Greetings!
Our morning started off with AMC 8 prep questions, card games such as SET and tongues, a Rubik’s cube mosaic, and NIM. The Rubik’s cube mosaic was pac man and four ghosts. Students played these activities until 9:30, when it was time to go to class.
In math class, we started by analyzing the trick that Frances performed on the previous day using Fibonacci sequences. The students used algebraic notation to analyze the trick. We also learned a quick method to multiply any number by 11. The next trick we learned was the 3 Button Trick. In this trick, the spectator switches the positions of 3 buttons, telling the magician about each switch. Then the spectator chooses a special button, and silently switches the other 2. The spectator continues switching as before, until they decide to stop. Then the magician guesses which button was the chosen one. The students analyzed this trick using diagrams in order to see how the trick works. Finally, Frances performed a trick called The Baffling Prediction to close out class.
The Computer Science class again started with a quick revision of all commands and terms learned so far. This is a necessary practice, as what students learn everyday builds upon the knowledge acquired in the previous days. After making sure everyone was ready to learn new things, Matt introduced students to fun commands such as mousePressed, mouseX, and mouseY. These commands allowed students to make their code more interactive and their animations more responsive. All students made sure to take advantage of this powerful tool.
In Art today, some students opted to use their color explorations from day 3 to construct interesting patterns, sequences, collages, and shapes. The idea was to exploit different gradients of color in order to establish an interesting visual effect. One of the nice things with this project is that since each student focused on only a few color tones, the project gave students the chance to share vastly different colors with each other, which was nice to see. On the other hand, many students painted and perfected their own clay models, crafting small boxes to carry them in. One of the most satisfying things for us to see was that even the creators of these geometric puzzles struggled to put them back together! We can’t wait to see how their friends and family react.
Afternoon activities were Rubik’s cube, juggling, and Origami.
