letters to my class

3 February 2015

February 3rd, 2015

Dear Historians,

I’ve long thought history is the story of how we got to where we are now. While I still think that’s true, I also think we study history to find out the things that have been true throughout the years. In looking at Colorado history, we see a few ideas keep cropping up in all time periods:

1. People live in the balance between their environment and the ways they try to shape their environment.
2. People are always bumping into “outsiders” and trying to figure out ways to live with them.
3. People move around chasing opportunity.

Think about how these ideas are true for Zebulon Pike, Kit Carson, William Green Russell, Chief Ouray, Horace Tabor, and Dust Bowl farmers. History is not just the story of individuals in specific places at specific times. It’s mostly the story of the ideas that make these times and places look the same.

Sincerely,

Mr. Heimbuck
2 February 2015

February 2nd, 2015

Dear Tool Users,

Today we’ll measure angles. Anytime we measure, we must be accurate and precise, but we must always keep in mind that measuring is always an approximation. The most difficult thing about measuring is deciding what unit to use and how to report your measurement. How precise do you need to be? A lot of that depends on what you’re doing with your measurement.

Tools are important. Civilization is the story of humans using tools to change their environment and make it more liveable. The history of science is the story of humans combining ideas about the world with the tools they’ve created to test those ideas.

“In every human culture, the hand and the brain work together to create the style that makes a civilization.”–Freeman Dyson

Sincerely,

Mr. Heimbuck
30 January 2015

January 30th, 2015

Dear Empathizers,

“Homo sum, humani nihil a me alienum puto.”–Terence

That means “I am a human being, I consider nothing that is human alien to me.” Terence was a Roman playwright over 2000 years ago, but I think this thought still holds true today. To empathize means to see a bit of others in ourselves and a bit of ourselves in others. It’s often hard to do, but like anything, empathizing is a skill that we can get better at.

People make decisions for a variety of reasons. We’re best not to judge them too harshly if they’re decisions we disagree with or think we wouldn’t make for ourselves. No matter what someone does, we must always treat them as human beings deserve to be treated.

Sincerely,

Mr. Heimbuck
29 January 2015

January 29th, 2015

Dear Readers,

I don’t know about you, but I’ve loved reading The One and Only Ivan. Not only is it a good story told with wonderful writing, but it also does what literature should do: ask questions about how humans act in the world.

What questions do you think The One and Only Ivan raises? What does that book make you wonder? We’ll talk about some of these questions today. But we won’t answer them. Good books raise questions that can’t be easily answered. Usually they only lead to more questions.

Sincerely,

Mr. Heimbuck
28 January 2015

January 28th, 2015

Dear Pleasure Seekers,

There’s pleasure in doing a thing well. No matter how small–tying a knot, solving a division problem, writing a letter–a thing done well is its own reward. You probably won’t accomplish something you can be proud of the first time you try it, however. Effort, failure, and perseverance are the ingredients for eventual success.

If you only do things because you’re suppposed to or because you want an extrinisic reward, you probably won’t accomplish anything great. So take pleasure in doing something well for its own sake.

“Everything undertaken for its own sake is worthwhile, irrespective of the outcome.”–Geoff Dyer

Sincerely,

Mr. Heimbuck
27 January 2015

January 27th, 2015

Dear Problem Solvers,

Each day, each hour, each minute, life presents us with problems to solve. This morning on my commute, I tried to find a specific radio station on the FM dial. It took me a while, and I used a variety of strategies, but eventually I found it. In solving the problem, I also found a few other radio stations I liked, and I developed new ideas about what types of radio stations belong where on the dial.

Most of life’s problems have a multitude of possible answers, none of which is correct. We have to use what we already know to figure out a strategy to come to the best possible solution. And if we’re good problem sovlers, we find more than just the answer we’re looking for.

Sincerely,

Mr. Heimbuck
26 January 2015

January 26th, 2015

Dear Havers of Big Ideas,

We learn facts, names, and dates so it’s easier for us to understand the big ideas of how the world works. In order to understand what makes people move (or migrate) around the world to make a better life for themselves, it helps to learn facts about what life was like for the 59ers who searched for gold in the Pikes Peak area. In order to understand how the number system works and reveals patterns about the real world, it helps to know our multiplication and division facts.

Today we’ll practice these skills and learn these facts, but it’s always in the quest to wrestle with the big ideas of what it means to be human beings on this little speck of dust in the vast universe.

Sincerely,

Mr. Heimbuck
May 7, 2014

May 7th, 2014

Dear Problem Solvers,

My dad always says “There’s more than one way to skin a cat.” That’s an idiom that means there are a lot of different ways to solve a problem. This is especially true in math.

Good math thinkers don’t stop thinking about a problem after they answer it. Instead, they think about their process of answering, wonder if there are any other ways to solve it, and look for rules and patterns that can make solving it easier. It takes a lot of work to find rules for solving problems, and we have to make sure the rules work all the time, not just some of the time, but that is the work of mathematicians.

Here’s a problem for you:

How many different coin combinations can you use to make $0.87?
May 6, 2014

May 5th, 2014

Dear Categorizers,

To understand the world, humans put alike things in the same category. Likewise, we put different things in different categories. In some cases, how two dissimilar things are unlike can tell us more about them than investigating how two similar things are alike.

If you’re a fan of Sesame Street, the game “One of these things is not like the others” should be familiar to you. Find the item in each category that does not belong. To do so, you’ll first have to figure out the category. Give it a shot.

1. 4, 16, 24, 36

2. Denver, Colorado Springs, New York City, Thornton

3. football, soccer, basketball, track and field

4. Cardinals, Broncos, Lions, Seahawks

5. Liam, George, Niall, Harry

6. Chamber of Secrets, The Subtle Knife, Deathly Hallows, Goblet of Fire

e,
May 5, 2014

May 4th, 2014

Dear Math Masters,

I always tell you to include units in your answer. You might think that’s just me being a typical teacher, but I do it because numbers always have context. When we use numbers in the real world, they tell a story, and the units is the good part of the story. Without them, we can’t be sure what our number means. Also, if we aren’t clear about our units, we could cause problems or make mistakes. And I don’t mean “miss a few points on your math test” mistakes. I mean “oh no, we won’t be able to destroy the meteorite before it crashes into the earth” mistakes.

So here are a few numbers that are important to us. I want you to see if you can match the numbers with their units.

27

107

7:40

2:45

9150

303

Sincerely,

Mr. Heimbuck