Mo’s got sweets!

PYCP adminMaths & Numeracy

Using the information from the final statement in green, ‘162 green sweets, how many sweets did Mo start with?’

We know from the above that the final (target) amount of green sweets is 162, let’s give this a name… TotalGreenSweets

Moving upwards to the next statement, ‘Mo buys himself 30 more green sweets’

We worked out from the step previously that the TotalGreenSweets = 162 at the END, this is where problem solving questions tend to trip people up as we aren’t used to getting an answer and working backwards…

We can number each bullet point in the question to ensure we don’t get lost, e.g. GreenSweetsBP3 means the green sweets at bullet point 3…(see picture to left)

So if Mo buys 30 more sweets, that would mean  has to equal our final statement:

As a formula, gives:

Putting in some values from the question, we know TotalGreenSweets = 162 and GreenSweetsBP3 is the value we are more interested in. 

Therefore, if the total is 162 and we bought 30 NEW GREEN SWEETS, GreenSweetsBP3 must be the total BEFORE we bought 30 more. So the equation becomes,

Moving to our next bullet point, to be consistent we will call the green sweets at this stage GreenSweetsBP2,

The statement says, ‘3/4 of the sweets left over are green’, this means that the amount of green sweets we found previously, GreenSweetsBP3, is 3/4s the amount of green. 

If we know that 3/4s = 0.75 (75%), we need to think of a number that will give us 100% (1/1)….

As an equation…


One of the ‘nice things’ about fractions is that if we want to know 100% of a known number, we just need to turn it upside down and multiply by the amount of green sweets at that stage…

This means our will be  

The first bullet point is similar to what we just done in the last step (flipping fractions)

If we call the sweets at this stage GreenSweetsBP1 or SweetsInitial as we have a mixture of red and green now.

It says, ‘He eats 1/3 of the sweets’… if there are 176 sweets after he has eaten 1/3rd this means the sweets he has at  is 2/3rd the initial value (SweetsInitial)… 

(This is where it would be very easy to slip up, at the end where its most dangerous) 

Similar to before, if we know that

We can flip    to   to get our NewFraction.

All that is left is to multiply  by the new fraction (because we only had a ratio of green sweets)…

First Person Narrative

PYCP adminEnglish & Literacy

What to do when your English teacher asks you to write a story using the first-person narrative. 

Firstly, you’ve got to know what a first-person narrative is. When people write stories, they can either do this in the first, second or third person. First-person means that when they’re writing, they’re going to be saying ‘I’ a lot. For example, ‘This morning, I woke up before my alarm went off. I let out a loud groan, turned over and tried falling back asleep again’. Basically, you are writing from your point of view. 

When you’re writing a story from a second-person or a third-person narrative. You’re writing from someone else’s point of view. More specifically, in the second-person narrative, you’ll be using ‘You’ a lot, for example, ‘You always told me that I should have become a Florist. You said that first, you’d teach me how to grow flowers but you’ll have to take me to the gardening shops for that”. 

The third-person narrative uses a lot of He, She, They etc. For example, ‘They parked their car outside their house late in the night. The weather was wild, and they hesitated to leave the car. They thought that they’d be there for too long if they didn’t try. So Geoff, who was sitting in the front seat, opened his door. He took a step out but pulled it back quickly and thought that maybe he should wait 5 minutes longer before trying again”. 

How do I remember all the Planets in the Solar System?

PYCP adminSciences

Remembering all the planets in our Solar System can be really tricky. Especially because there are so many, and you have to remember them in order from the Sun. To make it easier, we can make a ‘mnemonic’ (putting things in a sentence to help us remember things better). 

The mnemonic for remembering the order for the plants from the sun is:

My Very Easy Method Just Speeds Up Nothing

Then, all you have to remember now is: 

My (Mercury)  Very (Venus)  Easy (Earth)  Method (Mars)  Just (Jupiter)  Speeds (Saturn)  Up (Uranus)  Nothing (Neptune). 

Become a teacher

PYCP adminOther

Might sound a bit strange at first, but one way to help yourself understand the work you have to learn is to try and explain it to yourself, in your own words, as if you are the teacher. If you don’t want to do it on your own, you can also do it in a group or with a study partner.  Saying the material aloud will point out where you are confused and need more information. Doing this will also help you remember what you have to learn! As you are explaining the material, use examples and make connections between ideas (just as a teacher does). 

You could even make a quiz!
Quizzing yourself is a highly effective study technique! Identify the questions that you don’t know and quiz yourself on only those questions. This will help you to retain the information and make corrections where they are needed. Learning the material in this way actively engages your brain and will significantly improve your memory (Craik, 1975)!

Pick a place and time

PYCP adminOther

Everyone has their own idea about the best place and time to study. Whether it’s your bedroom at night or the kitchen table, find a study space and a regular study time that works for you and stick with it.

  • Set up your study space – Your study space should be quiet, comfortable and distraction-free. It should make you feel happy and inspired. Decorate it with your favourite pictures or objects. If you want to listen to music or burn incense, pick a space that lets you do that.
  • Find your best time – Some people work better in the morning. Others work better at night. Work out which time suits you and plan to study then. Don’t study much later than your usual bedtime – pushing yourself late at night can make you too tired to study properly.

Waldmurmeltier question

PYCP adminModern Languages

Q: What is the answer to the question below?

Wie viel Holz könnte ein Waldmurmeltier einspannen?

A: The scientific answer to this weighty question has been determined to be 700lbs

https://mylandplan.org/content/how-much-wood-would-woodchuck-chuck-if-woodchuck-could-chuck-wood

Germany uses the metric system, and 700lbs is around 317.5kg, so the answer would be:

Ein Waldmurmeltier kann dreihundertsiebzehn Punkt fünf Kilogramm Holz einspannen.

Sock puzzle

PYCP adminMaths & Numeracy

Question
Ten red socks and ten blue socks are all mixed up in a dresser drawer. The 20 socks are exactly alike except for their colour. The room is in pitch darkness and you want two matching socks. What is the smallest number of socks you must take out of the drawer in order to be certain that you have a pair that match?

Answer
The answer is just 3. You’ll end up with either:

  • 3 blue socks
  • 2 blue socks & 1 red sock
  • 2 red socks & 1 blue sock
  • 3 red socks

…and that would give you a usable pair every time.

PYCP are looking for a Volunteer Treasurer to join our board

PYCP adminLatest News

Role of Treasurer:

  • Provide Administration Manager with support on creating management accounts and board reporting.
  • Experience of working and influencing at a strategic level
  • Good communication and interpersonal skills
  • Impartiality, fairness and confidentiality
  • Board meetings 6 weekly

If you are interested, please email debbie@pycp.co.uk.

 

Pilton Youth & Children’s Project
The Greenhouse
West Pilton Brae
Edinburgh
EH4 4BH

www.pycp.co.uk

T: 0131 332 9815

New consent forms needed

PYCP adminLatest News

consent picHi,
It’s that time of year when we will be asking for every child and young person who attends the project to have a new consent form completed by their parent or guardian. If you are over 16 and have ID to prove you can complete yourself.
Please drop in to the project to pick up a new form for each child or download here and print off.
Thanks

Debbie

Sleepover at PY ~ 31st July

PYCP adminLatest News

Sleepover at PYCP 31st July

Tonight hundreds of local children living in poverty will be going to sleep on the floor without even a mattress, or squeezing in with siblings and parents.

Just £100 would buy them each a bed.

Come and take part in Forth 1’s Cash for Kids ‘Sleepover’ event on Friday 31st July at The Pilton Youth & Children’s Project, Edinburgh.

DO REMEMBER TO REGISTER ONLINE

All you have to do is raise £100 in sponsorship and stay overnight to experience the challenges these children go through on a nightly basis. You can download a fundraising pack containing sponsorship forms http://www.forth1.com/charity/bed/sleepover/

Its over 18s only – you will be hearing more about this event on Forth1 over the next week. Don’t forget to download your fundraising pack.