It’s Monday, December 2, 2019, and time for Math I would like to invite you to check out the Recommended Website: We will be using these in our classes and if you have used them let me know what you thought of the resources and why.

Woodlands Junior Advent Calendar
Age Range: 6-14 (Grades 1-8, with parental supervision) At this United Kingdom website you can access a free, interactive, educational Advent Calendar that provides information on how Christmas is celebrated in countries worldwide.

Math and social studies are combined here in an engaging presentation the whole family is sure to enjoy.

When you get to the site, you’ll see a brief introduction. Scroll down to the calendar and click on December 1st – the dates are jumbled on purpose we suppose so it can be used every year. A new page opens that begins an exploration of how Christmas is celebrated in….well, you’ll have to visit the site to find out!

Be sure to follow the instructions, answer the questions, and click on the links throughout the presentation to experience the full scope of what is offered here. Then, bookmark the site so you can return to it each day in December to see what the calendar unfolds.

Oh, and don’t miss the menu on the left side of the screen where you can learn all kinds of facts and trivia about Christmas traditions and customs

Recommended Website:

Monday: Movies for Developing Math Skills
Age Range: 6-14 (Grades 1-8, with parental supervision) This website began as a companion to the COUNTDOWN cable television program in Chicago that taught math to students as they watched TV. Now there are 1,000 math videos at this website.

Your students can explore math topics from simple numbers and operations through Algebra, Geometry, Data Analysis and more. 

When you get to the site choose “I am a Student” or “I am a Teacher”. Then, click on the topic you want to learn about and watch the movie. It’s as easy as that. Or click on a range of letters in the red “Content Index” box to alphabetically choose topics covered from Absolute Value to Zero (as an exponent). 

Under some of the videos, there are links to download worksheets related to the video. This site is a great resource to utilize for math instruction and remediation

Recommended Website:
Mayflower Math
Age Range: 5-11 (Grades K-6, with parental supervision) Thanksgiving is right around the corner, so here are some Thanksgiving-themed math activities.

This website from Education.com offers a free printable math worksheet (pdf) that combines the history of the voyage of the Mayflower with math. Designed for grades 5-6, there are aspects that may appeal to younger and older students as well.

Recommended Website: Balloon Math

Age Range: 9-18 (Grades 4-12, with parental supervision) The Magical Balloon-Dude Dale (a master balloonist) offers free math activities for homeschoolers using the kinds of balloons that are used to make balloon animals and other creations.

When you get to the website you’ll see a menu of 4 math activities using balloons – but only the first 3 have working links that include: 

• Parts/Fraction Curriculum – Use balloons to learn counting, adding, sorting, measuring, calculating the number of parts, fractions and/or decimal conversion.
• Mathematical Symbols Curriculum – Understand basic geometric shapes and use balloons to create a sphere.
• Half of a 1/2 of a .50 Curriculum – Improve understanding of fractions such as 1/8, 1/4, and 1/2 while making a balloon flower.

Click on any one, and a new page opens with the complete instructions, accompanied by photographs and a materials list.

If you look on the right side of the screen in each activity you will see a link to a FREE download of the “HomeSchool Curriculum” that includes bonus material. Print it out to use offline.

The projects require certain types of balloons, a ruler, a marker – and one exercise requires calipers. 
The projects at this site are designed to develop problem solving skills, mathematics ability, and eye-hand coordination, while teaching kids to make balloon animals. What fun!

And at this site, ArtistsHelpingChildren.org, you’ll find a wide variety of Thanksgiving-themed crafts that help children of all ages exercise their math skills and creativity.

Thank you,

Glenda, Charlie and David Cates