Marvelous Math with Mrs. Rose

Due to popular request (by students), here are some more stories with holes:

1. There are two plastic jugs filled with water.  How could you put all of this water into a barrel, without using the jugs or any dividers, and still tell which water came from which jug?
2. What is black when you buy it, red when you use it, and gray when you throw it away?
3. Can you name three consecutive days without using the words Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, or Sunday?  (or day names in any other language)

If you think you have a solution to any of these, or a question to ask about them, please leave a comment.

AND THIS JUST IN, FROM KEVIN . . .

“A burglar was holding 2 bags of gold from a robbery.  Both bags were so heavy he couldn’t lift them above his waist.  Then, he saw a security camera.  Without dropping either bag, how does he get past the camera?”

HINT:  HE DIDN’T USE A MASK!

AND HERE’S ANOTHER FROM LIZZIE:

“Sally and John were lying on the floor with blood around them.  There was a weapon on the table and a mother was nearby.”

My students are really enjoying “Stories with Holes,” which involve logic and problem-solving.  These stories are not what they seem at face value because, usually, specific words in them have a double meaning.

Here’s an example:

John was afraid to go home because the man with the mask was there.

After introducing a very short story like this, the presenter asks listeners to ask “yes” or “no” questions to help uncover the true meaning of the story.

The key with this one is to think of different meanings for the word, “home,” and if you think of it as “home base,” the story takes on a whole new meaning.  Yes, the “man with the mask” is the catcher and John is playing baseball!  He doesn’t want to go home because he doesn’t want to get tagged out!

Fun, isn’t it?

Well, some of my fourth-graders had so much fun with these logic puzzles lately, they decided to write their own.  Here’s a sampling . . . can you figure them out?  Post a comment if you think you’ve solved one of them . . . or if you have a question!

There was a guy named Bob.  He was playing a game.  He got lots of strikes.  Why was he happy?

A guy goes to a birthday party, but he locks his car and leaves his present and keys in the car.  How does he get the present without harming the car or picking the lock?

(Written by Jonathan)

Bob was at a store.  He walked around the store.  Then, he was thirsty.  Why didn’t he go in to buy a drink?

(Written by Rashad)

Jake just got knocked out by Robby.  And that was the end of his practice.

(Written by Jake, Weston, and John)

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When Mark walked into the kitchen, the ground was covered with blood and dog drool.  Mark could not eat dinner that night.

The light shown on Millie and she couldn’t move.

(Submitted by Abby)

Thanks so much to all the parents who recently attended Ryerson’s PTO Meeting and who were so interested in hearing the details of our Math program and our students’ accomplishments!

I hope that you find this blog a source of helpful information as you guide your child in learning.  Please don’t forget to check out the following pages and links on this site:

• Wonderful Websites
• Fact Fluency Strategies
• Problem Solving Strategies
• Math Riddles
• Math News
• Hot Topics

Thanks so much for all you do in supporting your child’s education!

We’re looking forward to welcoming our students back today after the February break.  Hope you had an exciting–or relaxing–week with your families and friends.  Can’t wait to hear the stories of adventures from our students!

Teachers were in school on Monday, February 23, involved in a variety of Professional Development Activities.  Fellow Math Specialist, Stacey Daly, and I had the pleasure of presenting the third in a series of “First Steps in Mathematics” Workshops for our K-2 teachers.  We concentrated on helping our students develop problem-solving strategies and repertoires for operations and calculations, in a developmentally-appropriate fashion. 

We have such a dedicated group of professional teachers, who all have the same goal in mind—improving students learning.  Happy first day back with students!

Thanks to the 3rd and 4th grade teachers who attended our  after-school E-Workshop yesterday on Mathematical Problem Solving!

Here’s what the research on Problem Solving tell us, according to National Council of Teachers Of Mathematics (NCTM):

1. Students must solve many problems in order to improve their problem solving ability.
2. Problem solving ability develops slowly over a prolonged period of time.
3. In order to benefit from instruction, students believe their teacher thinks that problem solving is important.
4. Most students benefit greatly from systematically planned problem-solving instruction.

Problem solving is a major emphasis in our mathematics program in Madison elementary schools and we value the opportunity and the ability to problem solve.  We problem solve not just for math, but for life!!!

To get your younger students thinking, pose the following problem:

I have quarters, dimes, and nickels in my pocket.  If I take three coins out of my pocket, how much could the three coins be worth?

The really nice aspect of this problem is that there are multiple answers.  To challenge students, ask them to find all possible combinations.  For older students, ask them how they know when they have found all combinations!

Have fun problem solving and please feel free to share your thoughts . . .