Primary

The Measurement Debate

In this video segment from Cyberchase, celebrity twin sisters are arguing over whose square is bigger on the Gollywood Walk of Fame. When they each measured a side of their individual squares, they got different lengths. The CyberSquad helps them resolve their dispute.

Do an Hour of Code | Tynker

Build the computer literacy and problem solving skills students need to become innovators of the future. 

Introduce students to computer programming, or take their coding skills to the next level as they engage in fun activities and projects that enhance STEM learning outcomes. With an Hour of Code with Tynker, teachers can easily introduce the basics of computer programming in a fun and intuitive way.  Start with any of the six adventure puzzles, then students can apply what they’ve learned to create fun projects to share with others – multi-level and multi-player games, math patterns, interactive comics and greeting cards. 

No programming experience is required.  Use the resources provided to quickly plan a successful Hour of Code for your class. Students can access Candy Quest and Dragon Dash puzzles from this site.  The rest of the activities, plus a teacher's guide and answer keys, can be found at hourofcode.tynker.com.

Deepening Conceptual Understanding

Steve Hinds demonstrates an approach to graphing function solutions that is based on the underlying meaning of the points, and not on mechanically following a procedure. (Click here for the background essay.)

Scaffolding Adult Numeracy Lessons

Steve Hinds demonstrates and discusses how teachers can successfully and gradually move from informal to more formal representations of functions. (Click here for the background essay.)

Communicating in Math Classrooms

Steve Hinds demonstrates how a teacher can circulate and question students to assess their understanding, get them to explain and evaluate each other’s thinking, and guide them in productive directions without telling them what to do. (Click here for the background essay.)

The Stonecutter

This video segment from Weston Woods presents a Japanese folktale (a story that is part of a culture’s oral tradition). In the folktale, Tasaku, the stonecutter wished only to work all day and please the mountain spirit. One day, though, he meets a prince and is envious of him. Tasaku wishes for wealth. The mountain spirit hears him and changes Tasaku into a prince. This makes Tasaku happy but only for a little while until he becomes envious of the sun, then a cloud, then a mountain. In the end, Tasaku is a powerful mountain. Yet, deep inside, he trembles.

When to Use the Past Tense for Irregular Verbs | No Nonsense Grammar

Often when we write the past tense of a regular verb, we add an "-ed" after the last letter. Irregular verbs do not follow this rule! The simple past and simple participle of irregular verbs can end in a variety of ways with no consistent pattern.

Proper Case of Pronouns | No Nonsense Grammar

Pronoun case is determined by how we use the pronoun in a sentence. There are three ways: subjective, when the pronoun does something; objective, when something is done to our pronoun; and possessive, when our pronoun possesses something.

Academic Vocabulary in the Common Core: Elementary School English Language Arts

See a 4th grade teacher introduce vocabulary from a complex text and engage students in various strategies for differentiated small group instruction. Teaching vocabulary through whole group and differentiated small group instruction provides supports and extensions that students need to achieve the grade level goal and beyond. The focus is on Tier II words because they provide critical word knowledge needed for understanding all types of text. For an overview of academic vocabulary please watch the first lesson in this series: Academic Vocabulary in the Common Core: An Introduction.

How to Use Intensive Pronouns | No Nonsense Grammar

Intensive pronouns add needed emphasis to a sentence. While they function similarly to reflexive pronouns, they differ in that the pronoun can be removed without altering the meaning of the sentence.

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