Money Worksheets
Learning about money is part of the curriculum that begins as early as kindergarten. Typically, it's fun to use money when learning the concepts as it keeps learning authentic. However, eventually students will need to problem solve money amounts and demonstrate their understanding. These worksheets are great for young learners and some of the concepts addressed also tend to appear on those large scale assessments.
Rise Over Run
Here's a quick review about Slope, something you won't escape in high school math! Most of us tend to commit the formula to memory, some of us don't. But this is indeed a formula that is worth memorizing. For a quick mini- tutorial, try Jennifer Ledwith's 'How to Find the Slope of a Line with a Graph.
See also: practice worksheets: Sketch the line, given the slope with answers on the second page.
I Have, Who Has......
If you are a teacher and haven't heard about the 'I Have, Who Has' math card game, you've come to the right place. These games consist of 20 to 30 cards with questions on them. The cards get printed out on to heavy card stock, shuffled and handed out to your students. Double up if you have too many cards. Any student can begin by reading the card. For instance, if the game is about multiplication, the student would read "I have 49, who has 8 x 8? Each student check their card to see if they have 64, the student who has 64 reads their card "I have 64, who has 72. The process is repeated until you are back at the beginning.
Ready to play? Here are a few for you:
Once you get going, start making your own cards. You can make them for any concept and change the level of difficulty.
Chess and Math
Chess can help to improve math performance, one step at a time. And, although I haven't played chess in many years, there's no doubt that chess and math go hand in hand. Why you ask? Think of what is required in both: problem solving, logic, deductive reasoning, analytical thinking, and strategizing just to name a few. So, if we improve those strategis through chess, those improved strategies would naturally help scores in math. Need more convincing? Give it a try and read on.
The TI-Nspire May Just Have Some Competition
The Casio Education Team launched its PRIZM(tm) Graphing Calculator in January and they claim it will transform how technology is used in the classroom. PRIZM(tm) is the first in Casio's next-generation line of graphing calculators. It has a high-resolution color LCD and a variety of other functions designed to assist with math lessons. TI has been leading the calculator wars for some time now but will Casio finally offer something that brings them back into the running? Some claim it will.
It retails for approximately $129.00. The Casio is great! There are plenty of You Tube videos on it and a great manual. Am I picking it over the TI Nspire? Not yet, at this time, it would be a tie and I'd be happy putting the Prism into my shopping basket.
April = Math Awareness Month
Mathematics Awareness Month (MAM) is held every year in April. MAM was established to increase the public awareness of and appreciation for mathematics. Mathematics Awareness Month started in 1986 as Mathematics Awareness Week with a proclamation by President Ronald Reagan. Every year MAM specifies a theme. This year the theme is Unraveling Complex Systems.
To see how you can take part, be sure to visit the website. You'll find lots of information, essays, previous themes, posters and press releases.
Spring Fever!
Welcome spring, I've been patiently, or perhaps not so patiently waiting for you. With spring, one conjures up the mindset of final exams, summative tests, year-end marks and for some of us the ritual of the first golf game. A time for reflection, a time to practice everything you've learned and a time to apply it. Believe it or not, math and golf have a lot in common as far as strategies go. Think about how you plan to be successful in golf, and apply it to math, or vice versa. You might be surprised!
Remember, negative attitudes are often a reaction to failure!
Have your say on the matter.
What are the Chances of Finding a Four Leaf Clover?
The current opinion is that there are 10,000 three leaf versions for every four leaf. Your chances of finding a four leaf is rather slim but consider the story of Edward Martin, who claimed he found 160,000 four leaf versions in his lifetime. If Edward spent 2 hours every day for his 76 adult years, he would have to find close to four leaf clovers 3 every day!
So do you think Edward is being very honest or is he a victim of his own lack of counting skills?
The probability of Edward being able to achieve such a feat can be calculated as long as you understand the term.
See also:
If A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words......
What would a video be worth? I can often look at a solution to a math equation and work backwards to understand it. However, rarely is it as much of a learning experience as watching a video tutorial.
Relatively new on the math site at About are math videos for a few learning concepts. When you're struggling to understand a concept, you may want to search for a video tutorial. Often, they make understanding easier.
Check out:
1. Finding Volume and Surface Area of a Cylinder
2. Area of a Sector of a Circle
3. Finding the Area of an Ellipse
4. Finding the Surface Area of a Sphere
Another site I often refer students to is Teacher Tube, simply type in your keyword/concept into the search and select your video. Once again, I sure wish I could have had the benefits of online learning when I was in school!
Happy Pi Day
March 14 or shall I refer to today as 3.14? Not Pie, just pi, without the e. It's the slice of math that represents the ratio of the circumference of a circle to the diameter. At some point in your academic career, usually by the 7th grade, you no doubt will be introduced to the mysterious pi.
The circumference of a circle is the actual length around the circle which is equal to 360°. Pi is the number needed to compute the circumference of the circle.
p is equal to 3.14.
Pi is greek and believe it or not, it has been around for over 2000 years!
See also, the video for finding the area for a circle segment.