The Week of January 29

We've made it to the last week of January already!  If the rest of 2012 goes as fast as January has, we'll be ringing in the new year before we know it!  But, before we get too carried away welcoming 2013, let's focus on this week.

In science, we will be finishing up our unit on weather by discussing the earth's climate zones and biomes found in them. Here is a copy of the PowerPoint I will show on Monday:

We will have a vocabulary test this Friday on the following science words:

Weather-  the condition of the atmosphere at a particular time

Climate- the average weather condition in an area over a long period of time.

Climate zones- areas of the world that are located at the same lines of latitude that have similar climates

Biome- A major regional or global biotic community, such as a grassland or desert, characterized chiefly by the dominant forms of plant life and the prevailing climate.

Temperate- free from extremes, mild

Deciduous- plants that shed or lose their foliage at the end of the growing season

Evergreen- plants that do not lose their foliage at the end of the growing season

Lines of latitude- an angular distance in degrees north or south of the equator

Conifer- Any of various mostly needle-leaved or scale-leaved, chiefly evergreen, cone-bearing trees or shrubs such as pines, spruces, and firs.

We will change things up a bit and not have a choice sheet to complete.  Instead, we will do a research project about biomes of your choice and create a polished 3 paragraph essay that will be due next Friday.  I'm looking forward to seeing what you learn about biomes and showing off your writing skills you practice with Ms. Carol.

In math, we will continue to talk about finding the area of composite shapes.  I know this is a really hard skill to master, but i'm seeing a vast improvement in it compared to when we started discussing it last Monday.  Here is an example taken from www.mathsteacher.com:

A figure (or shape) that can be divided into more than one of the basic figures is said to be a composite figure (or shape).

For example, figure ABCD is a composite figure as it consists of two basic figures.  That is, a figure is formed by a rectangle and triangle as shown below.

The area of a composite figure is calculated by dividing the composite figure into basic figures and then using the relevant area formula for each basic figure.

Example 11

Find the area of the following composite figure:

Solution:

The figure can be divided into a rectangle and triangle as shown below.

So, the area of the composite figure is 222 cm².

We will have a quiz on area of composite figures on Thursday.  Don't worry, we will have plenty of time to practice this skill in class, and you will have homework to help you prepare, also.

I'm looking forward to another great week at Ellis!

Mr. Trent