Test #1 of the First Term

Students were confronted with their first test of the term today. They had an opportunity to demonstrate understanding of concepts covered in the first two chapters of the text Moving Straight Ahead including:

what is important in a coordinate graph
how to make predictions based on patterns in data
how to recognize linear relationships
how rate of change affects data

The test was primarily comprised of open-ended questions where students must not only generate solutions but also justify them mathematically.

This weekend's home nugget assignment is unique in that it will constitute the first entry into their math journals. The journal is an integral part of the course and comprises 15% of the overall term grade. The lesson directions are posted below. THERE ARE NO FCAs for this lesson because it is CREDIT/NO CREDIT lesson. The student must fulfill all requirements to receive credit.

Home Nugget #11
Assigned on Friday September 21, 2007
Due on Monday September 24, 2007

All journal entries belong in your math composition notebook. This should be the first entry in the notebook; I should find no other notes or writings. Journal entries count as 15% of the term grade. These entries are scored on an all or nothing basis. To receive credit you must demonstrate:

-That you spent considerable time thinking and writing
-That your presentation is of the highest quality
-That your thoughts are meaningful and thoughtful

You CANNOT be and WILL NOT be penalized for ‘wrong’ answers. There is no such thing in the journal as an incorrect answer, only poorly executed attempts.

Label your entry as “Journal Entry #1 of the 1st Term”

It will be useful to have both Moving Straight Ahead and your class notes available to complete the journal entry.

1. What ideas and concepts was the bouncing ball experiment you conducted meant to introduce or highlight? Do not simply list your answers, rather discuss them at length.

2. One day in class (Sept.13) we discussed a personal transport system known as the Segway and created cost tables and a rough draft of a graph. Describe all the things you may have learned from this lesson about linear relationships.

3. One of the problems on home nugget #2 involved figuring out the temperature based on how many times a cricket chirps (page 2 of MSA). Describe how you would solve this problem and what it is called when we replace variables with actual values in order to find a solution.

4. What is your understanding for why we have recently taken a math detour? Explain.