Maths Olympiad

The number 111 111 is the product of 5 different prime numbers. What is the sum of these 5 prime numbers?

This was a practice Maths Olympiad question that I gave my Maths class last week. Have a think about it and I will give you the answer at the end of the blog (This truly is one of the hardest questions I have seen in the Maths Olympiads since my students first started undertaking them in 1998).

The Maths Olympiad is a problem solving competition that is held each year. On 5 occasions throughout terms 2 and 3 where the students have to answer 5 questions. Problem solving has always been an area where our students have traditionally struggled. The number skills and recall of these students is outstanding but problem solving is a whole different situation. Having to extract mathematical information from text can trick even strong mathematicians.

I start each maths lesson with an Olympiad question from a past paper. In one of the first maths lessons of the year I take the students through a number of strategies that will assist in answering these questions. Some of these strategies include guess and check, draw a table or diagram, work backwards, solve a simpler related problem and look for a pattern just to name a few. Armed with these tips the students tackle the daily questions and the Olympiad papers.

I have never had a student answer all 25 questions correctly in an Olympiad year. Hopefully this year this may occur. 6 students received a perfect score in the first paper which is very positive.

Worked out the answer to the opening question yet?

71

The 5 prime numbers are 3, 7 ,11,13 and 37.

Twitter

On Monday at the school ICT Futures Committee meeting I am going to ask the executive to lift the ban on Twitter at school. For some unexplained reason this year Twitter has been blocked on all computers at school. I do presume that it is primarily because of the lap top program we now operate. This is unfortunate for both students and teachers but I will get to that later.
So what is Twitter? Basically it is a 140 character micro blog. What particularly appeals to me about twitter is that there is no room for waffle. You can't mess around with what you need to say when you only have 140 characters to say it. Launched in 2006 and according to Wikipedia (they're always right!) Twitter now has over 200 million users and 65 million 'tweets' a day are sent.
Why do I like Twitter? Sure I follow rugby, basketball and general sports news but it is professionally that I find Twitter invaluable. I follow 501 people and it is my Personal Learning Network that is a huge benefit to me professionally. Through this PLN I gather information that assists me in the classroom and also in my role as Primary Learning Technologies leader. This may seem a little like spam email but as I have mentioned before you don't have to spend long reading 140 characters. Quite often with a tweet there is a link that if you have liked what you have read you can read on.
How do I use it with my students? Instead of emailing students I will often post a message to twitter for them to follow. In 2008 and 2009 the school was closed for a period of time due to an outbreak of an illness. During this time I communicated with students via phone, email and online chats. If the school ever has to close again I will definitely be using Twitter to communicate. With Twitter students and myself do not always have to be online at the same time like we do in a chat. I will enter a hashtag with something like #6S2011 and everyone who enters a tweet and uses this hashtag can go and check out tweets from myself and their classmates.
I am pleased with the manner in which the students have adapted to using Twitter. They follow their classmates and myself but they are also following their sporting heroes and other entertainers. I believe Twitter is a safe medium and I have have explained to the students that they are not to follow or let anyone follow their tweets who they do not know. Of course they may not know the likes of LeBron James, Pink or Katy Perry but following people like these is quite harmless.
So I am hoping for success with the school executive on Monday and twitter will be opened up at school. Get tweeting!
Follow me on twitter @spainyhk

Tomorrow When the War Began

This term I will be reading to the students the John Marsden novel Tomorrow When the War began. A captivating title and a book that I am excited to be reading to the class.
Tomorrow (I think I will abbreviate the title) tells the story of a heroic group of teenagers who wage guerrilla warfare on an unknown army who invade Australia. The book is exciting, adventurous and will enthrall the readers.
I first read Tomorrow in 1999 when teaching Year 6 at Canberra Grammar School. I was immediately hooked and couldn't wait to read any sequel. I shared this enthusiasm with my class and they were also incredibly eager to read the series. The discussions we had that year on the books were interesting, thought provoking and mature. The final book (at that point) was being released in the 3rd term holidays that year and it was a race by myself and the students in the class to make sure we had it finished by the time we returned to school.
Yes the book does touch on mature subjects but I believe Year 6 is an appropriate age level at which to read it. The main characters are teenagers so it touches on subjects that appeal to teenagers namely the opposite sex and generally breaking rules. However the book does show teenagers in an incredibly positive light and highlights what they are capable of achieving.
I have met the author John Marsden and mentioned to him that one of the points that impresses me greatly about the Tomorrow series is that females are the the central and most heroic characters (The narrator of the series, Ellie, is amazing). I spent 7 years teaching at all boys schools and I found the heroic females very positive for these adolescent males to read about. I still believe this point is true but for both male and female students as much of what they see in movies or read these days centres around a male being the hero.
There are now 10 books in the Tomorrow series. Marsden initially planned on ending the series after the third book, Third Day the Frost, ( a great title) but the demand from young readers was so great that he reopened the series with book number four Darkness be my Friend. The books ended with number 7 in 1999 before the Ellie Chronicles started in 2003 and featured 3 books. This is one of the reasons I choose to read Tomorrow to the students. If they enjoy it greatly there are 9 more titles to read.
The release of the Tomorrow When the War Began movie last year has opened the book to whole new group of readers. I loved the review the movie received on Triple J radio in Australia when it was described as 'Neighbours with explosions'.
I am very excited about reading Tomorrow this term and I certainly hope the students of 6S share my excitement.

Day 1

Yesterday was the first day of a new school term. There is usually a cacophony of emotions as students make their way back to school after their break. There are students who would still rather be on holidays (and possibly a teacher, especially after the holiday that I have had), some who can't wait to see their friends again but they all generally share the feeling that they are not in the mood to get working right away.

This is where I come in!

I am of the belief that it is imperative to get students working right away. I start day 1 by asking students what they did in the holidays (usually no more than 10 minutes) before a discussion on current affairs and what is happening in the world (this was quite a long discussion yesterday due to the demise of Osama Bin Laden and the royal wedding). After this it is open books and start working.

Why do I do this?

• To refocus students.


• Let them know that holidays are OVER.


• It is a short term; time cannot be wasted.


• I have a job to do.

Also homework begins in week 1. This helps reinforce to students that holidays are definitely over and to quickly establish routine again.

I am sure students don't agree with my day 1 theory but I believe it works.

Jordan Easter 2011

I recently celebrated a milestone birthday. I did not want any elaborate party; all I desired was a trip to a destination that I had never been before. I was mulling over Nepal or Sri Lanka when the idea of Jordan entered my mind. After a little bit of research the trip to Jordan was booked.

Now this was in December 2010 before all the events in Tunisia, Egypt, Bahrain, Libya and Syria took place. It has been a nervous wait to see if Jordan would fall along the same lines. Whilst there have been a number of protests (usually on a Friday) take place there has been nothing major so off to Jordan we flew on April 15th via Bangkok and Dubai.

After spending 10 days in Jordan I must admit that it was truly one of the most amazing places I have ever visited. Every place we visited was outstanding. The Roman ruins of Jerash, Amman the capital city (probably the only so so place on our trip), the Dead Sea (yes one can truly float on this body of water), Madaba, Petra (breathtaking), the deserts of Wadi Rum and finished on the Red Sea in Aqaba.

I was struck by a number of things whilst on the trip. The friendliness of the people was just one area that struck me. Yes there was always people wanting to sell you something but their final words to you would generally be 'Welcome to Jordan". The determination of the people to not let their country go down the same path of other Middle Eastern countries was also evident. Jordanians are very proud of their country and Thailand is the only other country where I have been that loves their King as much as they do. They trust that their King will serve the country in the best possible manner and act in a way that benefits the people.

Unfortunately tourism in Jordan is down 60% due to the issues in other Middle Eastern countries. This is such a pity for the country but also the people who have cancelled trips to this beautiful country.

Jordan is a magical country and this was a trip I will always remember.