Classroom Commons

Monday, November 18, 2013

Thursday, January 10, 2013

Math Video

A different yet awesome way to think about teaching math.

Monday, December 3, 2012

My grandparents on my dad’s side were from family farms, and it was expected that they would go to school and work on the family farm. School was mainly to learn to read, write, and do basic math. So 8th grade was considered enough education and so they joined the family farms to work full time after that point.
My grandparents on my mother’s side were from the city. They needed to get jobs in the city and the best way to do that was to graduate high school. Although, they lived during the same time period and their education was higher working was the main goal.
My parents were both children of the baby boom. Math and Science were stressed in school, especially high school. Both of my parents came from big families (mom 11 dad 9) and they were older children. Even though one came from a farm and one the city, their parents felt they were doing the best for them and kicked them out of the house at age 18. College was a decision time for my parents to decide what they wanted to do in life. Mom went to college to get a degree and start working or get married whichever came first. Dad knew he was good with his hands and got degrees in electronics and automotive repair before getting a job as a mechanic. Dad currently (and for the past 20 years) works for the City of Fargo where his mechanic knowledge comes in handy. He uses the other half of his college education now working on hobby projects. My dad loves fixing T.V.s and computers in his spare time.
When I was growing up my parents stressed that school was extremely important (a big difference from my grandparents). I worked hard and did well through high school. College was different, I worked hard however anxiety was a big factor for me and I was self-defeating. I left school for a while and eventually figured out my anxiety issues (although some days are still bad). I am now back in college being educated for me. I could work in nearly any job requiring a high school diploma and had a promising job, but I want to teach. I am still undecided as to whether I want to pursue my masters. However, I want to give children the best chance at learning so, although it may not be formal education, I never plan on quitting my education.

Sunday, December 2, 2012

Cutlery Wind Chime Lesson Plan

HEADING (1 pt)

Name: James Hoff School: Valley City State University

Room: Eml 378 Content: Art

Time: 9:30 – 10:45 Topic: Recycling

Date: November 20^th 2012 Lesson: Cutlery Wind chimes

CONTENT STANDARDS/COMMON CORE

OBJECTIVES (3 pts)

The learners will to the best of their ability:

1. Collect 1 paper plate, 1 pencil, markers, 4 pieces of long ribbon and 7 pieces of short ribbon, and 7 pieces of plastic cutlery to make a cutlery wind chime.

2. Color the paper plate with markers.

3. Poke 4 holes on the edge of the paper plate with a pencil an equal distance apart.

4. Poke 7 holes randomly in the inner circle of the paper plate.

5. Tie a knot in the 4 long pieces of ribbon at an end

6. Feed the long ribbons through the outer holes in the plate facing one direction.

7. Tie the 4 long pieces of yarn together to create a hanging plate.

8. Tie a knot in the 7 short pieces of yarn at an end

9. Feed the short ribbons through the random holes in the plate facing opposite the long ribbons.

10. Tie 1 piece of plastic cutlery to each short ribbon with the handle facing the plate.

11. Trim the ribbon to create clean knots.

MATERIALS/EQUIPMENT (2 pts)

1. 1 example cutlery wind chime

2. 1 paper plate per student

3. 1 pencil per student

4. 1 package of markers per student

5. 4 Pieces of long ribbon (16”) per student

6. 7 Pieces of short ribbon (10”) per student

7. 7 pieces of plastic cutlery per student

8. 1 scissor per 3 students

INTRODUCTION (3 pts)

Raise hand to get attention. Start after everyone’s hand is in the air.

1. How many of you have created art projects out of recycled materials?

a. Look for raised hands

2. What kinds of projects did you make?

a. Popsicle houses

b. Popsicle picture frames

c. Accordion foldout books

d. Christmas ornaments

e. Qr code games

3. What types of recycled material did you use?

a. Pop bottle tops

b. Popsicle sticks

c. Cardboard boxes

d. Chop sticks

4. Today we are going to add to your recycling art experience by creating cutlery wind chimes.

DEVELOPMENTAL ACTIVITIES (4 pts)

1. Gather all materials and sit quietly at the table

2. Color both sides of the paper plate whatever design you so choose with markers.

3. Using a pencil, poke 4 holes on the outer edge of the plate so that each hole is evenly spaced.

a. Another way to think about it is to place the holes in a plus pattern.

4. Using a pencil, poke 7 holes in the inner circle of the paper plate at random.

5. At each end of the 4 long ribbons tie a knot at the end.

6. Take each ribbon and feed it through the 4 hour holes (one string per hole) so that the knot is touching the plate.

7. Tie the un-knotted end of the 4 long ribbons together in order to create a way for the plate to hang.

8. At each end of the 7 short ribbons tie a knot at the end.

9. Take each ribbon and feed it through the random 7 holes in your plate.

a. Make sure to have the knots touching the plate, but on the opposite side of the knots from the long ribbons.

10. Tie 1 pieces of plastic cutlery to each short ribbon with the handle closest/facing the plate.

11. Trim the ribbons to create clean knots.

CLOSING ACTIVITIES (2 pts)

1. Clean up

2. Markers back in boxes

3. Give Scissor back to teacher

4. Extra material back to teacher

5. Thank the learners, compliment them on well-made wind chimes, and introduce the next teacher

6. If last teacher, thank the learners, compliment them on well-made wind chimes, and state that we will now wait for the rest of the groups to finish and then we will join the main class.

EVALUATION OF STUDENT LEARNING (3 pts)

Rubric Components:

1. Plate colored

2. 7 pieces of cutlery hanging from short ribbons off plate

3. 4 pieces of long ribbon create a holder

4. 10 points

5. Student will be able to show a completed cutlery wind chime and talk about using recycled materials for art projects.

Mathematicians Report

Amalie Emma Noether: (1882-1935) Germany

Amalie Noether was a pioneering mathematical researcher. She was born in Erlangen, Germany on March 23, 1882. She was named Amalie, but always called "Emmy". She was the eldest of four children, and Mathematics seemed in her bloodline. Her father was Max Noether, a noted mathematician of his time, and her brother Fritz also made a career of mathematics.

At the age of 18, Noether chose to take classes in mathematics at the University of Erlangen. Her brother, Fritz, was a student there, and her father was a professor of mathematics. Due to the fact she was a woman, the university refused to let Noether take classes. They did grant her permission to audit classes, however. She sat in on classes for two years, and then took and passed the exam that would permit her to be a doctoral student in Mathematics. This put her in good standing with the school. After five more years of study, she was granted the second ever degree to a woman in the field of Mathematics. The first had graduated a year earlier.

Emmy Noether made several major advances in abstract algebra. She originated novel reasoning methods, especially one based on "chain conditions.” Also, her perseverance about generalization led to a unified theory of modules and Noetherian rings. Her methods tended to unify disparate areas (algebra, geometry, topology, logic) and led eventually to modern category theory. Also, her origination of homology groups revolutionized topology.

Emmy Noether's work has found various applications in physics, and she made direct advances in mathematical Physics as well. Noether's Theorem established that certain symmetries imply conservation laws. This theorem has been noted as the most important theorem in physics since the Pythagorean Theorem.

Emmy Noether was not just great in Mathematics, she was a great person. She was generous with students and colleagues, even allowing them to claim her work as their own. Noether was close friends with other greatest mathematicians of her generation. Hilbert, von Neumann, and Weyl were among her friends. Weyl once said he was embarrassed to accept the famous Professorship at Göttingen because Noether was his "superior as a mathematician." Few would dispute that Emmy Noether was the greatest female mathematician ever.

Archimedes of Syracuse (287-212 BC) Greek domain

Archimedes is commonly recognized to be the greatest of ancient mathematicians. He studied at Euclid's school (likely after Euclid's death), but his work far bested the works of Euclid. His achievements are particularly impressive given the lack of proper mathematical notation during his life. His proofs are noted not only for brilliance but for unsurpassed simplicity.

Archimedes made advances in number theory, Algebra, and analysis, but is most renowned for his many theorems of plane and solid Geometry. He was first to prove Heron's formula for the area of a triangle. One of his most remarkable and famous geometric results was determining the area of a parabolic section, for which he offered two independent proofs, one using his Principle of the Lever, the other using a geometric series. Many of Archimedes' discoveries are known only in the second-hand: Pappus reports that he discovered the Archimedean solids. Thabit ibn Qurra used Archimedes’ method to construct a regular heptagon. Also, Alberuni credits the Broken-Chord Theorem to him.

Archimedes anticipated integral calculus, most notably by determining the centers of mass of hemisphere and cylindrical wedge, and the volume of two cylinders' intersection. Although Archimedes made little use of differential calculus, He was similar to Newton in that he used his (non-rigorous) Calculus to discover results and then devise rigorous geometric proofs for publication. His original achievements in Physics include the principles of leverage, the first law of hydrostatics, and inventions like the compound pulley, the hydraulic screw, and war machines. Also, Archimedes discovered formula for the volume and surface area of a sphere, and may have been first to notice and prove the simple relationship between a circle's circumference and area. For these reasons, π is often called Archimedes' constant. His approximation 223/71 < π < 22/7 was the best of his day. (Apollonius soon surpassed it, but only by using Archimedes' method.)

In the 20th century, modern technology led to the discovery of new writings by Archimedes, hitherto hidden on a palimpsest. It included a note which may imply an understanding of the distinction between countable and uncountable infinities (a distinction which wasn't resolved until Georg Cantor, who lived 2300 years after the time of Archimedes). Although Newton may have been the most important mathematician, and Gauss the greatest theorem prover, it is widely accepted that Archimedes was the greatest genius who ever lived. Unfortunately, Archimedes was too far ahead of his time.

References

http://www.agnesscott.edu/lriddle/women/noether.htm

http://fabpedigree.com/james/greatmm.htm

Pages