HOM’s Family Math And Science Night

By Susan Coney

It was a beautiful spring evening and despite all the activities that make this time of year extremely busy, families put aside their hectic schedules and turned out for the Family Math and Science Night at Head O’ Meadow School on Thursday, April 14.

Forty-four families signed up to participate in the hands-on experience. In a relaxed fashion, the event allowed families to come and enjoy fun filled math and science activities.

Gail Maletz, science and math coordinator at Head O’ Meadow, organized the event to encourage families of third graders to gather together to explore math and science through a series of games and activities. The third graders and their families had the opportunity to choose from 12 activities, all of which correspond with the curriculum, and test their skills in areas such as estimating, predicting, making observations and observing and recording outcomes. A few of the activities such as, “Focus on Scope,” a premicroscope lesson, introduced the students to what they will begin to encounter in the fourth grade.

In addition to the 12 activities provided, the students and their families were encouraged to choose from a number of math games, riddles, and puzzles. They were free to choose which activities interested them and move about from station to station at their own pace. Each family, upon arrival, was given a packet to assist them, as well as an evaluation form and take-home games.

Third grader Brook Newton worked intently with her dad, Scott. Her task was placing everyday objects, such as fruits and vegetables, in order from lightest to heaviest. First, she made a prediction as to what would happen. Next, she carefully weighed the fruits and veggies on a balance scale to try to determine their order from lightest to heaviest. Brook used a guess and check strategy when performing the experiment.

Patrick Pierce and his parents, Chrissie and David, worked with Tangram Tanalizers, a set of space relationship puzzles. Chrissie is not only a parent, she is a third grade teacher at Head O’ Meadow School. She stressed the importance of the event in presenting an opportunity for the parents to see first hand what types of math and science experiences are being offered in the third grade.

With the chance to share such activities as Last is a Blast, Toothpick Mania, Perplexing Pentominoes, and Calculator Riddles the Family Math and Science Night at Head O’ Meadow was a hit.