Sunday, May 28, 2017

#Teach180: Days 161-170

This year I've taken on the #teach180 challenge.  The challenge is to post one tweet per day showing a glimpse inside your classroom.  I'm also putting the tweets together in a biweekly blog so that I can share the resources that I'm tweeting about.

Day 161:  Today we had our weekly cumulative quiz.  Only 3 more weeks worth of these :)

Day 162:  Today in geometry, we practiced constructing parallel and perpendicular lines  using ExploreLearning's Gizmo.

Day 163:  Today in algebra 2 we used the mini whiteboards to practice finding the sum of infinite geometric series.

Day 164:  Today in geometry we continued mixing final exam review by using Khan Academy.  We used this activity:  Decompose Figures to Find Volume.

Day 165:  Today in algebra 2 we used EDpuzzle to learn about making truth tables for compound statements.  It was also the first of 6 days of state testing.  We have two days each for literature, biology, and algebra 1.
Day 166:  Today we had another one of our weekly quizzes.
Day 167:  Today in geometry we reviewed reflections using an ExploreLearning Gizmo.  As an extra treat, we had an ice cream social to celebrate the halfway point of state testing.  I hope it rejuvenates kids enough to finish strong.
Day 168:  Today in algebra 2 we practiced making truth tables for compound statements using this worksheet.  In addition to being day 4 of 6 for state testing, we also had our field day today.  It is a spirited day of 'competition' between graduating classes.  I use competition loosely because we have activities for everyone including athletics, carnival type games, coloring, rubiks cube, etc.

Day 169:  Today in geometry we reviewed dilations with this ExploreLearning Gizmo.  We also continued with state testing.  It is our second to last day.

Day 170:  Today in algebra 2 we used EDpuzzle to learn about making truth tables for conditional statements.  It was also our last day of state testing :)  Finally!


That's it for this round of #teach180.  It's never too late to join in the fun!

Sunday, May 21, 2017

#Teach180: Days 151-160

This year I've taken on the #teach180 challenge.  The challenge is to post one tweet per day showing a glimpse inside your classroom.  I'm also putting the tweets together in a biweekly blog so that I can share the resources that I'm tweeting about.

Day 151:  Today we had another one of our weekly cumulative quizzes.

Day 152:  Today in geometry we practiced finding the measure of inscribed angles (and angles formed by a tangent and a chord) as well as their intercepted arcs.  We did this with a game of BOOM!  Here are the cards if you'd like to use them.  I got the idea from this TpT page.  The BOOM cards come from Rachel Lynette.
Day 153:  Today in algebra 2 we practiced finding missing terms in a sequence by playing this game of Go Fish!

Day 154:  Today in geometry we started to mix in some review for our final exam.  We reviewed translations with this Desmos Activity by Karina Powell.  I love how every time we play Polygraph, kids ask to do more of it in the future.

Day 155:  Today in algebra 2 we practiced determining if a sequence is arithmetic, geometric, or neither with this Desmos activity by Jonathan Schoolcraft

Day 156: Today we took our last set of benchmark tests.  Finally feeling like the last marking period.

Day 157:  Today in geometry, we reviewed rotations with Andrew Stadel's Desmos activity.

Day 158:  Today in algebra 2 we practiced converting between sigma notation and expanded form using this color by number assignment.

Day 159:  Today in geometry we reviewed the pythagorean theorem using this ExploreLearning Gizmo.

Day 160:  Today in algebra 2 we practiced finding the sum of arithmetic and geometric series by playing board games.  This was a huge hit today, especially with my third period class where kids were screaming with excitement.  A little snakes and ladders brings out the giddy child in these high schoolers :) Here is a link to the question cards if you'd like to use them.
That's it for this round of #teach180.  It's never too late to join in the fun!

Sunday, May 14, 2017

#Teach180: Days 141-150


This year I've taken on the #teach180 challenge.  The challenge is to post one tweet per day showing a glimpse inside your classroom.  I'm also putting the tweets together in a biweekly blog so that I can share the resources that I'm tweeting about.

Day 141: Today we had our first weekly quiz of the fourth marking period.

Day 142:  Today in geometry, we practiced finding the volume of pyramids and cones using this ExploreLearning Gizmo.

Day 143:  Today in algebra 2 we practiced evaluating logarithms with this domino activity.  Students have to rewrite the log in exponential form and sometimes they have to condense an expression first.

Day 144:  Today in geometry we practiced finding the surface area and volume of spheres using this tic-tac-toe like activity.  Kids partnered up to see who could get 4 in a row.
Day 145:  Today in algebra 2, students practiced solving logarithmic equations using this earthquake activity.  I wrote in more detail about the activity here.  It was very cool creating to this assignment and working with someone from the USGS to create a reality based task.

Day 146:  Another weekly quiz today.

Day 147:  Today in geometry, we practiced finding central angles and their corresponding arcs as well as finding arc length by playing board games.  I wrote about this is in more detail here.  And here is a link to the game cards that we used today.

Day 148:  Today in algebra 2 we used EDpuzzle to learn about writing exponential functions.

Day 149:  Today in geometry we practiced using pairs of tangent lines of a circle from the same point.  We used this color by number assignment.


Day 150:  Today in algebra 2 we practiced using exponential growth and decay functions with this ExploreLearning activity.

That's it for this round of #teach180.  It's never too late to join in the fun!

Sunday, May 7, 2017

Dance Dance Transversal Part 2

I can't say for sure where I first stumbled across Dance Dance Transversal.  It was most certainly on twitter while catching up on #MTBoS posts.  I found many people who had implemented the lesson, but the one that was done the best was this one by JJ Martinez and Jenn Vadnais.

Last year, I used their Billie Jean and Uptown Funk videos.  My supervisor just happened to be doing a walk through as I was transitioning from one activity to the next.  When he walked in the room, the kids were cleaning up their markers and other supplies from a project that they were working on (they were creating alphabet scrap books for "The ABCs of Geometry") while I was bringing up the needed videos.  He inquired about what we were about to do for the second half of the period.  I let him know that what I was about to do would either go horribly wrong or be fantastic.  Of course with this bit of information, he had to stay.  I wrote about the implementation on that day here.

This year, wanted to step up my game.  Although I really liked the videos that JJ and Jen created, I wanted to make my own.  I made a Single Ladies version and a Hips Don't Lie version.  I love the Shakira video because I bring this activity to a higher level.  By removing the visual cue for each dance move, I require students to think more about identifying the any types.  Feel free to use either of these videos in your own class.



Next year, I think I'll add some sort of hand motions.  Maybe one move for angles that are supplementary and another for those that are congruent.

I'm also looking for extensions of this.  I know Jen also created a Tap Tap Trigonometry game where students 'drummed' to practice sine, cosine, and tangent ratios.  I need to brainstorm where else this type of movement based activity might help students with vocabulary/identification skills.  I'd love to hear your ideas.