Real Life Math Mysteries

A Kid's Answer to the Question, "What Will We Ever Use This For?" (Grades 4-10)

Marya Washington Tyler

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2021
• eBook ISBN: 9781000495720
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Teaching Mathematics

Zookeeper, horse stable owner, archaeologist, lawyer, pilot, fireman, newspaper editor, dairy farmer, arson detective . . . these are just a few of the real people who, in their own words, share their own daily encounters with mathematics. How much lettuce does the Pizza Hut manager need to order for next week? How many rose bushes can a gardener fit around a wading pool? How many fire hoses will be needed to extinguish the fire? Your students will be amazed at the real-life math faced by truck drivers, disc jockeys, farmers, and car mechanics.

Real Life Math Mysteries introduces students to math in the real world through a series of problems drawn from a vast array of community leaders, business professionals, and city officials. The problems are designed to stimulate students' creative thinking and teach the value of math in a real-world setting.

Each concise and clear problem is provided on a blackline master and includes problem-solving suggestions for students with a comprehensive answer key. The problems are tied to the guidelines for math instruction from the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. This book will get students thinking about the mathematics all around them.

Make math last a lifetime. Students will delight in the real-life approach to math as they realize that they will use math skills over and over again in whatever vocation they choose. Make math an exciting experience that children realize will last a lifetime.

More books that make math fun for students include Extreme Math, It's Alive!, and It's Alive! And Kicking!.

Grades 4-10

Real Life Math Problems

DOI: 10.4324/9781003237631-1

Marty Reinhart is the vice president of Associated Bank, so, of course, he uses math all the time.

Interestingly, Mr. Reinhart says math was not one of his favorite subjects. “I remember in ninth grade the teacher called me up to the chalkboard because he said I was the one who needed the most help. Later, I had a teacher who helped me earn straight As, and math became my favorite subject.

“I’m not sure I remember all the algebraic equations I learned, or all of my geometry. But math taught me a way to think, and that has carried over to all areas of my life. You see, math is being able to look at a complex situation, organize it in your mind, analyze it, and then develop a solution for it. And that’s not any different from what you have to do in life.”

Here are some problems I encounter on a daily basis:

• The first problem concerns saving money. Suppose I worked hard and saved $1,000 per year for 10 years. I earned an interest rate of 8% per year (figured annually).
  What would I earn in interest over the entire 10-year period?
  Problem Solving Strategy: Make A Chart
  Remember, interest will be calculated 10 times over the 10-year period, and each year, he is adding $1,000. A chart can help you keep track of all those changes.
• The second problem concerns borrowing money. Suppose I wanted to buy a motorcycle. I borrowed $5,000 from the bank today and agreed to make monthly payments of $161.34 for three years.
  How much interest will I have paid at the end of the three years?

DOI: 10.4324/9781003237631-2

Mike Kupfer enjoys his job at Schalow’s Nursery. He must—he has worked there since he was 14 years old. Mr. Kupfer started working for Schalow’s as a weed-puller, then went on to earn a college degree in horticulture and landscape design. Now he supervises all of the landscape crews, and that means lots of math for Mr. Kupfer.

• A family has asked us to put in a 12 x 16 foot brick patio behind their house. Brick comes bundled together in a pallet, which we take apart when we get to the job.
  Knowing that there are 89 square feet of brick in a pallet, how many pallets will I need to order?
• When we’re laying out a patio, the first thing we have to do is make sure the lines we use to outline it are square to the house. For that, we use the formula discovered by Pythagorus a long time ago which says that in a right angle, the sum of the sides squared will equal the diagonal squared. The formula looks like this: a² + b² = c².
  Now we have measured out 12 feet from the house, and we have measured 16 feet along the house.

  

  How can we find out if the patio borders we have drawn are square with the house?
• Roses will be placed every 3 feet around the circumference of the 18’ diameter pool. Each will be planted 1¹/₂’ from the edge. How many roses will we plant? (Hint: c = π x d)

“I always liked math, and that’s good because most of the math we have to do we do in our heads. We especially use math in designing and estimating, where there’s a lot of geometry. When I was in school I often thought, ‘Why am I learning this?’ Now I know why. I use it every day.”

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Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Half Title Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication Page
• Contents Page
• About Real Life Math Mysteries Page
• Abbreviations and Symbols You Should Know Page
• Note to Teachers Page
• Real Life Math Mysteries and the NCTM Standards Page
• Real Life Math Problems
• Teacher’s Guide to Real Life Math Problems