35: Animal Enrichment
  2.  At our very own Henry Doorly Zoo, zookeepers make fun activities for animals. Hear from our zookeepers to learn about animal enrichment. On your recording page answer the question: What is animal enrichment?

3.  Watch animal enrichment activities at the Smithsonian National Zoo.  Which activity did you like the most? 

  1. Read this article.  Add 3 details to your recording page. 
  2. Share your early enrichment mini spark recording page with your teacher or EY Coordinator. 

Check out the Save the Animals badge at the EY website.