Leviathan Papercraft - Final Fantasy VIII

Heads up, our friend at Assembled Paper Models just finished the Leviathan papercraft from the Final Fantasy VIII video game. This Final Fantasy VIII papercraft is from the same book where I got my very much contested Bahamut post, and while your at it you might want to check the links below for other Final Fantasy characters from my previous entries (Moogle, Cactuar, Tarutaru, etc.). So, head on to Octavio's site and have fun.

Leviathan - [Download Page]
More Final Fantasy Papercrafts - [Link]
Assembled Paper Models - [Site]

Final Fantasy VII Advent Children: Tifa Lockhart

Oh, I hadn’t noticed that of all the Final Fantasy Cosplays I posted, I didn’t post a single Tifa Lockhart cosplay…

And believe me, I have a lot.

This is one of my favorite Tifa Lockhart cosplays. I still look twice because she really looks like that computer generated, 3D, virtual girl type Tifa!

According to Final Fantasy VII, Tifa Lockhart is Cloud’s childhood friend who lost her family to Sephiroth. Although the circumstances of their lives made them unable to have a very close friendship, it’s obvious that they care very much about each other.

During the Final Fantasy Advent Children Movie, Tifa was shown as one of the main characters, and emotional support for Cloud. She is an expert in Zangan-Ryu Martial Arts, using her hands and feet as her weapons.

Excellent Cosplay! By the way, did you know that Tifa Lockhart was not in the original story draft of Final Finatasy VII? And her hair was cut short and changed color in the Advent Children Movie due to the difficulties in animation and lighting effects.

It doesn’t matter much to me though… She still looks cute.

Technorati tags: nanao, research, cosplay, tifa, lockhart, final fantasy, vii, 7, advent children, sephiroth, cloud, zangan-ryu, martial arts, computer generated, cg, virtual

Rurouni Kenshin: Hitokiri Battousai

After Yukishiro Tomoe had returned to the Shogunate spies with the hopes of throwing them off and save his life, Himura Kenshin received a letter of from the Spymasters stating that they have Tomoe hostage. It was winter at the time, and Kenshin hurriedly went after the Shogunate to save Tomoe in the snow and ice.

It was unfortunate, as he was ambushed several times before he could actually try and save her. In the end, it was Tomoe who ended up saving him. But she was accidentally killed by the same slash of Kenshin’s sword that killed his opponent.

It’s such a sad fate for Kenshin… And this cosplay seems to be a tribute to that. For some reason, even if the image is so small, I think this cosplayer is a girl. But I’m wondering whether or not she feels cold in that kimono while out in the winter cold.

Is that purple sash he’s holding Tomoe’s? Hm…

Technorati tags: nanao, research, rurouni kenshin, kenshin, meiji, kenkaku, romantan, yukishiro, tomoe, shogunate, himura, hitokiri, battousai, winter, ambush, cosplay, cosplayer

Math readers

I've had some fun building this page about math readers, or "living math" books for my main site. The list is not terribly long yet, but it will grow, I'm sure.

I discovered that Amazon has all kinds of new "widgets" available to promote their products. What do you think of this? It is a slideshow featuring MathStart readers by Stuart J. Murphy. Hover your mouse over it:



Math story books offer children an interesting way to learn math concepts, to get interested in mathematics, and to explore some fascinating topics outside of the main curriculum. It is one way to bring math to "life". Kids are almost sure to enjoy it.

On my page, I list for example Cryptoclub, a fascinating storybook that teaches how to encrypt and decrypt secrete messages, or The Adventures of Penrose - THE MATHEMATICAL CAT, in which you will encounter many fascinating mathematical topics from fractals to tessellations, or many books for little kids.

I was thinking putting all of that on a blogpost, too, but it's just "duplicate content". Maybe I'll feature a few of them here soon.

I realize not everyone can buy many math readers on top of their regular school books, but try find some of these books in your local library!

Math readers

I've had some fun building this page about math readers, or "living math" books for my main site. The list is not terribly long yet, but it will grow, I'm sure.

I discovered that Amazon has all kinds of new "widgets" available to promote their products. What do you think of this? It is a slideshow featuring MathStart readers by Stuart J. Murphy. Hover your mouse over it:



Math story books offer children an interesting way to learn math concepts, to get interested in mathematics, and to explore some fascinating topics outside of the main curriculum. It is one way to bring math to "life". Kids are almost sure to enjoy it.

On my page, I list for example Cryptoclub, a fascinating storybook that teaches how to encrypt and decrypt secrete messages, or The Adventures of Penrose - THE MATHEMATICAL CAT, in which you will encounter many fascinating mathematical topics from fractals to tessellations, or many books for little kids.

I was thinking putting all of that on a blogpost, too, but it's just "duplicate content". Maybe I'll feature a few of them here soon.

I realize not everyone can buy many math readers on top of their regular school books, but try find some of these books in your local library!

Pikachu Papercraft

Pokemon (ポケモン) is one of Nintendo's most successful and profitable media franchise to date, with cash cows in various markets such as video games, anime, manga, toys, books, and trading cards. Even the items that you use in your daily life (kitchen utensils, clothing, food, home appliances, etc..) is guaranteed to have a Pokemon version of it somewhere (most probably Japan). The thing that started it all was the Pocket Monsters (ポケットモンスター,, Poketto Monsuta) video game for Nintendo's Game Boy system created by Satoshi Tajiri back 1995, and a year later changed to "Pokemon" for it's western version.

One of the most notable characters was Pikachu (yellow-colored mouse with electricial powers), it is regarded as the official mascot of the Pokemon franchise and today we have it in papercraft form. This Pikachu papercraft is from Chokipeta, and you know what that means, it's going to be an easy and fun build. Enjoy!

Pikachu Papercraft [via Mediafire]
Pikachu Papercraft Photos

Naruto: Uzumaki Naruto

Argh!!!

Must be painful to stretch your lips that far…

Uzumaki Naruto, the child who bears the sealed nine-tailed demon fox inside him, dreams to become the number one ninja of Konoha. His father was a Hokage who died trying to save their village.

Most of the villagers kept their distance from Naruto because of the demon inside him. Yet, no one ever told Naruto about the demon until he was 12 years old.

His only friend when he was a child was his ninja instructor Umino Iruka, whose parents also perished during the demon fox’s attack. Despite this, he still did not view Naruto as the cause of their deaths.

One of the more impressive Naruto Cosplays I’ve seen so far. You can really see the mischief in his eyes. Great job!

Technorati tags: nanao, research, cosplay, uzumaki, naruto, nine-tailed demon fox, fox, demon, konoha, hokage, umino, iruka

OS-Tan: Windows 2000

The idea of personifying operating systems has been around for quite a while. Lately, the designs of the OS-tans have been standardized, basing off their performance as an operating system.

Here is a picture of Windows 2000 Professional. “2k-tan”, as she is commonly called as, is an intelligent, reserved woman with short hair, glasses, and electronic cat ears. She’s made to look professional because she is the most stable operating system. Windows ME came out almost at the same time 2000 did, but because 2000 is more stable compared to ME, 2k-tan is often considered to be the “guardian” of ME.

She’s a really cute 2k-tan, don’t you think? I wonder, when the time comes that they make real, human sized PC, will they make them look like her?

Technorati tags: nanao, research, os-tan, windows, 2000, professional, 2k-tan, cat, glasses, neko, megane, me, pc, operating system

Carnival of math

You might not have heard about it, but there exists a blog carnival for math, too. I submitted my rainbow entry into the latest one.

Not all of the entries there are higher math, by the way, such as MathMom's Calculator rant or Puzzler puzzled from JD2718.

If interested, go check it out: Carnival of math, edition 17!

Carnival of math

You might not have heard about it, but there exists a blog carnival for math, too. I submitted my rainbow entry into the latest one.

Not all of the entries there are higher math, by the way, such as MathMom's Calculator rant or Puzzler puzzled from JD2718.

If interested, go check it out: Carnival of math, edition 17!

Finding Nemo Papercraft

Fresh of the ocean, here's a new papercraft model from Paperinside.com featuring the main characters from Disney's award winning animated feature film "Finding Nemo". And as always, we have the great Claudio Diaz to thank for this great work of paper art.

Nemo and Marlin - [Download Page]
Paperinside - [Site]

Humorous short history of mathematics

Enjoy:

A Very Short History of Mathematics

This is how it starts:

MATHEMATICS is very much older than History, which begins* in +1066, as is well known; for the first mathematician of any note was a Greek named Zeno, who was born in -494, just 1,559 years earlier. Zeno is memorable for proving three theorems: (i) that motion is impossible; (ii) that Achilles can never catch the tortoise (he failed to notice that this follows from his first theorem); and (iii) that half the time may be equal to double the time. This was not considered a very good start by the other Greeks, so they turned their attention to Geometry.

continue here...

Hat Tip to Let's Play Math.

Humorous short history of mathematics

Enjoy:

A Very Short History of Mathematics

This is how it starts:

MATHEMATICS is very much older than History, which begins* in +1066, as is well known; for the first mathematician of any note was a Greek named Zeno, who was born in -494, just 1,559 years earlier. Zeno is memorable for proving three theorems: (i) that motion is impossible; (ii) that Achilles can never catch the tortoise (he failed to notice that this follows from his first theorem); and (iii) that half the time may be equal to double the time. This was not considered a very good start by the other Greeks, so they turned their attention to Geometry.

continue here...

Hat Tip to Let's Play Math.

Hunter x Hunter: Kuroro Lucifer

A character who’s charismatic and charming, with no past and real family, Kuroro Lucifer (in some translations, “Chrollo Lucifer”) is perhaps the ultimate villain for an epic phenomena known as Hunter x Hunter.

Kuroro is the leader of the Genei Ryodan. He came from Ryuseigai, or “Meteor City”, the city of outcasts where people with no official records live. This is where he began to form the Genei Ryodan with 6 residences from Ryusegai.

Beautiful, clean, and simple cosplay. I really like his earrings and the book! Plus, this guy looks really good in a suit. Definitely a favorite in my book!

Technorati tags: nanao, research, hunter x hunter, kuroro, lucifer, chrollo, genei ryodan, ryuseigai, ryuuseigai, meteor city, cosplay

Final Fantasy X-2: Rikku 02

There’s a brand new deviant artist who opened her account with a very unique looking Rikku Cosplay!

I don’t know much about Vanne, but her first cosplay entry is really nice! I thought I’ll give her a helping hand on getting some traffic…

Apparently, this is the Lady Luck / Gambler version of Rikku. It’s a nice change from all the Rikku cosplayers I’ve been seeing so far… I’m guessing that’s her real hair, but I can’t be really sure. Animecon 2007 attendess probably recognize her..! Click on the image and see the original picture’s location!

Great Job, Vanne! Looking forward to more of your cosplays soon!

Technorati tags: nanao, research, rikku, final fantasy x-2, final fantasy, cosplay, cosplayer, deviantart, artist, game, animecon, animecon 2007, 2007, anime, convention

Tips for teaching integers

The main struggle with integers comes, not with the numbers themselves, but with some of the operations. There seem to be so many little rules to remember (though less than with fractions).

Some good real-life MODELS for integers are:

- temperature in a thermometer

- altitude vs. sea depth

- earning money vs. being in debt.

When first teaching integer operations, tie them in with one of these models.

I'll take for example the temperature.

Assuming n is a positive integer, the simple rules governing this situation are:

* x + n   means the temperature is x° and RISES by n degrees.
* x − n   means the temperature is x° and DROPS by n degrees.

It's all about MOVEMENT — moving either "up" or "down" the thermometer n degrees.

For example:

• 6 − 7 means: temperature is first 6° and drops 7 degrees.


• (-6) − 7 means: temperature is first -6° and drops 7 degrees (it's even colder!).


• (-2) + 5 means: temperature is first -2° and rises 5 degrees.


• 4 + 5 means: temperature is first 4° and rises 5 degrees.

These simple situations handle adding or subtracting a positive integer. Practice those first, until kids are familiar with these cases.

The remaining cases to handle ar adding or subtracting a negative integer:

• (-2) + (-5) would mean: temperature is first -2° and you "add" more negatives so it gets even colder.

The last case is least intuitive one:

• 1 − (-5) or subtracting a negative integer. I personally just remember the little rule of "two negatives turns into a positive".
  
  Some people explain it this way. In (-7) − (-3) you can think that you have 7 negatives at first, and you "take away" three of those negatives, leaving -4.
  
  This rule of "two negatives makes a positive" might seem counterintuitive at first, but it is needful so that many principles of mathematics can continue to apply (for example distribuitive property).

See also an excellent treatise of integers vs. submarine depth at Text Savvy. Excerpt:

"When you add or subtract with integers, you are NOT combining collections or extracting from collections; you are moving in certain directions."

The "collections" idea does work nicely, for ADDITION:

• 7 + (-4) means you have a collection of 7 red balls and 4 blue balls. A pair of one red and one blue ball "cancels" or becomes zero. Total therefore will be 3 red balls.


• (-3) + (-9) means you have 3 blue balls and 9 blue balls more. Total 12 blue balls, or -12.

However, this "moving" idea is exactly how I have always intuitively done simple integer problems — except adding (negative) + (negative) and subtracting a negative, which I change to adding a positive.

Some books might present the rules for adding integers this way:

• If you add two integers that have the same sign, add the absolute values and put the same sign as what the numbers had.


• If you add two integers that have a different sign, subtract their absolute values and the answer will have the same sign as the number wiht greater absolute value.

Then they instruct to change the subtraction to addition; for example 5 − 7 becomes 5 + (-7) and (-4) − 2 becomes (-4) + (-2), and 5 − (-3) becomes 5 + 3.

While these are technically totally correct, I find it SO much easier to use the "moving" idea for most quick integer calculations. It is easier to start that way, and then learn these other rules to be used with more complex expressions, such as when adding many integers, or with negative and positive decimals.

Please feel free to download a simple integer addition and subtraction worksheet that practices some of these ideas (from Math Mammoth Grade 6-B Worksheets collection).

You will also benefit greatly from reading my previous article on teaching integers, which goes through all four integer operations.

Tips for teaching integers

The main struggle with integers comes, not with the numbers themselves, but with some of the operations. There seem to be so many little rules to remember (though less than with fractions).

Some good real-life MODELS for integers are:

- temperature in a thermometer

- altitude vs. sea depth

- earning money vs. being in debt.

When first teaching integer operations, tie them in with one of these models.

I'll take for example the temperature.

Assuming n is a positive integer, the simple rules governing this situation are:

* x + n   means the temperature is x° and RISES by n degrees.
* x − n   means the temperature is x° and DROPS by n degrees.

It's all about MOVEMENT — moving either "up" or "down" the thermometer n degrees.

For example:

• 6 − 7 means: temperature is first 6° and drops 7 degrees.


• (-6) − 7 means: temperature is first -6° and drops 7 degrees (it's even colder!).


• (-2) + 5 means: temperature is first -2° and rises 5 degrees.


• 4 + 5 means: temperature is first 4° and rises 5 degrees.

These simple situations handle adding or subtracting a positive integer. Practice those first, until kids are familiar with these cases.

The remaining cases to handle ar adding or subtracting a negative integer:

• (-2) + (-5) would mean: temperature is first -2° and you "add" more negatives so it gets even colder.

The last case is least intuitive one:

• 1 − (-5) or subtracting a negative integer. I personally just remember the little rule of "two negatives turns into a positive".
  
  Some people explain it this way. In (-7) − (-3) you can think that you have 7 negatives at first, and you "take away" three of those negatives, leaving -4.
  
  This rule of "two negatives makes a positive" might seem counterintuitive at first, but it is needful so that many principles of mathematics can continue to apply (for example distribuitive property).

See also an excellent treatise of integers vs. submarine depth at Text Savvy. Excerpt:

"When you add or subtract with integers, you are NOT combining collections or extracting from collections; you are moving in certain directions."

The "collections" idea does work nicely, for ADDITION:

• 7 + (-4) means you have a collection of 7 red balls and 4 blue balls. A pair of one red and one blue ball "cancels" or becomes zero. Total therefore will be 3 red balls.


• (-3) + (-9) means you have 3 blue balls and 9 blue balls more. Total 12 blue balls, or -12.

However, this "moving" idea is exactly how I have always intuitively done simple integer problems — except adding (negative) + (negative) and subtracting a negative, which I change to adding a positive.

Some books might present the rules for adding integers this way:

• If you add two integers that have the same sign, add the absolute values and put the same sign as what the numbers had.


• If you add two integers that have a different sign, subtract their absolute values and the answer will have the same sign as the number wiht greater absolute value.

Then they instruct to change the subtraction to addition; for example 5 − 7 becomes 5 + (-7) and (-4) − 2 becomes (-4) + (-2), and 5 − (-3) becomes 5 + 3.

While these are technically totally correct, I find it SO much easier to use the "moving" idea for most quick integer calculations. It is easier to start that way, and then learn these other rules to be used with more complex expressions, such as when adding many integers, or with negative and positive decimals.

Please feel free to download a simple integer addition and subtraction worksheet that practices some of these ideas (from Math Mammoth Grade 6-B Worksheets collection).

You will also benefit greatly from reading my previous article on teaching integers, which goes through all four integer operations.

Master Chief Papercraft

A few more days to go and one of the most highly anticipated games of the year is about to show itself, yes folks, Halo 3 is just around the corner. What better way to show your love for Halo than to create a Master Chief papercraft, and that's exactly what billybob884 (via deviantART) did. Now you can build your very own Master Chief before the game drops. Also check out the Halo Ringworld and other papercrafts available on his site (e.g. Conker). The pattern is 10 pages and the same goes for the instructions.

Master Chief - [Download via Rapid] [Download via Mega]
Billybob884 - [Site]

Death Note: The Parody

I’ve never posted a picture of a cosplay that looks nothing like the original anime or manga character. I only post pictures that I really like… But the cosplays that I like doesn’t necessarily have to look like the original anime.

Was that confusing? Well, let me show you a video I found on Sanriotown’s Dream Studio to give you a sample. Just let it load for a while first before playing it…

Thanks to Drift X for uploading the video. Please leave your comments for the video here.

Technorati tags: nanao, research, death note, debu note, parody, driftx, sanriotown, cosplay, anime, manga, cosplayer, dream studio

Number rainbows to learn subtraction facts

I thought some of you (those who teach second grade) might enjoy my NUMBER RAINBOWS. The idea is that you connect two numbers with an arc if they add up to the particular number, such as 13.



Then, the child can use it as a reference when subtracting from 13 or when doing subtraction drill. You could first drill subtraction facts WITH the rainbow (such as 13 − 4, 13 − 7 etc.) and then without.



You would also ask the child to reproduce the rainbow - and color it, of course! These make for quite pretty math facts practice, don't you think!

I'm going to add these to my Add & Subtract 2-A book.

Number rainbows to learn subtraction facts

I thought some of you (those who teach second grade) might enjoy my NUMBER RAINBOWS. The idea is that you connect two numbers with an arc if they add up to the particular number, such as 13.



Then, the child can use it as a reference when subtracting from 13 or when doing subtraction drill. You could first drill subtraction facts WITH the rainbow (such as 13 − 4, 13 − 7 etc.) and then without.



You would also ask the child to reproduce the rainbow - and color it, of course! These make for quite pretty math facts practice, don't you think!

I'm going to add these to my Add & Subtract 2-A book.

Rozen Maiden: Suigintou 02

This is the second Suigintou Cosplayer that really impressed me. If you haven’t seen the first one yet. you can go and see her by clicking here.

Suigintou is the first of the Rozen Maiden Dolls. She was disregarded by Father, the creator of the Rozen Maiden Dolls, and is therefore missing a torso. One could argue that Suigintou is probably the one who loves Father the most, because she began to move on her own, even if she didn’t have a torso.

It looks like this cosplayer didn’t invert the cross on Suigintou’s dress, which I like… Inverted crosses are the signs of the Devil afterall. I wouldn’t want to have a demon sign on my dress… Hm…

Fantastic cosplay on this one! Love the feather detailing for her wings too!

Technorati tags: nanao, research, rozen maiden, cosplayer, suigintou, doll, marionette, dress, lolita, cross, devil, demon, sign, inverted

Math Manipulatives at my Amazon Store

I don't get around doing much editing of my Amazon Store, but today I was prompted because someone asked me to write a guide for manipulative use. So I'm doing a writeup on them, but also went to Amazon to see what they had.

So I added various ones that I thought might be useful to my Amazon store:

I was disappointed that there aren't any really cheap abaci there. The one abacus with 5 and 5 alternate color beads was quite pricey. Most of them had 10 beads the same color.

Other ones I included were:
- base ten blocks
- cuisenaire rods
- fraction circles or tiles
- scales, thermometers, measuring cups

Math Manipulatives at Amazon store

Math Manipulatives at my Amazon Store

I don't get around doing much editing of my Amazon Store, but today I was prompted because someone asked me to write a guide for manipulative use. So I'm doing a writeup on them, but also went to Amazon to see what they had.

So I added various ones that I thought might be useful to my Amazon store:

I was disappointed that there aren't any really cheap abaci there. The one abacus with 5 and 5 alternate color beads was quite pricey. Most of them had 10 beads the same color.

Other ones I included were:
- base ten blocks
- cuisenaire rods
- fraction circles or tiles
- scales, thermometers, measuring cups

Math Manipulatives at Amazon store

Inuyasha: Kikyo and Inuyasha

This is an image I know I first found from Wikipedia, but now I can’t seem to locate the page as to where it’s located…

Anyway, moving on…

Kikyo is a priestess or “miko” in the anime and manga series “Inuyasha”. She is the keeper of the sacred Shikon no Tama (Jewel of Four Souls) who fell in love with the half - human, half - dog demon Inuyasha. The couple had planned on using the Sacred Jewel’s power to turn Inuyasha into a full - fledged human so that they could spent eternity together, but the antagonist, Naraku, tricked them into thinking that they were betrayed by each other, resulting in Kikyo’s death and Inuyasha’s fifty year slumber on the Goshinboku (Sacred Tree).

Kikyo’s Resurrection and the awakening of Inuyasha by Kikyo’s Reincarnate, Kagome, gave them a second chance to clear things up. Unfortunately, Kikyo perishes once more in the hands of Naraku, separating them once more…

Beautiful cosplay this pair! Makes me wonder if the Inuyasha in the background is the same Inuyasha I featured last July… Hm…

Technorati tags: nanao, research, inuyasha, kikyo, cosplay, miko, wikipedia, shikon no tama, shikon jewel, sacred jewel, four souls, half, human, demon, dog, resurrection, reincarnation, kagome, naraku, antagonist, goshinboku, sacred tree

Prof. Lynn Arthur Steen and reform mathematics

Dave Marain at MathNotations has conducted an online interview with Prof.
Steen, one of the principal architects of the original NCTM Standards
and one of the most highly respected voices in reform mathematics
today.

This is how Dave describes the interview:

His replies to my questions are thoughtful, honest and
provocative.

Regardless of whether one agrees or disagrees with Prof.
Steen's views, we need to open up this kind of dialog in order to end
the Math Wars and move on in the best interests of our children.

In this first part of the interview, prof. Steen talks about for example the incoherency of math standards in various states learning basic arithmetic facts.

Prof. Lynn Arthur Steen and reform mathematics

Dave Marain at MathNotations has conducted an online interview with Prof.
Steen, one of the principal architects of the original NCTM Standards
and one of the most highly respected voices in reform mathematics
today.

This is how Dave describes the interview:

His replies to my questions are thoughtful, honest and
provocative.

Regardless of whether one agrees or disagrees with Prof.
Steen's views, we need to open up this kind of dialog in order to end
the Math Wars and move on in the best interests of our children.

In this first part of the interview, prof. Steen talks about for example the incoherency of math standards in various states learning basic arithmetic facts.

9-11 song

Please enjoy "America Cried" (a 9-11 memorial song) by Rockabilly.US

9-11 song

Please enjoy "America Cried" (a 9-11 memorial song) by Rockabilly.US

Final Fantasy X-2: Lenne

A tragic love story between a songstress- summoner and a native of Zanarkand, Lenne (or Ren, as the Japanese characters of her name are read) died during the war, leaving her lover Shuyin’s spirit, sealed within the Den of Woes. She then asks for Yuna’s help to free Shuyin’s spirit, showing Yuna their past and allowing Yuna to feel her strong feelings for Shuyin.

And isn’t this cosplayer of Lenne beautiful? I love her eyes and pale complexion… Great job!

Technorati tags: nanao, research, final fantasy x-2, final fantasy, lenne, ren, yuna, songstress, summoner, zanarkand, shuyin, den of woes, spirit, love, cosplay, cosplayer, war

Math Mammoth placement advice

For those of you who are considering buying my Blue Series books, I've created a document that should help in the "placement".

For each of the books about addition, subtraction, multiplication or division I ask you several questions concerning what the child can do or understand.

Answering those you should be able to decide where the particular book is needful or not.

See more: Math Mammoth placement advice.

It does not as of yet contain any tests, but maybe in the future.

Math Mammoth placement advice

For those of you who are considering buying my Blue Series books, I've created a document that should help in the "placement".

For each of the books about addition, subtraction, multiplication or division I ask you several questions concerning what the child can do or understand.

Answering those you should be able to decide where the particular book is needful or not.

See more: Math Mammoth placement advice.

It does not as of yet contain any tests, but maybe in the future.

HedKase Transformers Paper Toys

I can almost hear you say, oh no! not another transformers papercraft! But these are sooo cute and adorable, I just couldn't resist printing it out and assembling it. The papercraft today was done by Hed Kase of NiceBunny and brought exclusively by ToysREvil.



Cute arent they? And very easy to assemble. All you need is a sheet of paper and a straw (to attach the head to the body). They are about 3 inches high and 2 inches wide.

HedKase Transformers Paper Toy [NiceBunny]

Does the child need to add completing the ten?

Question:

...have an other question about using your worksheets for my daughter. She is six years old - home schooled.
Currently, we are using Addition & Subtraction 2

She is able to add and subtract any numbers from 1 to 100 but when I try to explain "complete the ten" concept, she doesn't like thinking about it. She would rather solve 9+6 by counting on the finger 6 after 9 ... . She complains that I have to first subtract then add to make 10.

My question is: Should I let her complete the exercises without making her think in this manner?

It is important that she understands the IDEA in completing the ten. I gather that she does indeed understand the idea, but doesn't want to do it, since you'd have to both subtract and add, right? She just likes to do one operation, not two?

The adding though, is really easy, because you add 10 + 5 or 10 + 7 or something to ten. If she's counting with fingers, she's not yet seeing the easiness of this adding. It is also faster to do 9 + 6 by first subtracting one from 6 (getting 5), and then adding 10 + 5, because you can do 10 + 5 really easy: it is one ten and five, or we call that fifteen.

Of course she must understand place value to realize how easy that addition is.

Now, the goal is ALSO to eventually memorize the answers. You might let her know that she can't always count with fingers to find 9 + 6 but a quicker method is needed.

You can let her do some exercises "her way" for now as long as she also is able to understand and do the "complete the ten".

But come back to this idea how completing the ten makes the whole calculation easier and quicker. She WILL need to understand the idea when studying CARRYING in addition, (I mean to totally understand how it works. I realize kids can learn carrying mechanically as well.)

So you can say 1-3 months later reprint some pages and try again.

Final Fantasy VII: Cloud Strife

My, my… Someone is in a very bad mood..!

Cloud Strife, the protagonist of the Final Fantasy VII game, is described to be an unsociable mercenary, who was a Shin-Ra experiment for several years. His escape from Shin-Ra resulted in the death of his companion, Zack. He was left for dead, but somehow survived with a mixture of amnesia and mind control, ending up believing that he was the SOLDIER Zack was.

This is a beautiful cosplay! It must have been difficult to replicate Cloud’s hair style. As the song goes, “Yay for hair cement!” ^_^;;;

Photo originally from Anime Illusions.

Technorati tags: nanao, research, cloud, strife, final fantasy vii, 7, cosplay, protagonist, mercenary, shin-ra, experiment, zack, soldier, amnesia, mind, control, hair cement

Does the child need to add completing the ten?

Question:

...have an other question about using your worksheets for my daughter. She is six years old - home schooled.
Currently, we are using Addition & Subtraction 2

She is able to add and subtract any numbers from 1 to 100 but when I try to explain "complete the ten" concept, she doesn't like thinking about it. She would rather solve 9+6 by counting on the finger 6 after 9 ... . She complains that I have to first subtract then add to make 10.

My question is: Should I let her complete the exercises without making her think in this manner?

It is important that she understands the IDEA in completing the ten. I gather that she does indeed understand the idea, but doesn't want to do it, since you'd have to both subtract and add, right? She just likes to do one operation, not two?

The adding though, is really easy, because you add 10 + 5 or 10 + 7 or something to ten. If she's counting with fingers, she's not yet seeing the easiness of this adding. It is also faster to do 9 + 6 by first subtracting one from 6 (getting 5), and then adding 10 + 5, because you can do 10 + 5 really easy: it is one ten and five, or we call that fifteen.

Of course she must understand place value to realize how easy that addition is.

Now, the goal is ALSO to eventually memorize the answers. You might let her know that she can't always count with fingers to find 9 + 6 but a quicker method is needed.

You can let her do some exercises "her way" for now as long as she also is able to understand and do the "complete the ten".

But come back to this idea how completing the ten makes the whole calculation easier and quicker. She WILL need to understand the idea when studying CARRYING in addition, (I mean to totally understand how it works. I realize kids can learn carrying mechanically as well.)

So you can say 1-3 months later reprint some pages and try again.

Votoms Scopedog Papercraft

I'm a big fan of the Webdude's work, specially the Hannah-Barbera's Wacky Races and the "Cars" paper models - he has released a new model on his Bots, Borgs, and Mechs section of his site. It's the Armored Trooper Votoms Scope Dog papercraft (ATM-09-ST), much like the one released by InnerBrain a few years back. It has over 40+ pages for the pattern and 20+ for the instructions, pretty straightforward and easy to follow, you'll have no problems building this one. Also, check out the "Others" section of the site to see another new paper model, "Chaina" (not pictured).

Scope Dog - [Download Page]
The Webdude - [Site]

Yu Yu Hakusho: Minamino Shuichi aka Kurama

Yu Yu Hakusho… One of the classic and one of the most influential animes of our time, and from the same creator as “Hunter x Hunter“. A half-demon spirit detective that goes into the demon world in order to keep peace in the human world, is joined by his best friend, another half-demon, and a full-fledged demon.

Kurama also known as the human boy “Minamino Shuichi” is the half-demon who, in the previous life, was once known as Youko Kurama, the Thief King. In order to escape death after being critically wounded, he transported his soul to the human world to inhabit the body of an unborn baby. Although he planned to leave his human family when his powers returned, he’s grown to love his mother, Shiori, and simply could not leave her behind.

Beautiful cosplay! The cosplayer really got Kurama’s hair and clothes! This is probably one of my most favorite cosplays and anime characters ever.

Technorati tags: nanao, research, kurama, yu yu hakusho, shuichi, minamino, shiori, youko, yoko, thief, king, cosplay, cosplayer, anime

White King Papercraft - American McGee's Alice

Here's a new papercraft model of one of the sub-characters in the PC game American McGee's Alice - the White King. It's created by the same person that released some photos of a finished paper model of Alice a few weeks back, although they haven't released it to the public, I'll be sure to post it right away as soon as I get my hands on it/lands on my inbox. And to those who don't know anything about what I've just said, check out the wiki entry and other links below to get updated. Another thin, there's also a film adaptation aptly named, Alice, to be released on July 2008 starring Sarah Michelle Gellar (Buffy the Vampire Slayer).



White King - [Download Page] [Download via Rapid]
American McGee's Alice - [Papercraft Site] [Wikipedia] [Youtube] [IMDB]

Review of Flatland: The Movie

I recently had the opportunity to watch Flatland: The Movie. It is a short, educational 35-minute animated film based on an old novel called Flatland.

I thought the movie was quite interesting and entertaining, and my husband felt the same way. We both liked watching it. The animations are excellent, the "voice acting" of the cast is very good, and the whole thing is very well made — thus very enjoyable to watch.

The storyline includes a world set in two-dimensional plane called Flatland. Its inhabitants are simple geometric shapes such as triangles, squares, pentagons, hexagons, and so on. Circles are the evil bosses of Flatland.

Arthur hears Spherius in his living room.

The main setting includes Arthur the Square who is parenting his oh-so-curious granddaughter Hex. Arthur goes to work in a "squaricle" in some office, and has (of course) a circle as a boss.

Hex starts contemplating about the third dimension, but since that is "heresy" and unimaginable in Flatland, Hex's investigations eventually get her and Arthur into trouble. But there is a "savior" — a sphere called Spherius from Spaceland who wants to educate the citizens of Flatland about the existence of the 3-dimensional world.

The interactions between these shapes express plenty of irony that makes the film fun to watch for older teens and adults — and can maybe make them think a little deeper about the prevailing "doctrines" that they are fed everywhere. Just like the shapes in the Flatland had never considered the possibility of a third dimension and rejected it as "heresy", even so we ourselves might be in a similar position (concerning something else), without realizing it.

I wouldn't recommend this movie for early elementary school or younger children because of the strong emotions expressed by the evil circles. Also, young children might not catch on to some of the main themes of the movie, the irony, nor the mathematical ideas. I couldn't put an exact age limit to this though; is up to the parents to decide, of course.

From a mathematical point of view, the movie just deals with a few concepts (after all, it is only a half-hour long). The whole theme revolves around the inability of 2-dimensional figures to grasp 3 dimensions. This is presented really well in different parts o the story. In his dream, Arthur explores all the dimensions up to 3:

• point - 0 dimensions (the King of the Pointland was really funny!)


• line - 1 dimension


• square - 2 dimensions


• cube - 3 dimensions

Also, I really liked the extra interview on the DVD which has a math professor discussing the intriguing possibility of a fourth dimension, and some neat illustrations.

Apart from the mathematical content, one could analyze this movie's themes (accepting new truth vs. sticking to the current ideology) for an English class project as well.

The website FlatlandTheMovie.com has photos, info on cast & crew, news, the trailer, and a store.

You can also see the official trailer below:



(Note: If you've read the book, you might wonder if the movie goes into gender issues and how women's position in the society is presented. This movie totally omits that part of the book. For example, Arthur's wife is a square just like Arthur is.)