Weekly Reader Connections

Teacher Guide: Lesson 16.6


The article “Snow + Math = Art” describes one American team's entry in an international snow-sculpting competition. Students learn about the planning, design, and building processes and gain a sense of the importance of teamwork in achieving a goal.

The same team won Honorable Mention for its entry, “Turning a Snowball Inside Out,” in the 14th International Snow Sculpture Championships in 2004.

The Word Wise activity has students identify words that are homophones. It challenges students to suggest why the team may have named their sculpture “Whirled White Web.” Students should recognize that “whirled” is a homophone for “world” and that “white” is (almost) a homophone for “wide.” Based on this, the team wrote: “At first, we saw this name as just a clever pun. But the sculpture was a symbolic representation of the World Wide Web. It illustrates how the World Wide Web can link together people from all over the planet.”

The Data Hunt activity gives students a chance to work cooperatively in planning and designing a snow or sand sculpture of their own. Students must first determine the scale of their design, and then design the sculpture. If time allows, have students use the design to construct a model out of clay or sand.

Houghton Mifflin Math Grade 6