Today is known as Pi Day since the first three numbers of pi (3.14) correspond to today's date (3/14). That is something I touched upon today just for the fun of it. With next week's math common assessment coming up, we are finishing up with decimals (ordering, comparing, adding and subtracting) and then gearing up for some review. Once the math common assessment has been completed, we will move to geometry (symmetry, angles, polygons, etc) and measurement (standard and metric). After that, we will have completed the 4th grade curriculum for math and will focus more intensively on review and applying what has been taught towards problem solving. In block 2, I continued with algebra and the focus was again on solving equation with one variable. What the students did was use inverse operations (the opposite) to isolate the variable on one side of the equation and get all of the numbers on the other side of the equal sign. Just like with fractions, what is done on one side must be done on the other. For a simple example, let's say they have 3n = 279. It means, "Three multiplied by an unknown number represented by n, is equal to 279." A number next to a variable means to multiply and the object is to get n by itself on one side of the equal sign and the numbers on the other. Since the operation is multiplication, use the opposite - division, to isolate the variable. 3 ÷ 3 = 1n (or just n) and 279 ÷ 3 = 93. Therefore, n = 93. In science, the students are taking the unit test for Earth History. Since it has 40 questions and science is usually only about 30 minutes per lesson, it is best to do this over a two-day period. Tomorrow the grades will be finalized for the students who will have been here for both days. For students who are absent, they will be given time to make it up.