Mathematics Department - Waunakee Community School District

Mathematics Department

Welcome to the Middle School Mathematics Department's web page. We hope that you will use this page to keep up on what is happening within the "world of mathematics" at the Middle School.

In Waunakee, we currently use the University of Chicago School Mathematics Project (UCSMP). The link to the UCSMP website it listed below. Our seventh graders will be working with the Transitions book (pre-algebra) and the 8th grade will be doing Algebra. We also have included various web sites that are math-related and should provide useful information for you and your young adolescent.

If at any time you have questions about our mathematics program or your child's education, please do not hesitate to contact his or her mathematics teacher. If we all work together, we can provide a wonderful math experience for your child.

Math Curriculum

Math Resources:

Quia: We sometimes have requests from parents for some good old fashioned math review for students (and parents!). This site offers a chance to practice in a game-like setting, basic facts, as well as geometric terms.
Khan Academy: A library of videos and practice problems to help learn different mathematical concepts.
National Library of Virtual Manipulatives: Interactive mathematics tools and activities.
Surfing the Net with Kids: This link starts off in the Math Section but there are resources for most other content areas as well.
Figure This -- a collection of math challenges for middle school students that taps a range of mathematical concepts and skills.
A Maths Dictionary for Kids
Online Graphing Calculator | Instructions for Use
Coolmath.com
A+ Math
Kaidy Educational Resources
Statistics Every Writer Should Know -- learn about mean, median, standard deviation, per capita, and more.
Multilingual Glossary for Mathematics
Middle School Math Games- Math-play.com
Middle School Math Games- NCTM Illuminations

GRAPHING CALCULATOR INFORMATION
by Katie Grundahl

“I need a graphing calculator for math class.” Have you heard this coming from your middle school child? Then were you shocked when you saw the price? Every year we hear from parents that their child wants them to purchase a graphing calculator and are suffering from sticker shock.

Graphing calculators are used at the middle school. Thye are used almost on a daily basis in eighth grade and periodically in seventh grade. Both the eighth grade and seventh grade mathematics teachers have graphing calculators in his/her classroom and the students are able to use them during class. Students are also welcome to come in at times during the day (outside of their assigned class time) to work on an assignment and use the calculator. The students are not allowed to take them home. Students are welcome to purchase a graphing calculator, but it is not required.

Many of our students love their graphing calculators because they are able to download games and play them during the day. Please be aware that the middle school does not allow game playing during the day unless the student has the teacher’s permission. Gaming on a graphing calculator is allowed before school, during lunch, and after school. If a student is not following these rules, his/her graphing calculator will be confiscated and the memory will be erased by one of the mathematics teachers. The math teachers – and other staff - warn students to be careful of what they download. The graphing calculator is not meant for gaming and many of the games exceed the memory capability of the calculator, which in turn does not allow them to work properly in math class.

If you have any questions about graphing calculators, please feel free to contact your child’s mathematics teachers.

Jane Fazio: Welcome! My name is Jane Fazio and I teach 8th grade mathematics. I am also the Mathematics Chair for the Waunakee School District. I love teaching mathematics and look forward to every day I spend with your child. I also teach at Edgewood College; working with pre-service teachers. I feel it is the perfect way to give back to the field of education. Waunakee is a wonderful place to be and I feel very lucky to be a part of this Middle School and this school district.

Sara Koppes: Ms. Koppes is an alumnus of Waunakee High School. She liked Waunakee so much that she decided to come back! She started her teaching career at Waunakee Middle School in 1999. Ms. Koppes really enjoys teaching math to eighth graders. She likes eighth graders because they are fun and spontaneous; and they give her a challenge. Ms. Koppes likes math because it is also challenging and it is like putting a puzzle together. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to e-mail Ms. Koppes.

Katie Grundahl: Welcome to 7th and 8th grade! I am the math teacher for the Stars/Motiv8tors and the Middle School Mathematics coordinator. This school year will be exciting and fun. Math has always been something that motivates and challenges me to learn more. I believe that in order to truly understand math you must be able to answer the whys behind mathematics, not just be able to go through the steps. Our goal as a class this year is to truly understand math. Please feel free to email me with any questions.

Tony Thrune is in his twelfth year teaching for the Waunakee Community School District. Mr. Thrune taught 4th grade and middle school for 13 years, in Deerfield, before coming to Waunakee. He currently teaches 7th graders in Trans Math on the EAGLES team.
Mr. Thrune received his BS degree in Elementary Education from Viterbo College (many years ago) and completed his Masterss in Education degree through National Lewis University this past March. Please email any concerns, questions, or comments.

Emily Pertzborn: Welcome to 7th grade and to the middle school! My name is Emily Pertzborn and this will be my third year teaching here at Waunakee Middle School. I teach 7th grade math on the GEMS team. We have so many new things to look forward to this year and I am excited to learn right along with the students. It will be an exciting year as we begin our new curriculum and we will work together to make it a successful year. Feel free to contact me with any questions you may have. Have a great school year!

Last Updated: 10/24/11

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