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If you had $500 to spend on math


Dmmetler
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what would you get? One of my friends teaches a GT 5th grade self-contained class, with about 50% identified gifted kids and the rest being the highest performers on the state test. Math levels range from solidly on grade level to Algebra 2.  She has $500 to spend on a project or projects for her kids this year. I figured that folks here would have a lot of great ideas!

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Projects as in math enrichment style? The TOPS math activity books perhaps? She just needs one book per topic and should be able to reproduce pages for the kids. She can purchase materials needed from TOPS too. Or something from AIMS? Personally, I would go for TOPS over AIMS.

 

I agree with the question what is she interested in. She might have an area of interest/ expertise that might make an investment in say Mathematica, a much more fantastic experience for the kids vs activity books or boxes of math toys/ supplies.

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Her primary teaching area is science, and she's an amazing science teacher. They're in South Florida, so they do a fair amount of nature-type stuff, gardening, and so on in her class already. One advantage of teaching a class of identified GT and high performing kids is that the school gives her a lot of flexibility that she wouldn't have otherwise. She also coaches the MOEMS team.  She's not "Crafty" at all.

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Her primary teaching area is science, and she's an amazing science teacher. They're in South Florida, so they do a fair amount of nature-type stuff, gardening, and so on in her class already. One advantage of teaching a class of identified GT and high performing kids is that the school gives her a lot of flexibility that she wouldn't have otherwise. She also coaches the MOEMS team.  She's not "Crafty" at all.

 

Something like TOPS might be right up her alley. There's a good amount of applied math in the science books.

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Backyard Ballistics and The Art of The Catapult are both great books. The projects inside are extremely high interest physics projects. My husband and I teach Physics of Weapons to reluctant learners using them. Six foot catapults, spear throwing levers, and working trebuchet a are very difficult to say no to even if it means applying trigonometry. If she wants to get hands on, and is willing a trip to Home Depot, you could do quite a few projects of varying scales with 500 dollars and eager kids.

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