New England is one of the oldest areas of our country.  Solve these math problems to find out how long ago people came from Europe to settle in “The New Land.”

The Pilgrims settled in Plymouth in 1620.  Later Massachusetts became the 6th state in 1788.  Old Ironsides has been in the U.S. Navy since 1794.  How long ago did the Pilgrims come to Massachusetts?  How long has Old Ironsides been part of the U.S. Navy?

New Hampshire became the 9th state in 1788.  In 2003 the Old Man In the Mountain, a symbol of the state, fell.  How long has New Hampshire been a state?  How long has it been since the Old Man disappeared?

Maine became the 23rd state in 1820. 1,328,302 people lived in Maine 2013.  That same year Maine sold 63,000,000 tons of lobster.  How long has Maine been a state?  How many more tons of lobster did Maine sell than it has people in 2013?

In 1636 people moved from Plymouth, MA to Rhode Island to begin another colony. They called it Providence.   Rhode Island became the 13th state in 1790.  How long did people live in Providence before Rhode Island became a state?  How old is Rhode Island?

 

Louisiana became the 18th state in 1812.  It is known for its Mardi Gras celebration that has been happening every year since 1838.

How many years has Louisiana been a state?  And, how many years has Mardi Gras been celebrated there?

Indiana became the 19th state in 1816.  Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore is in northern Indiana on the shores of Lake Michigan.  People began the work a preserving this site in 1899.  It finally became a national park in 1966.

How many years has Indiana been a state?  How long did it take the people of Indiana to preserve Indiana Dunes?  How long has it been a national park?

Florida became the 27th state in 1845.  One of its natural wonders is the Everglades.  It was preserved in 1947.  One of its manmade wonders is Kennedy Space Center on Cape Canaveral.  It opened in 1962.

How many years has Florida been a state?  How long has the Everglades been preserved?  And how old is the Kennedy Space Center?

We’ve been learning more about equivalence.  We’ve been  balancing equations.  We’ve  realized that = doesn’t mean a final answer. These can be a challenge, but we can do them if we slow down and think about our math process.

Maybe you’d like to practice with your family.  Balance is the key.  Here’s one example as a reminder:

6 + _____ = 32 ÷ 4

6+ ? = 8

6+2 = 8 

So 2 fills the blank.

Here are some equations for you:

8 x _____ = 4 x 10

21 – 6 = 5 x _____

5 +_____ = 18 ÷ 2

7 + 4 = 5 + _____

35 ÷ 7 = _____ +5

16 – 7 = 3 x ____

_____ – 4 = 9 x 2

Have fun challenging your thinking in new ways.  If you want, leave your own equation in a comment for us to solve.

Max discovered The Big Honey Hunt was the first Berenstain Bear book.  It was published in 1962.  How many years ago was the first book in this series written?

There are 300 books in the Berenstain Bear series.  Each book has has 32 pages.  How many pages will Max have read when he has completed reading the entire series.

There are 790 pages in Wonder.  We have read 46 pages.  How many more pages do we have to read before we finish the seventh chapter read-aloud?

 

Happy Vacation!  Here are some problems to ponder while you’re lounging, skiing or skating, dancing, or running, reading, or healing, building, or singing, creating  or,  …enjoy what comes to you in your week.

Because I was thinking that one way we can grow as writers is by looking at stories we know well, I checked out folktales.  There are Cinderella stories from every one of the countries our class chose to research.  I think that is very cool!  We’ll be exploring them in March.

The Cinderella we are most familiar with, was first written inFrance in 1697.  How old is that version of Cinderella?

The oldest Cinderella story is from Egypt.  It was written in 83 BC.  (That’s 83 years before 0.)  How old is that story?

How much older is the Egyptian Cinderella than the version from France?

The Chinese version is called Yeh Shen.  It was written during the T’ang Dynasty in 618 AD.  How old is that story?

How much older is Yeh Shen than the version from France?

Did you know that some of the main characters in “Cinderella” stories are boys?  I hope we’ll have a lot of fun with fairytales in March.  Do you have a favorite fairytale?

Jayce had 1,250 Pringles.  He ate 524.  He gave Liam 461.  How many Pringles did he have left?

Mackenzie and Logan were working on their “Princess Plan” surprise.  They started to get ready at 8:45.  They were finished with their costumes, hair and make-up at 10:23.  How much time did it take them to get ready for the awesome surprise?

There are 3,803 pieces in the Lego Death Star model kit.  Gavin had put 1,935 pieces together before February vacation.  Gavin was excited to finish it over vacation.  How many pieces did Gavin have left to finish the model?

Mackenzie was wearing her Fitbit.  She counted 10,214 steps every day for 5 days.  How many steps did she count altogether in those five days?  Over the weekend she her count was 4,587 steps less than her 5-day total.  How many steps did she count on the weekend?

Max and Rachael were building Lego models of things they hoped to see if they had a chance to visit France.  They used 3,472 Legos to make the Eiffel Tower.  They used 6,519 Legos to make the Louvre.  And they used 8,207 Legos to make Notre Dame.  How many Legos did Rachael and Max use altogether to make their models of important landmarks they hoped to one day see in France?

While Samantha was learning about Thailand she discovered the Emerald Buddha.  It has an amazing history and tradition.  She decided to build a map out of the area with Legos.  She used 2,385 white Legos, 4,287 tan bricks, 3,056 red Legos, 1,053 gold Legos and 864 green Legos in her model.  How many Lego bricks did Samantha use altogether in her model?  

When she started, Samantha had 17,500 Legos.  How many did she have left when she had completed her map?

The class was making models of  homes and famous building from the countries they were exploring.

Julie used 325 tan Legos, 1,438 white Legos and 537 brown legos to make her model of a house from Egypt.

Danick used 459 brown Legos, 257 black Legos and 1,208 white Legos to make a model of a house from Sweden.

Who used more Legos?  Julie or Danick?  How many more were used?

Liam made a model of the Taj Mahal.  He used 568 gray Legos for each of the 4 minarets.  He used 7917 white Legos to build the main building.  How many Legos did Liam use altogether?

Max made a model of the Arc de Triomphe.  He used 1,543 white Legos, 437 gray Legos and 286 tan Legos in his model.  How many Legos did he use altogether?   He worked on the model from 10:30 to 1:30 on Tuesday and from 6:45 to 7:30 on Wednesday.  How many minutes did it take Max to complete his model?

Our problems have to do with some of the Wonders we’ve been discovering about our world during our global research project…

The Great Barrier Reef is the largest natural structure in the world.  It is 13,171 miles long.  The Great Wall of China is the only manmade structure large enough to be seen my astronauts in space.  It is 1,600 miles long.  How longer is the Great Barrier Reef than the Great Wall of China?

Christ the Redeemer statue looks out over the ocean in Brazil.  It is 98 feet and 5 inches tall.  How many inches is that altogether?

The Eiffel Tower is 1,065 feet tall.  How much taller is the Eiffel Tower than the statue in Brazil?

The Nile River is the longest river in the world.  It is 4258 miles long.  The Amazon River is not quite as long, at 3,983 miles, but more water flows through it than in any other river in the world.  How much longer is the Nile than the Amazon?