5th Grade GT Math - Monarchs!
MONTY!
While collecting Milkweed for the soon-to-be-ordered Monarch baby caterpillars, Mrs. Muir offered a Milkweed plant from her mother's garden. Little did we know, a tiny egg was on the underside of one of the leaves. It was not noticeable until a leaf on the plant began looking chewed. Sure enough, there was MONTY - our first official - and most special - Monarch! Monty ended up being a beautiful female Monarch. It was a miracle!
While collecting Milkweed for the soon-to-be-ordered Monarch baby caterpillars, Mrs. Muir offered a Milkweed plant from her mother's garden. Little did we know, a tiny egg was on the underside of one of the leaves. It was not noticeable until a leaf on the plant began looking chewed. Sure enough, there was MONTY - our first official - and most special - Monarch! Monty ended up being a beautiful female Monarch. It was a miracle!
Meanwhile...
The babies we ordered arrived, and BOY, could they EAT!!! Mrs. Young even got a bad case of Poison Ivy trying to collect enough Milkweed for all the little caterpillars! We watched them transform from tiny caterpillars to amazingly beautiful adult Monarch butterflies!
The babies we ordered arrived, and BOY, could they EAT!!! Mrs. Young even got a bad case of Poison Ivy trying to collect enough Milkweed for all the little caterpillars! We watched them transform from tiny caterpillars to amazingly beautiful adult Monarch butterflies!
Where's the Math in Monarchs?
Since we were well into our Ratio/Proportion unit, we worked through a ratio problem to solve for x. We wanted to find out what a newborn baby would weigh to be proportional with the Monarch egg and adult.
Since we were well into our Ratio/Proportion unit, we worked through a ratio problem to solve for x. We wanted to find out what a newborn baby would weigh to be proportional with the Monarch egg and adult.
More Ratio & Percent - Our Symbolic Monarch:
It was time to prepare a symbolic class Monarch to send to Mexico through the Journey North program. There, our Monarch would "roost" for the winter, acting as an ambassador as well. To represent each us, we created glyphs that would show special things about ourselves.
It was time to prepare a symbolic class Monarch to send to Mexico through the Journey North program. There, our Monarch would "roost" for the winter, acting as an ambassador as well. To represent each us, we created glyphs that would show special things about ourselves.
We used Google Translate to make a key in Spanish for each of our glyphs so the students in Mexico would understand them. We attached the glyphs and our pictures to the symbolic Monarch cut from a file folder and included a class picture and a cluster of small colorful butterflies that would eventually land all over North America. We think our symbolic Monarch turned out very special! We also included a donation for the Monarch Fund to help keep the Monarch's overwintering sites in Mexico from disappearing.
Our message of ambassadorship:
Daily Classroom Miracles:
All the while, our Monarch caterpillars were continuing to form their chrysalises and emerge as adult Monarch butterflies. It was an amazing sight to see.
All the while, our Monarch caterpillars were continuing to form their chrysalises and emerge as adult Monarch butterflies. It was an amazing sight to see.
Tagging & Releasing:
Through the Monarch Watch program out of Kansas University, we were able to tag our Monarchs and enter them into a world-wide database in case someone were to find and report any of our Monarchs. We have not yet heard from anyone.
Through the Monarch Watch program out of Kansas University, we were able to tag our Monarchs and enter them into a world-wide database in case someone were to find and report any of our Monarchs. We have not yet heard from anyone.
Monarch Tagging Data Sheet:
Flight of the Butterflies:
Once our Monarchs were released and had made the journey to Mexico for the winter, we enjoyed a real treat. We met at the Science Center in Baltimore one weekend to watch the IMAX movie, "Flight of the Butterflies." The story told of the discovery of the Monarch migration, and in 3D we got to watch the miraculous annual cycle. It was a very special night!
Once our Monarchs were released and had made the journey to Mexico for the winter, we enjoyed a real treat. We met at the Science Center in Baltimore one weekend to watch the IMAX movie, "Flight of the Butterflies." The story told of the discovery of the Monarch migration, and in 3D we got to watch the miraculous annual cycle. It was a very special night!
Our Symbolic Monarch Made it to Mexico!
It was very exciting to log on and see that our symbolic Monarch, filled with our pictures and glyphs, had indeed made the journey to Mexcio!
It was very exciting to log on and see that our symbolic Monarch, filled with our pictures and glyphs, had indeed made the journey to Mexcio!
Springtime Brings Returns:
Once the spring had hit, just as the real Monarchs begin heading north from Mexico, so did the symbolic Monarchs. We happily received an amazingly beautiful butterfly covered in images of peace. Inside was a cluster of life-size Monarchs, each from a different place in North America. We logged on to Journey North's database to let the creators of the Monarchs know we had received their message of ambassadorship.
Once the spring had hit, just as the real Monarchs begin heading north from Mexico, so did the symbolic Monarchs. We happily received an amazingly beautiful butterfly covered in images of peace. Inside was a cluster of life-size Monarchs, each from a different place in North America. We logged on to Journey North's database to let the creators of the Monarchs know we had received their message of ambassadorship.
Someone Found a Symbolic Atholton Monarch!
Once we had entered the symbolic Monarchs that had "flown" to Columbia, Maryland, we checked the interactive map to see if anyone had reported receiving our symbolic Monarchs. It was very exciting to see that one of our Monarchs (Jensen's) had been found and reported from Rogers, Arkansas.
Once we had entered the symbolic Monarchs that had "flown" to Columbia, Maryland, we checked the interactive map to see if anyone had reported receiving our symbolic Monarchs. It was very exciting to see that one of our Monarchs (Jensen's) had been found and reported from Rogers, Arkansas.
Interpreting the Data:
We kept up with the science and math behind the great Monarch Migration through Journey North's weekly updates. Sadly, we learned that the number of Monarchs overwintering during the 2012-2013 season was at an all-time low. We used the data on the bar graph to interpret as well as to infer, recording our mathematical statements in a Word document.
We kept up with the science and math behind the great Monarch Migration through Journey North's weekly updates. Sadly, we learned that the number of Monarchs overwintering during the 2012-2013 season was at an all-time low. We used the data on the bar graph to interpret as well as to infer, recording our mathematical statements in a Word document.
Asking Questions:
In April, we got to submit three questions for the students who surround the Monarch sanctuaries in Mexico. As a class, we came up with what we wanted to know most.
In April, we got to submit three questions for the students who surround the Monarch sanctuaries in Mexico. As a class, we came up with what we wanted to know most.
One of our questions was answered: