Earlier this week, we learned about the Fibonacci sequence. The Fibonacci sequence is a pattern you see in nature (in flower petals, pinecones, artichokes, pineapples, leaves, cauliflower, etc.). It starts with 1. Then you add 1 to itself and that makes 2. Then 2+1= 3, 3+2=5, then 5+3=8... you always add the previous two numbers together to get the next number in the pattern. We watched this cool doodling video about the Fibonacci sequence and we doodled along with her.
Then, yesterday, Ms Elder introduced a new number pattern based on the book, One Grain of Rice by Demi. This is a doubling pattern. The character in the book was given a reward. She asked for one grain of rice on the first day, then on the second day, she asked for two, and she wanted it to keep on doubling. So the pattern goes like this: 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, 128, 256, 512... This is an increasing pattern. The goal is to figure out how many grains of rice she gets on Day 30. Students are encouraged to try this at home! The extension challenge is to then solve how many grains of rice she received ALTOGETHER in the month. Watch the video to check to see if your answer is right.
"At first, I thought the Fibonacci sequence wouldn't be that hard but when we watched the videos, I noticed that it was complicated and surprising." ~ Charlotte
"It was really fun doodling with the video because you could do lots of swirls. I have fun drawing a bunch of swirly things." ~ D
"I loved the Fibonacci sequence and how it is unique in nature. I didn't know that pineapples have swirls and other plants." ~ Sophia
"I learned there are all types of different patterns." ~ Silas
"I learned that food has Fibonacci patterns." ~ Chloé
"I really like this because my favourite kind of math is algorithms." ~ Priya
If you're looking for some extra practice on Patterns at home, Mathletics has been updated to include assigned activities for Patterns, plus there are some links to some Pattern games below.
