Math Circles at Talking Stick Learning Center

Talking Stick will again offer Math Circles
beginning January 17th!

Math Circle for 9 and 10 year olds

For Ages 9 to 10

3:30pm - 4:25pm

Tuesdays
January 17, to February 21, 2012

Tuition: $120

Tuition (Sibling): $108

Math Circles introduce children to mathematical thinking and mathematical concepts by presenting open-ended problems and inviting participants to use their creative thinking skills to generate possible approaches. For example, the ancient Egyptians and Greeks needed to measure land accurately enough to be able to assess taxes, yet they had no concept of fractions. In addition to using ropes and pegs, they came up with a system of using a compass and straightedge to construct diagrams to scale on “paper.” Our recent Math Circle students attempted some of these “Euclidian constructions.” While facing challenges such as “How can I create a perpendicular bisector of a line segment without a ruler or protractor?” our participants ended up discovering the need for concepts such as circle, diameter, radius, parallel, plane, point, line, tangent, arc, circumference, and so on. To loosely paraphrase Math Circle founders Bob and Ellen Kaplan, “If you want people to learn A, ask them to perform B, which requires knowledge of A to complete the task.”

The next Math Circle will run for six Tuesdays from 3:30 to 4:25 beginning on January 17th, and is for students 9 and 10 years old.

There will be a Math Circle for students 11 to 13 beginning on February, and one for students 6 to 8 years old beginning in April.

More info and to register

Math Circle Blog

Space is limited, so please sign up early.

St. Thomas Whitemarsh Church
Bethlehem Pike and Camp Hill Road
Whitemarsh, Pa, 19034
(484) 416-0615
www.TalkingStickLearningCenter.org

Zome ~ Summer Project Kit!

Instant Bubble Insanity
$29

A Zome Project Kit!

The best hands-on introduction to the science and art of bubble-ology ever offered in a single kit. Now you can create crazy Zometool bubbles like the pumpkin, spiral, hypercube and amazing giant bubbles, too!

Zome is design tool used by educators and professionals.

Check out Zome for teaching solid geometry, science, art, engineering and architecture!

Website

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City Gates Academy ~ Now Accepting Applications for 2010 -2011 school year!

City Gates Academy offers Weekly & bi-weekly classes in a variety of subjects for home-schooled students, once or twice a week from September through June.

City Gates offers challenging academic experiences, accountability and evaluation, deadlines, group interaction, and qualified instructors who encourage a love of learning! Classes are taught with a Christian worldview however, families of all beliefs are welcome.

City Gates Academy meets at St Paul's United Methodist Church 1314 Foulk Rd, Wilmington, DE. 19803, just off the I-95 exit, next to Talley Day Park and the Brandywine Hundred Library.
(Talley Day Park has a wonderful playground and a Bark Park!)

Registration:
$50.00 deposit per student on or before May 31, 2010
$60.00 after May 31, 2010.

For more information:
For Class offerings, description of classes, and price per class please visit their website:
cgade.org
or
call Director, Virginia Conte
(302) 229-9626

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Zome Discount!

No better time than the present to check out Zome!


Simply for reading Homeschool Happenings!
Zome is offering an additional 5% off your order!

1. Visit their website.
2. Place your order.
3. Use the code below to get and additional 5% off your order.

Code: connierules

Website

Free Lesson Plans:
Zometool works closely with teachers and school districts around the country to produce manuals and lesson plans. Materials are available covering math, art, architecture and science activities from 1st Grade through Freshman college. All lesson plans meet U.S. national standards in their subject areas.

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Zome for the Holidays!

If you are not already familiar with this fabulous educational tool, here is a special holiday time offer to give Zoom a try!

Limited time offer
"Just a Taste" and "Bubble Adventure"
Both for just $19 plus free shipping in the US.

Visit their website for details.

Math & Science Classes Offered For Next School Year.

Contact:
Abram Lipman
alipman1@gmail.com
310-347-7892.

Math
* Middle School Level
6th grade math through Algebra I-ish
* High School Level
Algebra I-ish with geometry
Algebra II-ish with geometry
Pre-calculus/trig
Calculus

* Each course is being offered at a less-intense and more-intense level.

Science
* High School level
Touching on topics from chemistry and biology, and to a lesser extent, physics, with an emphasis placed on thinking carefully about scientific systems.

~ ~ ~

When:
Beginning the second week of September through the first week of June.
* Two late mornings or early afternoons per week, either Monday and Wednesday, Tuesday and Thursday, or Wednesday and Friday.

Where:
Swarthmore College
* And/or other location to be determined.

Tuition:
$12.50 - $15 per class (depending on enrollment)
Fee includes preparation, progress reports and end-of-the-year evaluations, etc.

Additional Expenses:
Texts and materials
Between $40 - $80 for the year.

~ ~ ~

Details:
The more-intense classes are meant for students who feel capable of doing creative problem-solving. Students will investigate important concepts from traditional curriculum, as well as having many opportunities to solve challenging, non-routine problems in both real-world and abstract contexts. The pace at which material is "covered" will depend on the particular students.

The less-intense classes are meant for students who are just starting to develop, or haven't developed, their ability to think about math in a non-formulaic way. The topics will come from a traditional curriculum, but the emphasis will be on investigating these topics in a way that builds mathematical thinking skills rather than getting through a laundry list of skills.

High-school level courses and more-intense middle school course will most likely be very loosely based on the Interactive Mathematics Program and resources from the Art of Problem Solving, while the less-intense middle school courses will be slightly less loosely based on the Connected Mathematics 2 curriculum. Instructor will be supplementing with his own materials as well.

About Abram Lipman:
PA-certified math teacher.
Degree is in mathematics with a minor in Education.
Teaching home-schooled students for three years now.
Providing a unique math education.
References on request.

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*Courses offered are conditional on sufficient enrollment.
Note: There is already sufficient enrollment for one Algebra I course and the high school science course.
Sign up soon to make sure the course is being offered and to have some control over the schedule!

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Dragonfly ~ Zometool's Model of the Month!

Dragonfly is Zome user Kris Corriera's celebration of the Divine Proportion in nature:
"As I was looking at a picture of a dragonfly and admiring its geometry, it reminded me of golden ratios and of Zometool, so I started building." We hope you're inspired to start building too. Dragonfly is a wonderful tribute to the creative force of nature!
Instructions

Also, don't miss their closeouts sale.
Save 50% off on selected Zometool models and kits!

Zome is a design tool and educational toy for teaching solid geometry, science, art, engineering and architecture, for children through adults.

Website

Check out what's new at Zome!

The people at Zome have completely overhauled their product and have relaunched their website! This is a wonderful product and a great tool for teaching math and science concepts.

Visit their website and check out what's new at Zome!


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Middle School Math and Science Courses for Homeschoolers at Swathmore College

Enrollment is now open for a middle-school math class and a middle-school science course focusing on physics, to be held next year twice per week on the campus of Swarthmore College.

Math Course Outline

This will be a middle school math class, with most of the content being 7th or 8th grade level material. The curriculum we will use is Connected Mathematics 2. This curriculum is used in a number of local schools, and is a good one because it promotes real, integrated understanding. This way we can cover standard material while keeping the curriculum authentic. The emphasis will be on building good communication skills, on developing good mathematical thinking habits, and on learning concepts and applications that are either relevant to the "real world" or student interest, rather than on reaching a set point within the curriculum.

Science Course Outline

This course will be aimed at studying some basic concepts from physics, with some chemistry and possibly a bit of biology. Emphasis will be on understanding physical phenomena that we see in the world around us or that we can see through experimentation, with discussion and habits of scientific thought again playing a greater role in shaping the course than any specific content will. Some units will be based around understanding numerical relationships in nature that coincide with concepts being discussed in the math course.

The courses will take place one right after the other, and will be meant to dovetail, so students are encouraged to take both.

Timing

Monday and Wednesday
12:30 - 1:30 math, and 1:40 - 2:40 science
This timing can be adjusted a bit to accommodate people's schedules, but the classes will definitely happen in the late morning or early afternoon, twice per week, on Monday, Wednesday, or Friday.

Location
Swarthmore College
500 College Ave
Swarthmore, PA 19081

Calendar
Classes will start the second week of September
and end the last week of May.
There will be a one- or two-week winter break
and a one-week spring break.

Fees
$15 per class if there are 3 students in the class
$12 if there are 4;
$10 if there are 5 or 6
(classes will be capped at 6).
Science and math on the same day count as separate classes.
Students will be allowed to miss up to 3 sessions per year in each class free of charge.
Fee covers in-class time, preparation, and frequent updates to parents on students' progress.

Other costs
Texts and materials will cost at most $60 for the year for each class.
$30 range is more likely.

Teacher
D. Abram Lipman

PA-certified math teacher,
Degree is in mathematics with a minor in Education.
Teaching home-schooled students for two years now.
Loves the freedom that the home-school setting offers to create an authentic, personally meaningful educational experience for students. Enjoys building real relationships with home-school students which are meaningful for both the students and for me.
Happy to provide references on request.

Contact
D. Abram Lipman
alipman1@gmail.com 310-347-7892

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City Gates ~ Now enrolling for Fall 2008!

City Gates
Located in North Wilmington
This year, offering classes once a week, on Tuesdays.

Classes are for home schooling students from 4th -9th grades.

English classes
Focusing on literature, grammar, composition, and vocabulary building.

Math classes
* ABeka math texts for 5th-7th,
* McDougal-Littell texts for pre-Algebra, Algebra, and Algebra II/Trig,
* Jacobs for Geometry.

History classes include
* Ancient History; Middle Ages, Renaissance and Reformation; Early American; and Later American for middle schoolers.
* Government/Geography, World History and American History are offered for high schoolers.

Science classes
Hands on project-oriented classes.
* Middle school science classes cover all of the different types of science in varying degrees of difficulty.
* High school classes include Physical Science, Biology, Chemistry, and Physics.

Foreign Language
Offering several levels of both Latin and Spanish classes.

Gym and Art
Classes offered.

If you would like to sign up for any classes please contact:

Mara Sharp
(302) 229-9626

For more information visit their website.

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Hannah's Ball - A Zome Model of the Month!

According to Kevin Merges, a mathematics teacher at Rutgers Preparatory School, "this is something that my eight year old daughter made. She was just playing with the big spiked ball that kids get when they fill all the holes in one white connector and she realized that the ends could be connected."

For complete instructions on how to build this and other Zome models as well as oodles of great ideas for using Zome in your math and science curriculum, visit their website!


Be sure to check out "Naked Zome"! It's the same Zome kits without the storage containers and packaging. Save up to 40% off regular Zome pricing, and help to eliminate waste and save fossil fuels at the same time. Naked Zome comes in a clear, convenient poly zip bag, and includes everything that is included in their clothed counterparts.


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Diamond: Zome's Model of the Month for November! And Save 20% by shopping now for the holidays!

Diamond is a model of a "squashed cube" built in a red line meta-zome system articulated by Evan Gilgenbach. You can scale up any red line Zometool model using this system!

Save 20% for the Holidays!

Zome get slammed this time of year. They will reward you for placing your holiday order during November by giving you a 20% discount. Just enter the coupon code "joliday" at check out, or click here to find out more.

Diamond Kit - $59.50

Just what you need to build November's Model of the Month, "Diamond," at parts-by-the-pound pricing!
Order: Diamond Kit (Dd1)
Includes 112 balls, 96 short blue struts, 192 short yellow struts, and 48 long red struts.
Zometool is (and always will be!) safe for kids 3 years and up.


Instructions to build Daimond

Molecular Mania from Zome!

A great introduction to chemical modeling!

Build 28 common molecules with the included Zome components and colorful, sturdy, molecule cards.

Designed by biochemist and science educator Dr. Steve Yoshinaga, Molecular Mania! introduces students 7 years and up to the basic building blocks of our universe.

Molecular Mania! contains:
28 molecule cards, 44 precision Zometool components, including colored balls and improved super short struts, and concise instructions.

Just $19.99

Order Molecular Mania from Zome's Website!

Math at the Zoo!

Homeschool Math at the Zoo!
Tuesday, October 23: 10:00am-12:00pm
Raindate: Thursday, October 25: 10:00am-12:00pm

A morning of Math like you've never experienced before. This program incorporates age-specific activity stops using the Zoo to learn why math is an important part of daily Zoo jobs. Beginning in the Education Building, next to the Monkey House the groups proceeds to the Zoo for exploring.


Everyone must pay the program fee.
Pre-registration required.
Fee: $8 per person;
$6 per person for DZS Members.

Phone: (302) 571-7747

Location:
1001 North Park Drive
Brandywine Park
Wilmington, Delaware

website

BrainPop.com

My family loves this site!

BrainPOP is an educational program providing content spanning 7 main subjects, including: Science, Math, English, Social Studies, Health, Arts and Music, and Technology.

We have watched these movies over and over. The kids take the quizzes offered after each movie. They have subscription packages for families as well as homeschoolers. They offer teacher support and are working on offering lesson plans in the future. You try out BrainPop for days for free, thereafter you need to purchase a subscription.

The only way to really understand what BrainPop is all about is to log on and try it for yourself!

BrainPOP.com


*Just a quick note about Homeschool Happenings! and clicking on the links I provide:
I opt not to receive payment or rewards of any kind for the links that I provide on Homeschool Happenings. For example; I could subscribe as a publisher and receive a commission every time someone clicks through my site and then joins BrainPop. I don't do this because I want my readers to trust the information I recommend and share. I am not doing this for profit but rather to build a better homeschooling community for all our kids...

Zome: Septemeber Model of the Month and an amazing "Design Your Own" special offer!

Rhombi-cubocta-fish

This month's model was designed by Ron Woods for his 6-year-old grandson, who complained that too few models look like something familiar. But crafty Ron snuck some elegant geometry into his model, too: it's based on a stretched cuboctahedron.

You can build it with an Adventurer kit plus 4 short red struts, or purchase just the parts you need with the Rhombi-cubocta-fish kit.

Don't miss this very special, Special!
It's called "design your own special." That's right! Tell Paul Hildebrandt at Zome what you need, what you can afford, and he'll see if he can make it happen. Need a boatload of parts for a special workshop you're planning? Or a large kit for a special grandkid, but all the others are going to want one too? Or perhaps you need a bunch of Zome parts in special colors for a sculpture you're planning?

Now's the time to make it happen. Just let Paul know what you need and what you can afford. If you can't afford anything, well, it can't hurt to ask! Drop him a line at paulh@zometool.com, and be sure to put "Zome Special" in the subject line. He can't wait to hear from you!


* This is a really good time to take a look, or a second look, at Zome's educators web page. It is chock full of ideas, support materials and lesson plans for using Zome in art math and science. Incorporate Zome into your curriculum plan, create a Zome challenge for your co-op, or do some early holiday shopping. Then take advantage of Paul's unique offer!

Free Long Struts from ZOME!

Zome is replacing their long struts with super-short struts in order to "downsize" their kits. All lengths of Zometool struts will still be compatible. However, if you like the long struts, stock up now, because they're giving them away: you can get 1 lb. of long blue, yellow, red, half green or half blue struts FREE with every $25 worth of Zometool you order between now and 8/31/07. After that, long struts will be available by special order only... for a price!

To get your free long struts, just order at least $25 worth of Zometool before the end of the month (like a big bag of Rainbow Zome Balls!) Then go to Parts by the Pound and pick out a pound of long blues, yellows, reds, half greens or half blues for each $25 worth of Zometool you order. When you check out, enter the coupon code FREEPARTS, and you'll get a 100% discount on those parts.

Offer extended through Labor Day, 2007!

Eiffel Icosa

Check out the largest space frame structure ever built in Zome Space. Some 20 volunteers, using 17,464 parts, built this stunning model during the last week of July in Spain.

The Zome scrapbook article has loads of photos, sketches, history, and human interest. I loved looking over the historical photos of engineering feats like the Eiffel Tower, built for the 1889 Paris Universal Exposition, and the Ferris Wheel, constructed in Chicago, 1893. And the Final Zome construction is awesome. Click here to see and read all about this remarkable project.

What's The Big Idea? Science and Math Unit Studies In a Box! Available at the Library!

Wow! I noticed these kits on display at the Brandywine Hundred Library!

What's The Big Idea is a pilot program with the Vermont Center of the Book's Mother Goose Programs and the Delaware Public Library System. This program was underwritten by the National Science Foundation in an effort to bring Science and Math into the Library for Young Children.

These mini unit studies are wonderfully suited for those preschool years, ages 3+ to 5. The kits are not suitable for children 3 and under because they contain small parts.

Several Libraries in Delaware now carry these kits. If your library doesn't you the kits may be requested through the library system. New Castle, Sussex and Kent Counties are participating. This is a national program so the kits may also be available in libraries outside Delaware, call your local library.



The Brandywine Hundred Library has several boxes of each of a dozen topics; Building, Counting 1 2 3, Collecting and Sorting, Construction, Exploring Weather, Growing, Making Sets, Part-Part Whole, Number Patterns, Shadows and Recognizing Different and Same.





Each kit contains a picture book, a mini manual and materials to explore. For example the Part-Part Whole Kit includes the book "How Do You Count a Dozen Ducks," a mini manual and 100 snap blocks. The Exploring Weather Kit contains a rain meter and a couple thermometers and The Recognizing Same and Different kit contains a collection of items to sort.

You can check these kits out, one kit at a time, for three weeks, just like you would check out a book. So, check it out!

What's The Big Idea website

Zome: August Model of the Month

Queen Bee

This intriguing model was created by Ethan Smythe, a Davidson Institute Young Scholar. Queen Bee is made of 5 spirals of short yellows joined by 5 spirals of medium reds, Queen Bee echos a number of natural forms, like a bee hive or a pineapple.

Be sure to check it out. We highly recommend Zome. This product is a gem! There is curriculum support for using Zome in both math and science subject areas. Their web site contains tons of model plans and project ideas as well as frequent special price offerings. Most importantly, Zome is tons of building fun!

Pioneer kits for $13.95
The Pioneer kit is a great introduction to the power of Zometool: explore crazy bubbles, the tetra challenge, shadows from the 4th dimension, and much more. Includes a balanced inventory of 121 parts and a full-color 24-page manual. This special price offer expires 8/31/07.