5th graders at Thompson Brook School will be using the Everyday Math program. Students were given a Math Journal, a Study Links book, and a Math Reference book. On most nights (except for Fridays) students will have an assignment to complete in the Study Links book. The Reference book is an invaluable resource that students should bring home with them for help with their homework. It has definitions, pictures, and even examples of how to do many of the assignments. You can find out more information about how this program works by visiting their website at http://http://everydaymath.uchicago.edu/parents/index.shtml. Throughout the year students should be practicing their math facts at home.

"Correcting" math tests for extra points

Under normal circumstances I don't believe in math test do-overs. However, everyone in my class gets a second chance to boost their grade. Students are allowed to "correct" their math tests to earn extra points, but these points don't come easy. "Correcting" a math test goes beyond just changing the answer and resubmitting it. Let's say that a student got #4 wrong on the test. The question was "Is 24 a prime or composite number?" The answer is composite, but Billy Bob wrote down Prime. Obviously, with only two choices, it's the other choice. On a separate sheet of paper Billy Bob must write down the question, the answer, and a detailed explanation telling two things: why he got it wrong and how the answer should really be composite. In this case there is no actual work to be shown, but I must be absolutely convinced that Billy Bob understands how it is composite. If it were a problem that involves showing work, this work must appear on this separate sheet of paper. Students can earn up to half the points back for each "corrected" answer. For example, let's say Billy Bob gets a 60 on the Unit 1 Test and he corrects the eight problems he got wrong. He would earn back 2.5 points for each one bringing his grade from a 60 (D) to an 80 (B). I will not make students "correct" their tests, although they will be highly, highly, highly encouraged to do so over and over and over again throughout the year. The deadline for "corrected" tests is just prior to when grades close for each marking period so once the second marking period starts I will no longer accept "corrected" tests from the first marking period.