Round and Round We Go! -- Circles

Hi Ellie,

Here are some links to help with the circle test you have on Monday:

• Area of a Circle (Lesson)


• Finding Circumference (Lesson)


• Geometry Tutorial Site (Lots of cool stuff.)


• Calculating Circumference


• Calculating Area


• Solve Problems by Working Backward

Love ya!

Exam Practice: Short Answer Problems #1 of 3

Hi Ellie,

I've got a copy of a grade 7 exam from another school in Manitoba. Beginning with this post I will publish several questions from the exam each day. Your job is to solve the questions on the blog. For each post of "problems" I make you will make a post, in reply, with the solutions. Show all your work where possible. Use the same titles for your posts as I do but replace the word Problems with the word Solutions. If you want to do your work on paper you can scan it and save it as a jpeg file and post it to the blog. If you do this, your dad can help.

If you have trouble solving any problems that's OK. This doesn't count for marks. We're using this space for learning and we learn best from making mistakes and talking about them. Other people reading your blog may also pop in to help. So if you have trouble with one or more questions write your "best guess." A mistake is a wonderful thing when you learn from it.

When you have trouble with a problem look through the previous posts in the blog. If you don't find any help there look in your text book. If you still can't find the help you need post a comment to the blog telling me which question is giving you a hard time and I'll help.

The exam has three parts:

• Part 1 has 25 short answer questions.


• Part 2 has 25 multiple choice questions.


• Part 3 has 14 word problems.


• You can use a calculator on all three parts except where it says you can't.

Here we go:

Short Answer Questions #1-9

(1) Find the sum of 476 + 83 + 8 (no calculator)

(2) What is the LCM of 2, 4 and 9?

(3) Evaluate: 3.2 + 3 x 6 - 2 (no calculator)

(4) Simplify: 6 x (6 + 2)² (no calculator)

(5) Write as a power of 10: 10 000 000

(6) Compare the following fractions by inserting the correct symbol in the box: <, > or =


(7) The numerator of the second fraction is:


(8) Solve for m: 3m + 2 = 14

(9) If y = 5 and z = 3, evaluate: 3y - 5z

That's it for tonight. Remember:

1. Use the comments of this post to ask for help if you have no idea how to do one of these questions. Include the question number.


2. Create a new post titled: Exam Practice: Short Answer Solutions #1 of 3. Solve each question showing all work where possible. It's GOOD to make mistakes here because this is where you're going to get the help you need to learn.

Love ya!

PowerPoint Help

Hi Ellie,

I found two PowerPoint presenations on Problem solving using algebra and drawing a diagram that might be helpful getting ready for your test and exam. Open them in PowerPoint and start the show by going to the [View]menu > [Slideshow]. The lesson will run all by itself.

Problem Solving I
Problem Solving II

Let me know if these help. Keep taking those quizzes and you'll keep getting better ... Learn Hard! ;-)

Learn Hard!

Hi Ellie,

Everything you need to know for your test this week can be found in Algebra and Popcorn ;-), 3 posts back. Review all the material you feel you need to but spend most of your time taking the quizzes at the bottom of the post; those are the types of questions you're likely to get on your quiz. You get good at running by doing lots of running -- you get good at taking quizzes by taking lots of quizzes. ;-)

Also, starting this week, I'd like you to write at least one post a week. Your post should answer one or all of the following:

• Tell me about a particular class that you had. The good, the bad, the ugly. ;-)


• Describe how you feel about your progress in math. What's going well? What's getting better? What do you feel you still need to work on? Be sure to mention any "old" material that you may have "left behind" in class.


• Tell me something that you've learned that you thought was "cool".


• Tell me about something that you found very hard to understand but now you get it! Describe what sparked that "moment of clarity." What did it feel like?


• Tell me about something the you found very hard and still don't understand. Be very specific about what part of it you do and don't understand. (The do part is just as important as the don't part.) Give me examples. Take good notes in class so you can copy them exactly on to the blog.


• Have you come across something we learned together, or that you've discussed in class, out there in the "real world" or another class? Describe the connection you made.

You don't have to answer all of them, but try to answer at least one of them once each week. I don't want this to seem like "work" but it will really help me help you; especially if you include LOTS of details. ;-)

Learn hard for your test. Maybe your first post can be about how the test went -- the good, the bad and the ugly. ;-)

Mathematics is the Science of Patterns ...

Hi Ellie,

I keep telling all my students this over and over again: Mathematics is the science of patterns!

I keep saying it because it's true. Not only that, but everything, and I mean everything is math. ;-) Everything that you learn or even the stuff that happens in your life over the course of a day has patterns to it. Good math isn't knowing the answer to a problem, good math is knowing what to do when you don't know the answer. Good math is looking for patterns. In all the games below you'll be looking for a pattern. Keep your eyes open and your thinking hat on. When you get stuck (and you will get stuck) don't give up. Go get a snack, come back and try again. You will figure it out if you keep trying. But then, you already knew that. ;-)

Here we go ...

• Spy Guys Interactive - Summarizing/Extending Patterns - Click Skip Intro, then select Lessons, and then click on Lesson 8 (Although it says it's grade 6 stuff, we do it in grade 7 too.)


• Mystery Operations - In this activity the computer makes up a mystery operation, and you have to figure out what the operation is. You give the computer two numbers to calculate, and it tells you the answer.


• Number Cracker - Help Mr. Cracker obtain the secret code before the insidious Prof. Soup catches him by guessing what number comes next in a series of numbers. Start with the easy level and work your way up. The Super Brain level is really hard!

Let me know what page of your textbook your on and whether or not these activities are helpful for what you're learning. Also, remember that I've asked you to write something on the blog that describes what you're learning at least once each week. I'll write a blog post about it tomorrow to help you figure out what you're supposed to write.

Love ya!

Bloglines - More Algebra Help

Hi Ellie,

This is a post from a grade 8 blog here in Winnipeg. (The teacher is a friend of mine.) His class is learning some of the same stuff you are. I thought these links might be helpful. ;-)

Love ya!

More Algebra Help

By Mr. H

This week we are finishing up the algebra equation unit. We are studying transposing.

Click here for extra notes on transposing.
Take a quiz with transposing
Click here for extra notes on the distributive property
Take a quiz with the distributive property and transposing

Watch a movie that explains the distributive property. You will need to click on the proper link on this page.

I welcome any suggestions and links to these topics. Please if you find any sites that are helpful add a comment and I will add them to the links on this page.

Work Hard

Harbeck

Algebra and Popcorn ;-)

Hi Ellie,

You've got a test on algebra so I've got a few review lessons for you and them some practice quizzes. I had a chance to look at your tests and this weekend I'll post some review material that will help you improve on some of the things you've already learned; look for it during the day on Sunday. Now on to the lessons ....

• Spy Guys Interactive - Balancing Equations
  You can watch the intro or skip it. Although it says it's for grade 6 it's also a grade 7 topic in this province. Click on [Lessons] then on [Lesson 11]. You may also want to watch the lesson on integers; [Lesson 6].)


• Subtraction vrs. Addition
  This lesson is about how to solve equations using addition and subtraction.


• Division vrs. Multiplication
  This lesson is about how to solve equations using division and multiplication.


• Solving Linear Equations Part 1
  This is a VERY good explanation of how to solve one-step equations. Although there's a lot of reading to do there are several examples and each one is explained step-by-step.


• Solving Linear Equations Part 2
  This is a continuation of the link above; solving multi-step (more than one) equations.

Now for some BrainPops, you might want to get some popcorn first then sit back and watch the movies (take the quizzes when you're done) ... ;0)

• Solving Equations


• Two Step Equations


• Equations with Variables
  (This last one might be a little advanced -- let me know if you've done any work like this before.)

And now for some practice quizzes. Each one has 5 questions. If you finish all 5 and click the [refresh] button in your web browser you'll ger 5 new questions. Keep taking each quiz until you get 100%. You CAN do it! Don't give up and you'll get there. ;0)

• Solving Addition and Subtraction Equations


• Solving Multiplication Equations


• Solving Two-Step Equations


• Writing Expressions and Equations

Do your best on Thursday! Remember, luck has nothing to do with it -- it's always about doing your best. A mistake is wonderful thing if you learn from it. ;-)

Love ya!