I teach three 4th grade mathematics classes at a rural school in southwest Ohio. My students come from a variety of backgrounds including farming, military, foster, and working-class​ families.
I work hard to make sure my math classes are authentic, hands-on, problem solving experiences.
Through the course of my day, I get to teach most of the students in 4th grade- my math classes are very important! My students are very social and energetic, but I'm always impressed by how hard they will work when they can collaborate. They are highly motivated by technology, and creativity- perfect candidates for many STEM activities!
My Project
Sphero Robots will introduce the majority of my students to coding. We will specifically use the Robots to pull "sleds", that student teams will create (using basic materials like solo cups, tape, and pipe cleaners, and popsicle sticks, which I will purchase). Sleds will travel the small scale Iditarod route that will be taped to our classroom tile floor. The "Sphero Sled" will be programmed to follow the taped route as closely as possible.
There are 3 levels of "coding expertise" that Sphero SPRK Robots respond to, and the "drawing" level would be perfect for beginning coders like my students.
Students will learn the importance of precision, while thinking about distance and angles for the Iditarod project.
I am eager to integrate the mathematics classes into our grade level projects in a way that will be exciting, yet challenging to my students. As we have the technology in our classroom to run Sphero, access to programming will not be a problem, and students will be exposed to new and exciting hands-on math!
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