Tetromino Puzzles

For math, we are learning about polyominoes.  A polyomino is a shape made by joining the sides of same-sized squares.  Polyominoes made with 4 squares are called tetrominoes.  There are 5 different ways to make a tetromino:

We had to solve lots of puzzles where we were given some polyominoes and had to put them together to fit inside shapes.  You are allowed to turn or flip your polyominoes to make them fit.

I made some puzzles by putting together one of each tetromino to make a shape.  Try to solve them!

 Puzzle 1:

Puzzle 2:

My First Day in the Maldives

I wrote a story about my first day in the Maldives.  Then we wrote the story in two ways, in the past tense and in the present tense.  We also added some exciting adjectives to make the story more interesting.  Which story do you think sounds better?  I think the present tense sounds better.

Story 1 (Past Tense)

I woke up on a sunny, sweltering day.  I decided I did not smell pungent, so I did not take a bath.  I went to wake up Mom, then Mom gave Cici and me cheese-pancake-strawberry sandwiches.  I changed into my yellow swimsuit, then we walked out on the wooden path outside our beautiful house to the exhilarating island.  Then Dad and I went to the place to ride adorable sharks.  First I was petrified, but then I rode it for a bit, and I wasn't too scared.  When we got back, we ate terrific blueberry pancakes, then we went to play hide-and-seek.  After that, we were exhausted.  We took a warm bath and went to sleep.

Story 2 (Present Tense)

I wake up on a sunny, sweltering day.  I decide I do not smell pungent, so I do not take a bath.  I go to wake up Mom, then Mom gives Cici and me cheese-pancake-strawberry sandwiches.  I change into my yellow swimsuit, then we walk out on the wooden path outside our beautiful house to the exhilarating island.  Then Dad and I go to the place to ride adorable sharks.  At first I am petrified, but then I ride it for a bit, and I am not too scared.  Then we go back, and we eat terrific blueberry pancakes.  Then we go to play hide-and-seek until we are exhausted.  We take a warm bath and go to sleep.

How to Make a mappy Balloon Car

Today we made a mappy balloon car.  We started with this kit that has lots of pieces.

Then we put wheels on the bottom of the car.  The wheels are on a metal axle, and we put the axle through a straw so there would be less friction.

Then we blew up a balloon and put stuck it on top of the car.  The air comes out of the ballon towards the back, which makes the car go forward.  This is like how a rocket works.

The car was able to go a bit, but it didn't go very fast or very far.

Ocean vs. Pool Debate

We did an Ocean vs. Pool debate.  I picked the ocean and Adam picked the pool.  We needed to write whether it's better to swim in the ocean or in the pool.  We took turns writing why our side was better.  And we also wrote why the other person is wrong.

Proposition:  The Maldives ocean is better than the pool in Shanghai.

• Pro:  Riley
• Con:  Adam

Pro:  The ocean is expansive and we can see colorful fish.

Con:  You might get lost.

Pro:  You can stay with your family.

Con:  Ocean water tastes gross.

Pro:  But you can not open your mouth.  Actually you don't open your mouth.

Con:  You might get sunburned.

Pro:  You can swim a little then come out.

Con:  A shark could eat you.

Pro:  I told you...you can swim a little and then come out.

Con:  You have to travel a long way to the ocean.  Pools are close to anywhere.

Pro:  That doesn't matter anyway.

Con:  You can bring all your friends to the pool with you.

Pro:  You can make new friends.

Con:  Every time you eat fish, you will think about your poor, cute fish friends.

Pro:  We can eat a little bit of fish.  At the ocean, you can see dolphins and spend all day in the water.

Con:  What if you're eating a delicious ice cream cone, then a dolphin comes and steals it.

Pro:  Dolphins don't eat ice cream.  Anyway, I like feeding dolphins.

Con:  You will get sand in your swimsuit and it will be uncomfortable.

Pro:  Don't you know you don't get sand?  If you get sand, you can shake it off.  You can play hide-and-seek and put your dad in the sand.

Con:  What if your dad buries you in the sand then leaves you there?

Pro:  You come out yourself or scare your family!

Who do you think won the debate?

The Gift

Once upon a time, Riley met a fairy godmother who offered to give her three wishes.  

Riley's first wish was to get a pet cat.  So the fairy godmother raised her wand and - poof! - an adorable kitty came out of the wand.

The next wish was for Grandma to live a long time.  So the fairy godmother gave Riley a magic potion for her Grandma.

The last wish was to have a pet hamster.  So the fairy godmother gave her a hamster.

Now, Riley is so happy because every day she plays with her pets and even teaches them how to talk.  Then they all go to sleep.

The end.

Dancing Competition Storyboard

I used the Storyboard That app to make a story.  First I found the scenes I want.  Then I found the characters I want and make the colors the way I want them.  Then I go to edit pose to change how the characters are moving and how they feel.  Then I add some speech bubbles and I type words in them.  Then I go to the next board and do it again.

The characters in my story are:

• Riley
• Sherry
• Winnie
• Lucia
• Eddie
• Daniel
• BBQ Man

You can make a story in one day or two days.  If you choose one day, then you need to work hard.

First Sonic Pi Song

We made our first Sonic Pi song yesterday.  We went into Sonic Pi and copied some of the code they gave us.  Then I tried changing numbers to make the sound different.  We don't know yet what most of it means, but I made a cool relaxed song:

Today, we made a short part of a song called "Try Everything," from the movie Zootopia:

Here is what my code looks like for this song.  play tells the computer to play a note, and the number says how high or how low the note is.  sleep tells the computer how long to rest before the next note.

play 72
sleep 0.5
play 72
sleep 0.25
play 72
sleep 0.5
play 72
sleep 0.25
play 73
sleep 1
play 72
sleep 0.5
play 72
sleep 0.25
play 72
sleep 0.5
play 72
sleep 0.25
play 70
sleep 1
play 72
sleep 0.5
play 72
sleep 0.25
play 72
sleep 0.5
play 72
sleep 0.25
play 73
sleep 1
play 72
sleep 0.5
play 72
sleep 0.25
play 70
sleep 0.5
play 70
sleep 0.25
play 72