Mode is in Vogue!

So far I've talked about Math class, being it's what REM teaches. But I want to touch upon Science and Social Studies, too. Today in science the class worked on their structures. Using one index card and 6 inches of masking tape, they have to build a structure that will hold at least 6 dictionaries 1.5 inches off of a flat surface. So far, there are some great ideas, but no one has been able to get past 1 dictionary. Without failure, they may not be grand ideas!! ;)

In social studies, Sunshine has the class going over text features of their textbooks and how to use them for different reasons. Today, SPEM offered for me to write the answer to one of the "clues about text features" the class was given on the overhead. I used the "I'm noticing..." again today and I find they really respond well to it.

But back to Math...today, Mode came to town! Mode is a celebrity that everyone wants to be because they are the most popular, they go to the most parties, and they have the most friends, and...see the theme here?

REM started out the lesson by reading an article from TeenVogue magazine. She cleverly inserted her own text into the magazine, complete with quick facts for herself on the back cover. She read an "article written by the editor of Vogue" about Mode and how popular she was.




After introducing Mode, REM "rolled out the red carpet" and Mode came to town! She had the students go up in front of the class holding index cards with a data set (see below). She then had the kids tell her what the mode was. When identified, REM pulled out feather boas, sun glasses, and echo microphones and dressed them on the students who were holding the mode cards. As I held up a Vogue poster, REM recorded the mode for the entire class to see. The "mode" students then walked the carpet and made way for a new data set. This was a fun lesson for all, and I don't think they will soon forget how to find the mode of a data set.