SUMMER LEARNING JOURNEY: The Air Up There 🌬

Activity 1: Bee-Informed (4 points)


Activity 2: Carbon Sinks Don’t Stink! [4 points]
Every day a chemical compound called carbon dioxide (CO2) is produced and released into the air.  If it isn’t removed, it can become toxic for humans. Fortunately, there are a number of places where CO2 is absorbed (removed from the air). Two of the most common places are forests and oceans. They are called ‘carbon sinks’ because, like a sink, they gather, clean and drain things away that we don’t want. One of the largest carbon sinks in New Zealand is a forest in the south-western part of the South Island. It drains away 60% of our unwanted carbon!

Mayo image source: Hellman's 

Let’s imagine that you could design a sink that could gather up and then drain away any foods that you don’t like. On your blog, tell us what you would put in your special sink. 

On your blog, list all of the foods that you would put in your special draining sink..

1. Mayonnaise
2. Any kind of pasta
3. Broad beans
4. Pulpy orange juice
5. Blue cheese




Activity 3: Flying Fungi [10 points]
In the middle of winter it can get quite wet and damp in New Zealand, can’t it? When it gets really damp, it is common for things like mould and fungi to start to grow. We can often see them on the walls, ceilings or floors of our houses or outside on footpaths, buildings or roadways. Some types of mould and fungi are so small that they can’t be seen. Some of these tiny fungi/mould can be found in the air. They are called ‘airborne fungi’ and they can be unhealthy for us. 

Let’s imagine that we tested the air in your classroom and found 7 different kinds of mould. Eek! The cleaner says that it takes 5 days for each mould to be eradicated (removed). If the school had to remove each mould one at a time, how long would it take to remove all the mould from the classroom? 

On your blog, tell us how you would solve this tricky maths problem. Be sure to also post your final answer in days or weeks.

Okay, so, there are 7 kinds of moulds, and it takes 5 days to remove. We can use algebra to solve this quickly and accurately. 
7m x 5d
We are using the symbol '7m' to symbolise '7 moulds' and the symbol '5d' to symbolise 5 days'. By multiplying these numbers we are left with the number: 35md. Next we need to put the number 35 into weeks.
There are 7 days in a week, 35 divided by 7 is equal to 5. So, in conclusion, it will take us 5 weeks to remove the mould that has contaminated the classroom.