Benchmark Week

This week, all students will be taking district-mandated benchmarks.  Language Arts, Social Studies, Science, and Math will each be administering a test.  Electives, PE, and intervention classes (math lab, writing lab, etc.) will be having regular class.  The benchmark that the students will be taking in math class is a cumulative exam covering material that has not been taught yet.  It will be the exact same benchmark that the students will take in the spring to see how much growth the students have made from the beginning of the year and is an indicator of success on the CST (California Standards Test).  I will not be including the results of this benchmark in the student grade, but students should try to do their best.

This Wednesday (8/25) is Picture Day.
Next Wednesday (9/1) is Back to School Night.  Hope to see you there!

Because of the benchmarks, we will be having block scheduling on Tuesday and Thursday this week.  The schedule is below.

Tuesday:

7:35 - 9:30	Period 1
9:30 - 9:42	Break
9:47 - 11:42	Period 3
11:42-12:12	Lunch
12:17-2:12	Period 5

Thursday:

7:35 - 9:30	Period 2
9:30 - 9:42	Break
9:47 - 11:42	Period 4
11:42-12:12	Lunch
12:17-2:12	Period 6

Homework assigned on Monday will be graded on Wednesday and homework assigned on Wednesday will be graded on Friday.

6th Grade Announcements & Homework

This week, we will be continuing our study of one-step equations.  We will be solving them by adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing.  Textbooks (TB) and Workbooks (WB) will be distributed on Monday.  Homework will mostly be out of the WB or worksheets.  

Homework for the week is as follows:

Monday (8/23): WB 1-8 #1-7 odd, WB 1-9 #1-7 odd, WB 1-10 #10-16 even

Tuesday (8/24): No HW (Benchmark)

Wednesday (8/25): WB 1-11 #10-20 even, Quiz 1 Practice Problems

Thursday (8/26): No HW (Benchmark)

Friday (8/27): No HW (Quiz 1: One-Step Equations today)

Pre-Algebra Announcements & Homework

This week, we will be adding and subtracting integers.  

Homework for the week is as follows:

Monday (8/23): WB Pg. 4 #10-20 even

Tuesday (8/24): No HW (Benchmark)

Wednesday (8/25): TB Pg. 24 #22-31 (required), Quiz 1 Practice Problems (extra credit)

Thursday (8/26): No HW (Benchmark)

Friday (8/27): No HW (Quiz 1 today)

Welcome, everyone!

Welcome to the official website of Ms. Li's Room 504 Mathletes!  I am very excited to teach 6th grade math and Pre-Algebra this year.

I want to make sure that people that support my students (parents, older siblings, guardians, etc.) are kept up to date and have a place to see archived information regarding the classes.  On this website, I will be posting announcements, the topics being covered in class for the week, as well as homework for the week.  This year, I'm also trying something new: dropbox.  I'm planning to post worksheets and other important documents online so that you can have access to it to reprint if something gets lost.

Other important websites to bookmark:

John Muir School Website - http://www.sjusd.org/school/john_muir

This website has school-wide announcements and information

Parent Internet Viewer - https://sjusd.gradebook.net/Pinnacle/PIV

This website allows you to check grades for each class, missing assignments, tardies, and absences.  You will need a user name and password, which should be distributed in the next two weeks.  If you lose that information, you can request it by coming to the Main Office at school.

Textbook Website: http://my.hrw.com

This website has all of the textbook and workbook pages available as pdf downloads.  There are also extra quizzes and other helpful tools.  You need a username and password.  

6th Grade Username: 6math16

Pre-Algebra Username: prealgebra79

Password (for both): johnmuir

Textbooks (TB) and workbooks (WB) will be distributed this week.  Homework will be assigned from these two sources.  

Below is my current schedule for the 2010-2011 school year:

1st period: 6th Grade Math
2nd period: 6th Grade Math
3rd period: Pre-Algebra
4th period: Pre-Algebra (7th grade)
5th period: Prep
6th period: 6th Grade Math

Thank you to all of the 6th graders who attended the Summer Bridges program and took the math placement test.  There are still about 25 students who need to take the test and may need to change math classes following the results of the test.  If your child scored Advanced on the 5th grade math CST and you feel like they should be in the advanced 6th grade math section, please contact our Assistant Principal of Instruction Jen Long Bauer by calling (408) 535-2681 x263 to add them to the list of 6th graders who will be taking the placement test on Wednesday (8/18/10).

For the 6th graders in my Pre-Algebra section (period 3), please ignore the announcements I make to 6th Grade Math and reference the Pre-Algebra notes instead.

6th Grade Announcements & Homework

This week, we will be going over necessary materials, classroom procedures, classroom expectations, and setting our goals for the year.  We will also be learning the divisibility rules, which help us determine whether or not a number is divisible by 2, 5, and 10.

Homework for the week is as follows:

Monday (8/16): Syllabus Signature

Tuesday (8/17): Student Interest Survey

Wednesday (8/18): Big Goals, WB 1-7 #1-23 odd

Thursday (8/19): Quiz 0 Practice Problems

Friday (8/20): No HW (Quiz 0 today)

There will be assemblies during class on Friday, so those classes attending the assembly during math class will have a take-home quiz instead, which will be due on Monday.

Pre-Algebra Announcements & Homework

This week, we will be going over necessary materials, classroom procedures, classroom expectations, and setting our goals for the year.  We will also be reviewing how to evaluate expressions and exponents, write and translate algebraic expressions, and practice integer operations and absolute value.

Homework for the week is as follows:

Monday (8/16): Syllabus Signature

Tuesday (8/17): Student Interest Survey

Wednesday (8/18): WB Pg. 2 #1-13 odd

Thursday (8/19): Translating Expressions Worksheet #1-12

Friday (8/20): Integer Worksheet odd numbers only

Week of 5/24/10

Two Weeks Notice!

I can't believe the end is so close.  It seems like the school year has really flown by.  The Algebra 1 students are pretty much done.  They have completed their final exam and exit exam.  There is virtually no more homework for the Algebra students.  Grades are finalized.  However, there are two things that I need:

• Textbooks
• Superlative nominations

Textbooks must be returned by this Wednesday (5/26).  I will be sending home notices and bills on Thursday for students who do not return their textbooks.

Superlative nominations must also be submitted by Wednesday.  I will be giving out awards on Thursday, so if you want your vote counted, please return the worksheet.

Exit Exam Results / Options
Of the approximately 350 students who took the Algebra 1 exit exam, John Muir had 6 students pass.  Congratulations to Brendan Nguyen for passing!  However, for the students who did not pass the exit exam, please understand that failing this test does NOT mean much.  In fact, last year there were 136 students who scored Proficient or Advanced on the Algebra 1 CST and of those students, only 50 passed the exit exam.  That's only 37%!  Even though you may not have passed the school district exit exam, you may still be considered Proficient or Advanced in Algebra 1 by the state of California.

For my 8th graders moving on to high school, you do have an option.  You can still move up to Geometry if you want.  The only problem is that you will NOT receive high school credit for Algebra 1 and will still have to take 3 years of math in high school.  The choice is yours.  If you want an easy math class next year, go ahead and retake Algebra 1.  You will be a rock star in your class.  If you feel like you will be bored re-learning the same material and want to push forward, take Geometry.

6th grade students have their final exam on Wednesday and Thursday this week.  This test counts twice as much as a normal test and should be taken seriously.  It is Benchmark 4 (a two-day test).  This Friday is the 6th grade field trip to the beach, which I will be chaperoning.

Because of the testing and field trip, I have pushed back the due date of the Survey Project to next Tuesday, June 1.  We will be doing presentations of the survey project on Tuesday (6/1) and giving out superlative awards on Wednesday (6/2).

Below are the important dates for the 6th graders:

Wednesday (5/26) - Textbooks Due! Superlative Nominations Due!  Part 1 of the Final Exam!
Thursday (5/27) - Part 2 of the Final Exam
Friday (5/28) - Field Trip to Seabright Beach
Monday (5/31) - Memorial Day (no school)
Tuesday (6/1) - Survey Project Due (presentations in class)
Wednesday (6/2) - Awards Day in class
Thursday (6/3) - Last Day of School (early release)

Week of 5/17/10

This week, Algebra 1 students will have their last test of the year.  However, it is the most important test, as it will determine which math class they will take next year.  On Wednesday and Thursday this week (5/19 and 5/20), all Algebra 1 students will take the Exit Exam.  The number of questions has not been released yet, but students must answer at least 70% correctly in order to move on to Geometry and Algebra 2.  Students who score below 70% will repeat Algebra 1 next year.  We have been reviewing for this test and the final two topics for review will be polynomials (adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing) and systems of equations.

6th grade students will continue reviewing for their two-day final exam, which will be held on Wednesday and Thursday of next week (5/26 and 5/27).  We will also continue working on our survey project.

A few notes and reminders:

• Students can begin bringing back their textbooks.
• Students should return their superlatives nominations.
• Field trip forms are due!  $40 for 8th graders is due tomorrow and $10 for 6th graders is due on Friday.
• 8th Grade field trip to Great America is on Wednesday, June 2.
• 6th Grade field trip to Seabright Beach is on Friday, May 28.
• This Friday is College/Career day, so we will have a modified schedule with shortened periods.
• Next Monday is Math Collaboration day, so all math teachers will be off-campus working together to create curriculum.

Homework for the week is as follows:

6th Grade HW
Mon (5/17) - Area/Volume Worksheet
Tue (5/18) - Survey Project Parts 5
Wed (5/19) - Expressions Worksheet
Thu (5/20) - Survey Project Parts 6

Fri (5/21) - Survey Project due (all)


8th Grade HW
Mon (5/17) - Exit Exam Practice Problems #14, 21, 26-28, 37, 39, 41, 42, 57
Tue (5/18) - Exit Exam Practice Problems #10, 22, 30, 36, 44, 59, 60, 64, 65
Wed (5/19) - No HW (Exit Exam today)
Thu (5/20) - No HW (Exit Exam today)
Fri (5/21) - No HW

Week of 5/10/10

The CST is over!  Woo-hoo!  Congratulations to all the students who stayed focused and worked hard all week long.  Special shout-out to the 8th graders who had twice as many tests as the 6th and 7th graders.  However, the fun doesn't stop there.

Algebra students have 2 more exams coming up.  Both are two-day tests.  The first is the Final Exam.  This exam should look pretty familiar - it's Benchmark 4!  The first time we took Benchmark 4 in April, it was just a guide to see how much the students had learned.  This time, it's going to count in the student's grade: twice as much as a regular unit test.  The final exam will be given on Tuesday, May 11 (Part 1) and Thursday, May 13 (Part 2).  The reason we are not testing on Wednesday is because the BMX bike show is on that day and many students will be participating in it.  The reason we are not testing on Friday is because we have the Jog-A-Thon in the afternoon and shortened periods in the morning.  And it just doesn't seem fair to start the test on Monday when the students tested all last week.

The second exam is the Exit Exam.  This exam does not count for a grade, but it will determine whether your child gets to move on to Geometry next year or must repeat Algebra 1.  It, too, is a two-day test to be held on Wednesday, May 19 (Part 1) and Thursday, May 20 (Part 2).

We will be spending the next two weeks preparing for and taking these two very important exams.  We will be reviewing material in class and completing practice problems and the students will be working from a packet for homework.  They will be using the same packet for the next two weeks, so they cannot lose it and will need it every day.  If your child loses it, send me an email and I'll send you an electronic copy.  Also, I have underlined the problems that we will do in class, so if your child does not know how to do the underlined problems for homework, have them go back to their notes and check.

6th grade students also have two more tests.  However, they are not as high stakes.  On Thursday this week, 6th graders will be taking the MDTP Pre-Algebra readiness exam.  This test is not for a grade or placement, but the results will tell each student the topics they should work on over the summer in order to be ready for 7th grade Pre-Algebra in the fall.

The 6th grade final exam is a two-day test (Benchmark 4) that will be given on Wednesday (5/26) and Thursday (5/27).

6th grade students will be reviewing for the final exam and will also be working on a survey project that will be due on Monday (5/24).  More details will come.



6th Grade HW
Mon (5/10) - Fraction Adventures Worksheet
Tue (5/11) - Survey Project Parts 1 and 2
Wed (5/12) - Proportions Worksheet
Thu (5/13) - Survey Project Parts 3 and 4Fri (5/14) - Survey Project Part 4


8th Grade HW
Mon (5/10) - Exit Exam Practice Problems #1, 2, ,3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 29, 62
Tue (5/11) - Exit Exam Practice Problems #8, 12, 15, 23, 31, 43, 50, 52, 54 (Final Exam today)
Wed (5/12) - Exit Exam Practice Problems #16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 32, 38, 53, 61
Thu (5/13) - Exit Exam Practice Problems #33, 40, 46, 48, 49, 51, 55, 58, 63 (Final Exam today)
Fri (5/14) - Exit Exam Practice Problems #9, 11, 13, 24, 34, 45, 47

Week of 4/26/10

One week left until the CST...

This week, the 6th graders will continue to review for the CST.  We will be taking a short "pre-test" on Monday to see how prepared the students are.  Expect your child to bring home their graded pre-test with a CST predictor score.  Each day, we will be focusing on 2-3 key standards and on Friday, we will take a "post-test" to see how much we have improved and indicate how prepared we are for the CST.

On Monday, I will also be talking to the students about how the CST is structured.  There are 65 math questions and the students will have 2 days to complete them (technically, they have unlimited time and can ask for more than the 2 days that have been allocated).  The number of questions that students must correctly answer in order to get Advanced, Proficient, Basic, Below Basic, and Far Below Basic vary each year slightly.  Below is the breakdown for last year.

55-65	Advanced
43-54	Proficient
31-42	Basic
21-30	Below Basic
0-20	Far Below Basic

There are 30 different standards that can be tested on the CST.  Some are more important than others.  For example, one standard could have 6 questions on the CST, whereas another standard may have one question every other year.  This week, we will be focusing on the "key" standards.  These are the standards that have 3 or more questions on the CST.  If a student were to answer all of the key standard questions on the CST correctly, they would easily score Proficient.

Students who do not finish the classwork must complete it for homework.

8th Graders will be working on word problems this week, covering the last bit of material of the curriculum.

Homework for the week is as follows:

6th Grade HW
Mon (4/26) - CST packet #60-67
Tue (4/27) - CST packet #68-77
Wed (4/28) - CST packet #78-84
Thu (4/29) - CST packet #85-91
Fri (4/30) - CST packet #92-96 (Quiz today)


8th Grade HW
Mon (4/26) - Word Problems # 1-3
Tue (4/27) - Word Problems # 4-7
Wed (4/28) - Word Problems # 8-11
Thu (4/29) - Word Problems # 12-15
Fri (4/30) - No HW (Quiz today)

Week of 4/19/10 - Unit 6 Results

11 Days Until the CST...we're counting down!

The California Standards Test will be administered from May 4 - 7, 2010.  There will be early release (students stay for lunch and are released at 12:45 pm).  Students will be testing with their 4th period teacher.

Homework for both the 6th and 8th graders will primarily be from the CST released test questions.  This packet of questions comes from old CST's.  Instead of giving the answers each day, I will be giving the students 5 minutes to discuss with their table groups the answers that they got.  Each table group will decide on their answers and I will grade their table group answers.

I will be chaperoning the 8th grade field trip to San Jose State University on Thursday, so the students will have a substitute then.

Algebra students will be continuing our study on rational expressions.

6th grade students will be working at different stations each day to review for the CST.  Special thanks to Grant Cooperman, Andrew Gonzalez, Melissa Murphy, Nick Escobedo, Araceli Esquivel, Kathy Chavez Alvarez, Gaby Rodrigues, Kevin Soto, Jacob Powers, Rachel Kiep, Leonardo Robles-Gonzales, Alex Ruffo, and Cayla Antonio for accepting positions as station leaders and helping out.

On Friday (April 9), the 6th grade students took their Unit 6 Test. Our goal was for each student to demonstrate at least 80% mastery. Since there were 25 questions,  you could only miss 5 questions. 


Congratulations to the following students who met our Big Goal and demonstrated mastery of Unit 6:
Grant Cooperman, Lindsay Cutler, Melissa Murphy, Gabe Yee, Josh Herndon and Leonardo Robles-Gonzales.


There were no perfect or one-miss scores this time.

Below are class results of the Unit 6 Test on Probability.

Period	Average (Raw)	Average %	Students Above 80%	Total Students
4	14.0	56%	4	25
5	12.4	50%	0	27
6	13.0	52%	2	30

Test Corrections & Retakes:
Test corrections and retakes will take place next week on Monday after school and Wednesday after school.


Homework for the week is as follow:

6th Grade HW
Mon (4/19) - CST packet #10-18
Tue (4/20) - CST packet #19-29
Wed (4/21) - CST packet #30-40
Thu (4/22) - CST packet #41-50
Fri (4/23) - CST packet #51-59


8th Grade HW
Mon (4/19) - CST packet #57-65
Tue (4/20) - CST packet #66-73
Wed (4/21) - CST packet #74-78
Thu (4/22) - CST packet #79-87
Fri (4/23) - CST packet #88-96