Back to school spending is huge and students might not appreciate what it costs to send them back to, essentially, their job of learning. In this activity students decide what equipment and supplies are necessary, estimate how much that will…
Catching a productive meteor shower can be a stunning experience. On the evenings and mornings of August 11th and 12th there is hope of a good show. A three-quarters moon will make the night sky too light to see the…
Act One: Drill bits are measured by the diameter of the bit in inches. The drill bits below are ordered left to right in increasing size. The numerators in the fractions have been blacked out. What could the numerators be? Explain your…
I have to go to the bathroom pretty badly. I have to admit that I have been holding it in for a while. Finally! I see a bathroom sign! Wait … it is in kilometers? How far is that? Should…
Act One: Check out this beach towel! What do you wonder? What would you like to know? Miami artist, Misael Soto (pictured on the left below), created this giant art project to make a statement about people sharing territory at the beach.…
My dog, Jorge, has just turned 12 years old. He still seems like a puppy to me but I wonder how old he is when compared to a human’s age. He’s definitely not like an 84 year old human (12…
Lots of people enjoy coloring books. Evidently people who like to multitask can find a means of calming their energies and reach a peaceful place by simply coloring designs. Coloring in these drawings allows you to relax and just create pretty…
I came home from work to find that my son had his cars organized in a tight parking lot on our front porch. How many cars are there? Is it an array and if so, what size array could it be…
After chlorination, it has been hard to measure the quantity of pollutants in pool water. A Canadian chemist, Xing-Fang Li, has found a marker for urine that chlorine doesn’t disguise. In this activity, students calculate volume of several pools, change that…
With the start of summer and wonderful outdoor activities, it might be good to examine the growth of Lyme disease occurrences in the United States. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has published maps for all of the…
This Monday Americans will celebrate Memorial Day. Who are we honoring? How did the holiday come about? Isn’t Memorial Day usually on May 30th? Students learn a little about the history of the holiday, analyze the possibilities for when it is…
You have probably heard about the proposed border wall that may go up along the U.S./Mexico border. How much wall needs to be built? How much will that cost? What is that per mile? Per foot? What else could you…
Mother’s Day by the numbers – Mother’s Day is right around the corner and this means big business for the greeting card and floral industries. Let your students practice averages, percents, and large numbers while they analyze the statistics on Mother’s…
Uh oh! How do you find the area of a heart? Get your students to help you calculate how many sequins you’ll need to order for this mother’s day class project. The activity: BejeweledMother’sDayCard.pdf Mother’sDay-card-blank – If you want…
Just updated! Russel Westbrook had one of the most dominating seasons ever, averaging nearly 32 points, 8 assists and 11 rebounds a game! He set a record with 42 triple doubles in the 2016-17 season. Was this the greatest NBA…
