Kitchen Math: Back-to-School Breakfast Recipes

Some say that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. So there is no better time than those mornings before school to get your kids brains moving and ready for action. Invite your little ones to employ their math skills in the kitchen by helping gyou prepare breakfast. Between calculating quantities, measuring ingredients and more, math plays a vital role in cooking for a full household. Here’s a quick recipe to help get you started -

Quick smoothie recipes
Kicking off the morning with a fruit-filled smoothie with energy generating ingredients and lean protein options can be a great way to start your day. In addition to your oatmeal, pancakes, cereal or other breakfast foods, try blending up this quick and easy smoothie recipe!

Strawberry Banana Smoothie (serves 2)
1 ripe banana
1 ½ cups frozen strawberries
3 tablespoons almond butter
¼ cup vanilla yogurt
2 cups soy milk

Have the kids calculate the amount of ingredients needed according to the number of people in your home and then have them measure them out accordingly before you blend them together. Its a delicious way of incorporating education into everyday routines! Best of all, this recipe was borrowed from JumpStart.com, so be sure to visit the site for more delicious smoothie and breakfast ideas!

MATHBLASTER.COM DOWNTIME: August 24th, at 9PM PST

Max, G.C. and the team are making BIG improvements to the Space Station to optimize your intergalactic adventure in learning. This Sunday, August 24th, at 9PM PST (Pacific Standard Time) MathBlaster.com will be down for scheduled maintenance for at least 6-8 hours. Please stay tuned for more updates from Max and the team at mission control regarding access to our online world!

Math Games for Back-to-School Fun!

There is no doubt that math learning takes time and practice. Before your kids head back to the classroom, work them back into the routine with a few fun and engaging math drills and exercises. While there are a number of exciting tools aboard the Math Blaster Space Station, you might want to make an event of this end-of-summer warm up by inviting your kids’ friends over for a back-to school party with food, familiar faces, and best of all - interactive math games that get those competitive juices flowing in the direction of learning!

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Head on over to our official Pinterest page to get started and find some active math activities to share with your kids and their friends. Don’t feel tied down to these game ideas. Get creative and tailor some traditional yard or party activities to incorporate educational components like math!

Linking Icequakes and Earthquakes

How much do you know about icequakes? The terminology is not nearly as common to hear as ‘earthquakes,’ but in fact the two have some undeniable links. In its most basic form, icequakes or frost quakes are the breaking up on large frozen masses like ice sheets, glaciers and the like. So what does this all mean and how are these things linked? Read on to learn more!

Recent studies have linked the high impact 2010 Chilean earthquakes to noticeable changes in Antarctica in the form of these ice quakes. What makes the link between this case of earthquakes and subsequent icequakes is the 3,000 mile between the two areas. Not Studies since the 8.8 earthquake in 2010 have revealed that the ice in Antarctica is vulnerable to seismic waves even originating from remote locations.

This ripple effect can be explained to young learners through basic cause and affect principles. Learning about links like these can help them understand how science and the environment work through interlocking systems. Ultimately when one major even like high magnitude earth quakes occur, they can still have repercussions thousands of miles away.

Share this bit of knowledge with your kids to spark their interest in science!

Teach your kids about animals!

While science can sometimes seem difficult and boring to your kids, it does not have to be that way at all! There are so many fun science activities that can help create a passion and excitement in your kids about learning. Since the weather’s nice and warm as summer begin to wind down, why not get them outdoors to observe the local flora and fauna? Take your kids to a local pond or marsh to search for minnows, frogs, tadpoles, butterflies, and more. Here are a few tips to get this cool field-trip started!

Supplies. You’ll need a small mesh net, some good, waterproof boots, and a few moderate-sized jars. Make sure to poke holes in the jars so that air filters in while you’re observing the creatures! This is a good opportunity to teach your children about being respectful towards nature.

Where to go. Swamps, marshes, ponds, and creeks are all great places to go to search for this kind of wildlife. For butterflies, parks and fields are great places — as long as the weather is good, they’ll be brightening up any afternoon sky! Check near bushes and flowers especially. To find tadpoles, look along the edges of ponds, where algae is located. They can best be found in shallow spots. Fish are generally found in streams and ponds.

What to do once you’re there. To catch tadpoles, grab your mesh net and dip it in the pond water where the tadpoles are located. Put them in a jar — but first make sure that the jar is filled with water from the same pond you caught the tadpoles in! Put some weeds and algae in there. Be sure not to mix in ANY tap water — chlorine will kill the tadpoles. Have your kids observe them and note the key characteristics, and then let them go! Don’t take the tadpoles from their natural habitat unless you’re sure that the area you’re in allows it.

Then, to compare, have your kids find frogs! They’ll be amazed to see that the tiny tadpoles they just saw can turn into these cool, slimy creatures. Frogs generally hang out near bodies of still, fresh water. They’re fast, slippery, and scared of people — so don’t make any loud noises and step carefully! You can catch frogs with your mesh net — just make sure not to injure them in any way. Let your kids carefully cup the frog in their hands, making sure they’re gentle, and observe its features. Teach your kids some facts about frogs — for example, that they’re amphibious! If you can, bring a chart that lists different types of frogs so you can find out what species of frog it is. Then release the frog back to where you found it.

You’ll also be sure to see fish swimming around. Bring a chart with different kinds of fish listed, as well as their photos, and have your kids identify the ones that they see! Bluegills, minnows, catfish, carp, and sunfish are all common pond and stream fish that have distinctive characteristics. As for butterflies, they’re easy to spot, as they’ll be flying around! Grab your mesh net (making sure it’s dry and clean) and gently try to catch any butterflies that you see. They’re light and fast, so you have to be very quick. Let them crawl on your kids’ fingers and hands — this will teach them not to be scared of these beautiful and harmless creatures. Have your kids note the markings of the butterflies and try to identify them.

This will surely be a fun day out with your kids! They’ll learn a lot about nature — especially about how to respect it. Your kids will also come home knowing a lot more about the different species of animals than they did before! An outdoor science-themed day like this is a great way to get your kids active while still keeping the day educational.

 

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Photo by: Trish Hartmann

 

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