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Explore Area and Perimeter with the Phet Simulation and Game

In this activity, students will first begin by exploring the area and perimeter.  Tell your students to make a shape that has a specific area or perimeter and then give them time to explore and create.  As you go, make the math challenges more difficult.  When they have had a chance to explore, have them play the game.  The challenge is to see how many levels they can complete.  Keep in mind that the last level is unique in that students now have to create a shape with a specific area while creating a fraction of the shaded color like the second image below.

A tribute to Snow Days

This music video might be a great way to start a Professional Development meeting.  In this video, a third-grade teacher sings about her wish for having a snow day.  It is sung to the tune of "Hello."  If you are a teacher, especially in the elementary schools then she nails our thoughts on the head with this song.  It is very well done and funny.

 

A Mineral or not a Mineral Lab

Use this assignment to help students understand the difference between a mineral and other objects that they might think are minerals. The activity doesn't take long but when you are discussing what a mineral actually is, this assignment gives your students practice. Students have a list of words that they need to sort into columns. One column is for minerals, the other column is for non-minerals. If they place an object into the non-mineral section they need to justify which rule was broken.

Random Spinners For Probability, Order of Operations, and Finding Rules

This website gives teachers the ability to quickly create random numbers that can be used for adding, subtracting, multiplying, dividing, order of operations, finding rules, and learning to substitute values.  The spinners can be used with 2 to 12 sections in each spinner.  You can have up to 4 spinners.  It also contains a timer in which you can quickly turn the spinners into fun and visual activities.  Watch the YouTube Video on using the spinners to see how it can be used.

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