Ms. Andrews teaches Math and Science in the Middle School. This is Ms. Andrews’ second year at Hamilton and first year teaching Middle School Math. Ms. Andrews grew up outside of Cleveland, Ohio and attended Miami University receiving her undergraduate degree in Business Administration. Having a passion for working with kids and a love for Math, Ms. Andrews moved to Chicago where she received her Masters Degree in Elementary Education.
Ms. Andrews has a passion for teaching and working within the Hamilton community. When she is not teaching Ms. Andrews enjoys reading, cooking, traveling, and spending time with friends and family.
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What we have been up to this past week in math classes…
7th Grade Students Completing Experiments with the Kindergarten
Study Island: All students now have a login and password for our ISAT preparation website, Study Island. Although students are given class time to work on practice lessons, they are accessible outside of school as well. We encourage students to review lessons, try to increase their scores, and even play the games on the site! Reviewing material on Study Island is a great way to prepare and stay on top of material before ISAT tests which are quickly approaching!
Extra Credit: This week the middle school team got together to conference with students and discuss each student’s progress and goals they had for the rest of the quarter. Many students were very reflective in their thoughts and were able to make specific goals to get ahead in their studies. In order to best serve students, the middle school team has created Choice Assignments. These assignments are optional activities that can be completed for both math and reading extra credit. These assignments were created to reinforce concepts that have been covered in class, but students may want to review. To receive extra credit, students must complete two activities from each column (reading and math). If students complete more, they will receive more extra credit! We encourage students to complete all assignments and review with parents at home. The link for the Choice Assignment is below.
End of Week Newsletter: February 14-February 17, 2012
5th Grade: This past week 5thgrade students work on measurement conversions. We discussed measurement benchmarks and approximations that would help estimate measurements and give us guidelines on tools to use. Students were also introduced to the metric conversion system and practiced writing equal measurements. We also reviewed how to identify and classify types of angles. Next week students will continue this unit and practice measuring angles using protractors in the classroom.
7th Grade: This past week 7th grade students reviewed measurement systems and practiced metric conversions. Students also continued to practice working with percents and ratios word problems. We also introduced linear equations and identified the slope and y-intercept in given equations, tables, and graphs.
8th Grade: This past week 8th grade students continued to review ratio problems and were also introduced to percents and percentage change. Students reviewed how to find a percentage of a number and how to solve word problems with percentage change. Students worked with problems involving taxes and discounts. The 8th graders have been working hard on extended response problems to communicate math strategies in the writing process.
Students playing review BINGO!
Have a fun and relaxing weekend! 
**If students are unsure or unclear about a lesson completed in class or homework given ,they should make an appointment to meet with me before or after school or during lunch to review the work.
Listed below are links to the parent letters that were sent home along with a link for setting up math binders All students in the middle school will be responsible for keeping an organized math binder and keeping it up to date. Any assignments given in class can be found under Andrews’ Assignments!
How to Organize My Math Binder
**Looking for Ms. Andrews’ Science site? Check out Ms. Badalucco’s page for all the information!
Phone: 773-534-5484
Email: Klandrews1@cps.edu
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Previous Posts
Week of February 6-February 10, 2012
5th Grade: This past week 5thgrade students solved problems using order of operations. We learned about a new way to solve these problems….her name is PEMA. PEMA is the go to authority on Order of Operations. Students should not be familiar with these problems and can practice more at home using Study Island. We also continued to review ratios and took notes on number properties. Students should now understand and be able to come up with examples of the Commutative, Associate, Distributive, Identity, and Inverse properties. Wednesday and Thursday students completed math stations using the Smartboard and iPads to reinforce material covered over the week.
7th Grade: This past week 7thgrade students reviewed word problems dealing with percentages and ratios. Students should now be experts at adding or subtracting percentages of numbers. Many of these word problems dealt with taxes, or interest rates. We also went over area and perimeter of rectangles, triangles, and circles. Students were able to complete multi-step word problems using these concepts. Thursday and Friday we completed stations in class using the iPads and Smartboard to reinforce concepts covered in class.
8th Grade: This past week 8th grade students practiced using ratios to solve real world problems. To reinforce this concept we practiced creating and setting up equal ratios. Thursday and Friday we ran math stations in the classroom where students moved through five learning stations including teacher time, independent practice, iPad study, extended response, and Smartboard. Students really enjoyed working on the Smartboard to solve problems with a group and then play a game of their choice.
Week of January23 – January 26, 2012
5th Grade: This past week 5thgrade students completed Scantron testing in the Computer Lab. The Scantron test is a benchmark test and also a great indicator to show what students need to work on to prepare for the ISATS. In class we reviewed factors and multiples of numbers and continued to work with ratios. Students will complete their experiments next week on Distance vs Time. This experiment will give students the opportunity to collect their own data of individual walking paces and graph and analyze the results.
7th Grade: This past week 7thgrade students completed Scantron testing in the Computer Lab. The Scantrontest is a benchmark test and also a great indicator to show what students need to work on to prepare for the ISATS. In class we reviewed prime factorization of numbers and how to find least common multiples and greatest common factors. Next week we will work on number sentences and solving algebraic expressions.
8th Grade: This past week 8th grade students completed Scantron testing in the Computer Lab. The Scantron test is a benchmark test and also a great indicator to show what students need to work on to prepare for the ISATS. Next week we will review Scientific Notation, prime factorization, and finding factors and multiples of numbers. Encourage students to complete Study Island assignments at home, especially when there is no homework to help prepare for the ISATS.
5th Grade: This past week fifth grade students compared fractions using benchmarks. Using benchmarks to estimate fractions will prove to be a valuable skill in the future, especially during testing, to help check answers. Students also worked through a lesson on ratios. We came up with similar ratios using line graphs and equivalent fractions. Next week we will continue working with ratios as we complete a lab on distance and time.
7th Grade: This week 7th grade students investigated different ways to write and interpret ratios. Students worked on problems involving different statistics and surveys. We completed centers at the end of the week, using the Smartboard to work on problems and play math games to help review past material!
8th Grade:This past week, 8th grade students were introduced to writing in exponential form and analyzing data that grew exponentially. Students worked on identifying these growth patterns and writing and solving problems using exponents. 8th grade students also completed centers this week using the iPads and Smartboard in groups. We will wrap up our centers next week as we continue our unit on exponents.
5th Grade: This week fifth grade students investigated different ways of finding and identifying equivalent fractions. They also practiced coming up with number sentences to create fractions. Students worked with numbers less than one and greater than one. We often added visuals to the class work by drawing in pictures and using colors to represent fractions and fractional blocks.
7th Grade: This week students completed real life floor plans of rooms and hallways of Hamilton! Students were able to work in pairs or independently to create a model different rooms such as the gym, our math room, Mr. Gray’s office, and the cafe. Students completed their unit on similar figures and drawings and will move on to ratios when we get back from break.
8th Grade: This past week, 8th grade students finished their unit on the Pythagorean Theorem. Students are now able to find all side lengths of right triangles using the equation for this theorem. We worked hard this week on solving multi-step problems related to right and equilateral triangles.
5th Grade: This week fifth grade students continued their unit on fractions. Students continued to work with pattern blocks and pictures to come up with different addition and multiplication fraction sentences to create a whole. This week students will work with equivalent fractions.
7th Grade: This week students finished their unit on similar figures. Students should have a clear understanding of how to create similar figures based on both scale factors and ratios. This next week, 7th graders will complete a mini project creating their own floor plans based on rooms in Hamilton!
8th Grade: This past week, 8th grade students completed their unit on the Pythagorean Theorem and finding lengths of different hypotenuses. Students should have a clear understanding of finding square roots of numbers and using the equation for Pythagorean theorem to find different side lengths of right triangles. Next week we will work on using this knowledge and applying it to different problems and practice extended response problems.
Week of 12/5
5th Grade: This week fifth grade students began a unit on fractions. Students worked with pattern block pieces to create fractions, write them out, and draw what they look like. Students should concentrate on understanding what the numerator and denominator mean in a fraction. Students will continue to work with fractions this week when we work with fraction sentences. Students also began Study Island in math last week. They should only be completing assignments that were assigned and nothing else. Completing other assignments out of order will affect their scores.
7th Grade: This week students studied ratios. We continued to investigate similar figures and found ratios between sides of different shapes. Students learned to find missing parts of shapes by using either their scale factors or ratios. We will wrap up this investigation this week with a quiz on Thursday. Students will also start Study Island Friday to get us started with ISAT preparation. We will have assignments due every week. It is important students complete all assignments given, but only those things assigned to keep scores accurate.
8th Grade:8th grade students continued to investigated the Pythagorean Theorem. Using the theorem, we found an easier way to find the hypotenuse of a triangle, or a a diagonal line using an equation. We will wrap up the investigation Friday with a quiz. Students need to make sure to keep practicing working with square numbers and finding square roots. This will continue to come up in future lessons. Students will take a break from working with the Pythagorean theorem Wednesday to begin Study Island in the computer lab. Study Island can be extremely beneficial to students preparing for the ISAT, but only if they work hard to complete assignments and do their best. We will continue to work with Study Island over these next few months and review unknown material covered in class as well.
Week of 11/28
5th Grade: This week fifth grade students practiced multiplying large numbers using the different techniques we have learned. Students should now be familiar with using the compact, all-partials, and base-ten methods of multiplication. We also worked on estimating products of large numbers and discussed why estimation is beneficial. Students practiced by simplifying the problems into easier number sentences.
7th Grade: This week students were assessed on creating similar figures and using scale factors. Some of the figures, plotted on a coordinate graph, required students to understand how a given rule would change a shape.
8th Grade:8th grade students worked on finding squares of numbers. Students also investigated finding square roots of numbers and how to estimate a square root. We will continue working on squares and square roots next week as we continue working towards proving the Pythagorean theorem.
Week of 11/7
5th Grade: This week 5th grade students continued to work with base-ten blocks and writing in base-ten shorthand. Students used base-ten blocks specifically to reinforce carrying and borrowing. The blocks were also a great way to review place value. Students will continue to use their knowledge of base-ten blocks next week as we continue with a unit on multiplication.
7th Grade: This week 7th grade students worked on creating similar figures using rules to change coordinate points. Students also began to create their own “family” of similar figures using their own designs and rules. We are looking forward to seeing what students come up with and comparing the different designs with the class next week. Students will have a quiz next week on creating similar figures using rules and understanding how adding, subtracting, and multiplying affect a coordinate point.
8th Grade:This week students reviewed plotting coordinate points, creating shapes on a coordinate grid, and finding areas. Students had an open note assessment on Wednesday to test their knowledge of using coordinate grids to create shapes and finding areas of irregular figures. We will continue our unit on the Pythagorean theorem next week as we investigate squares of numbers.
Week of 10/31
5th Grade: Last week 5thgrade students reviewed how to use the base-1o blocks they were introduced to last year. We practiced using base-ten blocks to come up with different numbers. Students also learned how to use base-1o shorthand to write different numbers. This week, we will use our knowledge of the base-1o blocks to review addition and subtraction problems.
7th Grade: Last week 7th grade students practiced using coordinate graphs to plot points. We then took these points and used a rule to change our points. Students practiced enlarging or reducing figures based on different rules given to adjust coordinate points. This week we will continue to work on plotting coordinate points and will investigate the effect of adding and multiplying numbers to ordered pairs.
8th Grade:Last week students worked on creating shapes such as squares, triangles, and parallelograms on coordinate grids. Students used knowledge of slope to help create the sides of shapes. Students began to investigate area of shapes and practiced finding areas plotted on coordinate grids. This week we will continue this investigation by finding areas of irregular shapes plotted on a coordinate grid.
Week of 10/24/11
7th Grade: Last week 7th grade students continued their unit on simliarshapes and we practiced enlarging and reducing shapes. Students use the “rubber band method” to create enlarged versions of different shapes and also learned how copiers making similar figures. We learned how to use percentages and scale factors to enlarge and reduce figures and what things change (area and perimeter) and what things never change (angle measurements). Students will continue this unit working with similar figures by applying their knowledge to coordinate graphs.
8th Grade:Last week students were introduced to a new unit that involved plotting points on a coordinate graph and giving directions. Students compared coordinate graphs to coordinate grids of cities, such as Washington DC. Students were able to locate points given the coordinates and give directions to another given point. Students will apply this knowledge in upcoming lessons, creating specific shapes and figures given certain coordinate points.
5th Grade: This past week fifth grade students completed their unit on fractions and ratios. Students should now be experts on working with fractions, changing fractions from improper to mixed number form, writing equivalent fractions, and writing number sentences to name a part of a whole. Students should also be familiar with writing ratios and finding equivalent ratios. We will continue to use ratios as we complete a lab this next week testing different walking speeds and graphing the results.
7th Grade: This past week 7th grade students worked on writing ratios and solving word problems involving ratios. Students took a quiz to assess their knowledge of writing ratios given certain data from a table or graph. This week students will continue this unit by coming up with ratios to define price, cost, and speed. Students will also write equations to help define ratios and make problems easier to solve.
8th Grade: This past week, 8th grade students continued to work on problems with numbers written in exponential form. Students investigated story problems involving functions that grew exponentially. Students learned what a growth factor is and how to identify it in a problem given a table or plotted points. Students will continue this unit, comparing exponential expressions to linear expressions and study how they appear different in graphs, tables, and equations.
Study Island