Computer Capers
March 2006
www.buddyproject.org/capers March Madness=Data Practice
Enjoy watching and keeping track of all the NCAA Basketball Games this March and see if you can practice a few of
your data gathering, math, and geography
skills at the same time! Use a database to
gather your information. Fields for your database should include: Team School, Team
Mascot Name, Opponent, Game Location, # Miles from
Home, Points Scored, Win or Loss, Final Score Points Difference. To figure out how many miles the team is from
home, use MapQuest http://www.mapquest.com/. Find the
driving directions and enter the "Starting Address" as the
originating school and the "Ending Address" as the game
location. The results will give you the total distance in
miles. If you miss watching a game or two, you can always
check out the newspaper or go to NCAA's web site http://
www.ncaasports.com/ to catch up on what you missed.
Once you get to the Final Four Game, sort your database
different ways to see if you can answer the following questions:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
A Picture is Worth
How Many Words?
You've heard the saying "A picture is worth a thousand words," but how many words is it actually? To
find out, search for a picture in a magazine, in old
photos albums, or a new picture that you have taken
with a digital camera that is of a place or a scene that
has several different items in
it. Begin by making a prediction: How many words do
you think you will find in the
photo? Write that number
down. Use a word processor
to begin collecting your
word s.. Start by typing a list
down the page of all the nouns you can find in your
entire photograph. Next, go back to each noun, TAB
across and list as many adjectives that describe that
particular noun. Work hard to think of as many adjectives as you can. For example, if your photo contains
Search for each of the four final teams. Based on total
a dog, you would put "dog" in the noun column and
points scored, which team do you think has the best
then in the adjective column you could list furry,
chance of winning?
white, cute, fluffy, soft, happy, etc. Once you have
Based on the Final Score Points Difference, which team exhausted every noun and adjective you can possibly
do you think has the best chance of winning?
think of, save your document. Use the "Word Count"
Now sort all files by # of Miles from Home. Do you see tool to find out how many total words you came up
a correlation of them winning or loosing? Which team
with from your one photograph. How far off were
or teams were the closest to home for a game? Which
you from your prediction? Were you surprised by
were the farthest away? Did that help them or hurt
your results? What noun did you come up with the
them?
most adjectives for? The least?
What game had the biggest score difference? The clos- Extension Ideas:
est score? Opinion: Would you rather watch a game
1. Just for fun read your list of nouns and adjectives
with a close score or one with a big difference? Why?
to a friend or family member WITHOUT showCan you use a formula in your database to find the avering them the photo. See if they can tell you what
age distance teams played from home and to find the
the photo looks like just by reading your words.
average difference in the scores.
2. Try doing another word count with a different
Can you come up with a few questions of your own and
photo. How did your results compare?
see if you can find the answers using your database?
Indiana Mathematics Standard Problem Solving: 5.7.1 Analyze problems
by identifying relationships, telling relevant from irrelevant information,
sequencing and prioritizing information, and observing patterns.
Indiana Language Arts Standard Language Conventions 3.6.5:
Identify and correctly use pronouns, adjectives, compound nouns,
and articles.
Leprechaun Limerick
A limerick is a goofy poem that has a special rhyming pattern of AA BB A. Since Leprechauns are
silly and goofy, why not have fun combining the two and writing your own Limerick about a Leprechaun? To learn about and to practice writing a limerick before you write one, visit the Limerick Factory web site http://www.learner.org/teacherslab/math/patterns/limerick/limerick_acttxt.html. Once you
have gotten the idea of how a limerick is written, use a word processor to write your own Limerick
Poem. Be sure to follow the rhyming patterns that you learned about. Once your poem is complete,
jazz it up a bit with a fun font, cool colors, and maybe a piece of clip art or an original drawing of
your own. Finally, print it out and share your fun and entertaining poem with a friend or family member. Luck ‘O
the Irish to you in your writing fun!
Indiana Language Arts Standard Writing Process: 2.4.5 Use a computer to draft, revise, and publish writing.
Indiana Language Arts Standard Writing Literary Response: 2.3.4 Identify the use of rhythm, rhyme, and
alliteration (using words with repeating consonant sounds) in poetry. Indiana Language Arts Standard Writing Applications: 2.5.4 Write rhymes and simple poems.