Estimation Investigation

After reading the book Great Estimations by Bruce Goldstone, the class undertook an investigation to estimate the number of items in a given group.  Using strategies described in the book and adding some of their own ingenuity, the students worked in groups to determine a logical estimate.

Image from:  http://www.amazon.com/Great-Estimations-Bruce-Goldstone/dp/031260887X

The pictures show some of the strategies that the students used.

In the marshmallow example, this group counted how many marshmallows would fit into a 100ml beaker.  They then used the visual of that number to estimate the total number of marshmallows.

In the chocolate sprinkles example, this group counted out 10 chocolate sprinkles and then used the visual of what 10 looked like to estimate the total number of chocolate sprinkles.

In the popcorn example, this group used the bag to contain the popcorn in a single layer in a square.  They then counted how many popcorn kernels there were along the length and how many there were along the width and they multiplied to determine their estimate.

In the centimetre cubes example, this group counted out 10 cubes and used that visual to determine an estimated number of the total number of centimetre cubes.

In the rice example, this group determined what a thousand would look like.  They then cut a piece of paper the shape of the size of 1000 pieces of rice and proceeded to cover the paper over and over again while counting how many 1000's there were in total to determine their estimate.

In the Rice Krispies example, this group measured out rectangles of Rice Krispies, estimated the number of Rice Krispies in a rectangle and then counted the total number of rectangles to determine their estimate.

Home Reading

Each month, a home reading sheet will be shared with the students of 5G.  The first was shared today.  The expectation is that the students will read 400 minutes during the month of sustained silent reading.  The book they choose should be of an appropriate level for the student's reading ability and it should have sentences and paragraphs that tell a story or give information.  This could include novels, non-fiction books, magazine articles, website articles, e-books, journals, etc.  Comic books should be kept for casual reading times.

Here is a link to the Scholastic website that lists some suggestions for getting home reading started at home:

http://www.scholastic.com/bookfairs/family/downloads/fg_reading_habit.pdf

Our home reading program also coincides with the Boston Pizza Reading Rewards Program that the school participates in each year.  To be eligible each month for a gift certificate to Boston Pizza, the student must read at least 20 minutes 20 different times during the month.