Week of November 21st

Happy Thanksgiving! I'm sure everyone is ready for a short school week!

On Monday we will be taking a formative assessment in the computer lab. The assessment gives me an idea what the students know for the state assessments and helps direct my teaching.

On Tuesday we will be taking a sample of the middle school population to determine what our school looks for in a presidential candidate. This will launch the Social Studies project that will begin after Thanksgiving break.

No homework will be assigned for the holiday weekend

Mrs. Anderson

Week of November 14th

We are almost finished with Investigation 2, learning about how to take an accurate sample of a population. Then we will move to Investigation 4 and learn about scatterplots. Our unit test is Friday.

Monday: Finish Problem 2.4
  Homework: Study Guide - Complete by Thursday for review, due Friday with unit test
Tuesday: Problem 4.1
Wednesday: Problem 4.2
  Homework: Scatter plot Worksheet due Friday
Thursday: Unit Review (be sure to bring completed study guide)
Friday: UNIT TEST - study guide due with test
 Homework: Percent Worksheet due Monday

Please let me know if you have any questions.
Have a great week!

Week of November 7th

I hope everyone enjoyed the 3-day weekend. This week we are learning about taking a sample of a population and trying to predict accurate results for the entire population.
Please note that our homework schedule has shifted due to the shortened week. We have an assignment due today (Tuesday), an assignment due Thursday, and then we are back to normal with an assignment due Monday

Monday: No School
Tuesday: S&P Problem 2.2
   Homework: S&P pg. 36 #1-8 due Thursday
Wednesday: S&P Problem 2.3
Thursday: S&P Problem 2.4
   Homework: S&P pg. 41 #26 & 27 due Monday
Friday: S&P Problem 3.2

Looking Ahead: The unit test will be Friday, November 18th covering Samples and Populations

Have a great week!

Week of October 31st

Happy Halloween!
The kids are becoming experts at making histograms! This week we will learn about box-and-whisker plots.

Monday: S&P Problem 1.3
 Homework: Pg. 18-19 #7-13 due Wednesday
Tuesday: Continue Problem 1.3
Wednesday: Problem 1.3/1.4
 Homework: Pg. 18-19 #14-18
Thursday: Bellwork Quiz and S&P Investigation 1 Quiz
Friday: S&P Problem 2.1
 Homework: Mean, Median, Mode Worksheet due Tuesday

Have a great week!

Peanut Butter Data

We had so much fun with our peanut butter taste test today! I have posted the data at the top of the blog page. There are four pages of data (with some blank pages in between). Two pages have the peanut butter A ratings for each class and 2 pages have the peanut butter B ratings for each class.
For Wednesday's homework (due Friday) The students need to choose A or B and convert the line plot to a histogram. This is shown in problem 1.1 on pages 8 & 9.

Week of October 24th

Thank you to all the parents that came to conferences. We had a great turn-out this year!

This week we are starting a new unit, Samples and Populations. I will hand out the new book on Monday and collect the old books throughout the week. Just a reminder, any corrections from Moving Straight Ahead are due by Friday, October 28th.

Monday: Properties Post-test, Samples and Populations (S&P) Pre-test
  Homework: Mean, Median, Mode Worksheet due Wednesday. There is a copy of the homework posted at the top of the page. It did not convert correctly in google docs so the work may need to be done on a separate piece of paper.
Tuesday: Begin Problem 1.1 from S&P
Wednesday: S&P Problem 1.1/1.2
 Homework: Create a histogram from the class data from Tuesday, due Friday (I will post the data after it is collected)
Thursday: S&P Problem 1.2/1.3
Friday: S&P Problem 1.3
 Homework: S&P pg. 22 #27 due Monday, October 31st. Any corrections from MSA due today.

Have a great week!

Study Guide

There is a link at the top of the page with the key to the study guide. I would like parents and students to this document to help review for the unit test.

Week of October 17th

This week we will review and then have the unit test on Wednesday. Please remind your child to study, just a few minutes a day will make a big difference on Wednesday!

Monday: Summarize 4.2 and answer questions from study guide
  Homework: study for the unit test - use the study guide
Tuesday: Review for unit test
  Homework: study for the unit test - use the study guide
Wednesday: Unit Test for Moving Straight Ahead
  Homework: Integer worksheet due Monday, October 24th

Conferences this week:
I hope to see everyone at conferences. They are Tuesday from 4-8pm and Thursday from 11am-8pm.

Thursday, October 13th

I gave the students their study guides for the Moving Straight Ahead unit test. I have asked them to complete the study guide (we did #1b with the graphing calculator in class) for Monday so we can review Monday and Tuesday.
Please let me know if you have any questions!
Mrs. Anderson

Week of October 10th

This week we will start the last investigation in our book, Moving Straight Ahead. The students will learn more about slope and y-intercept and the equation, y = mx + b.
Monday: Investigation 4 Problem 4.1
 Homework: pg. 78 #2 and pg. 79 #4,5,6,7 due Wednesday
Tuesday: Continue Problem 4.1 and begin Problem 4.2
Wednesday: Problem 4.2
  Homework: MSA Study Guide - due with the Unit Test on Wednesday, October 19th
Thursday: Problem 4.3
Friday: NO SCHOOL

**Our unit test will be Wednesday, October 19th. The students are allowed to use their book and their notes on the exam, but they still need to study. No corrections are allowed on unit tests. The study guide also can be used on the test. It is due with the test and worth 10% of the test grade. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mrs. Anderson

Update for Week of October 3rd

I have moved the Investigation 3 quiz to Friday, all the classes need another day to practice equations. I have also extended the due date for Monday's homework assignment to Thursday.

Looking Ahead: The Unit Test for Moving Straight Ahead will be Wednesday, October 19th. I will have more information about this next week.

Week of October 3rd

We are working to solve equations this week. There will be a quiz on Thursday.

Monday: Bellwork Quiz and Problem 3.4 (solving equations)
Homework: MSA pg. 59 #14, 15 due Wednesday

Tuesday: Introduce Identity Property of Addition and Identity Property of Multiplication and Problem 3.4

Wednesday: Problem 3.4 Practice
Homework: Properties Worksheet due Friday (will be posted at the top of the page)

Thursday: Investigation 3 Quiz

Friday: Problem 4.1
Homework: Equations Worksheet due Monday (will be posted at the top of the page)

Week of September 26th

We finished Investigation 2 last week and the scores are posted for the quiz. I was pleased with the scores, they were much higher than they were for the Investigation 1 quiz. We have moved to Investigation 3 this week and we are also learning about Properties.

Monday: Properties pre-test and problem 3.1
         Homework: Properties (Robots) worksheet due Wednesday (at the top of this page is a link to the worksheet)
Tuesday: Problem 3.1 and 3.2
Wednesday: Problem 3.2
        Homework: MSA pg. 57 #3 & #4, pg. 63 #28 due Friday
Thursday: Problem 3.2 and 3.3
Friday: Problem 3.3
       Homework: MSA pg. 58 #5,6,7 &8 due Monday, Oct. 3rd

Homework Link

There is a link at the top of the page with this weekend's Properties Worksheet homework. Please let me know if you have any problems printing the assignment. I sent a copy home with each student, but I know they can get misplaced!

Have a great weekend!
Mrs. Anderson

Week of September 19th

We are moving along in our book, Moving Straight Ahead! This week we will spend a couple days on problem 2.4 so we can learn how to use the graphing calculator. The Investigation 2 Quiz and Bellwork Quiz 2 will both be on Thursday.
Monday:  Problem 2.3/2.4
 Homework due Wednesday pg. 34 #5&6 (similar to 2.3)
Tuesday: Problem 2.4
Wednesday: Problem 2.4
 Homework due Friday pg. 37 #11,12,13,14 (understanding the parts of a linear equation)
Thursday: Bellwork and Investigation 2 Quizzes
Friday: Problem 3.1
 Homework Worksheet due Monday

Week of September 12th

This week we have MAPS testing on Monday.
Homework assigned Monday: pg.14 #7 & pg. 21 #31 due Wednesday
Wednesday's homework: pg.31 #1 & pg. 33 #4 due Friday
Friday's homework: Worksheet due Monday September 19th

We took the Investigation 1 quiz on Friday. I will hand those back on Tuesday to go over before we start Investigation 2.
Have a great week!

MAPS testing on Monday, September 12th

Please make sure your child gets a good night's sleep Sunday in preparation for MAPS testing on Monday. All classes will meet in the lab and they can bring their homework assignment with them.

Week of September 6th

I hope everyone had a great Labor Day Weekend!
We are continuing with Investigation 1 in our book Moving Straight Ahead this week. I had to make an adjustment to the homework assignments because I was gone last Friday. I apologize if your child struggled with problem 6 on page 14, we covered that material today and the assignment will now be due on Thursday. We will also have an Order of Operations Worksheet on Thursday which will be due Monday. Two homework assignments this week due to the short week.
This Friday will be our first Bellwork Quiz and the Investigation 1 Quiz. Please remind your child to keep their notebooks organized, they can use them for the Investigation 1 Quiz!
Thank you,
Mrs. Anderson

Week 2

We had a great first week! I really enjoyed getting to know the 8th graders. This week we will begin our first book Moving Straight Ahead. The students will learn about linear relationships.
This week's homework:
Monday: Variables and Patterns review worksheet. Due Wednesday
Wednesday: Pg. 12 #1 & Pg. 17 #16 & 17. Due Friday
Friday: Pg. 14 #6 & Pg. 18 # 22 A or B. Due Tuesday

As always, call or email with any questions!

Welcome Back!

I am so excited for the new school year! We had a great first day!
Welcome to all the new 8th graders and their parents.
I look forward to meeting you during our Parent Night on September 1st.
If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to contact me. My email is andersonm@usd320.com, this is the best way to contact me. If you would prefer to call, the school number is 785-456-7682 ext. 4410.

Homework Help

I have added 3 worked equations from the homework assignment "What Is The Title Of This Picture?". It is listed above this post as Equation (Dist prop) HW Help.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Mrs. Anderson

Updates for the week of May 2nd

I have changed the schedule for this week because of career day tomorrow afternoon. We were going to start a new book, Say It With Symbols, on Wednesday. Since I will not have 5th hour or 7th hour I am going to start the new book on Thursday. The students in 5th and 7th hours know that homework from Monday is due by 3:45pm tomorrow afternoon or it will be considered late. Also, the homework assignment for Wednesday pg. 28 #1 will now be due on Monday instead of Friday. Friday's assignment pg. 31 #17 and pg. 32 19-22 is still due on Monday.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Thank you!
Mrs. Anderson

April Updates

Now that we are done with State Assessments our schedule will get back to normal. We are starting a new book today called Growing, Growing, Growing. The students will learn about exponential growth and decay. Our homework schedule will resume with assignments on Monday, Wednesday, Friday due on Wednesday, Friday, Monday.
 If your student is in track please remind them that they are still responsible for the work they miss and homework due dates are the same.
Assignments this week:
Monday (due Wednesday) pg. 11 #2-7 & pg. 12 #15-20
Wednesday (due Friday) pg. 13 #22, 23
Friday (due Monday) pg. 15 #25-30

As always, please let me know if you have any questions!

Mrs. Anderson

Fourth Quarter and other news

Welcome to the 4th quarter! This is a sad time of year for me because I know it won't be long before my students move on to high school!
We are also preparing for the state assessments. We will be taking the Math Assessments April 5, 6, & 7. This gives us less than two school weeks to prepare! I have talked to the students about working hard during this time to meet their personal goal and their classroom goal. I have made a deal with them that if they work hard in class during the next two weeks, they will not have any homework leading up to the assessments.
Please talk to them about the goals they have set and feel free to ask me any questions you have about testing.
Thank you and have a great Spring Break!
Mrs. Anderson

Homework Help

I have added an example that is similar to pg. 25 #36 in our book Looking For Pythagoras.

Thank you!
Mrs. Anderson

Homework

The homework (pg. 45 #63) today from the book, Thinking With Mathematical Models, is a little difficult. I have posted the steps for part b if you need help. It is at the top of the page listed as "Homework Key".
I also think it would be helpful to work part D and C before A and B. It does not matter to me what order they are in when the assignment is turned in.

Thank you!
Mrs. Anderson

Welcome back!!

Happy New Year!!
I can't believe we are starting the second semester, the year is flying by!
On Wednesday, January 5th we will start a new unit. The book is called Thinking With Mathematical Models. In the first investigation, we will find the breaking weight for a bridge (using pennies) based on the thickness of the bridge and the length of the bridge. This book will look at linear relationships (which we studied in Moving Straight Ahead) and non-linear relationships.
I'm looking forward to getting back to our routine. Remember, students will have homework assigned Monday due Wednesday, Wednesday due Friday, and Friday due Monday.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
I hope everyone had a wonderful break!
Mrs. Anderson