Monday, January 26, 2009

Math on Sunday

The comics on Sunday, January 25, had a math pattern -
First there is Luann by Greg Evans
Luann

Then Foxtrot by Bill Arnend.

Math has never been my favorite subject. It is so rigid, so black and white, so right and wrong- so precise. It's easier to mush around in the Social Sciences. Yet, I ,along with LuAnn and Paige, - use math daily. I'm grateful that I was 'forced' to memorize the multiplication tables as I figure out how much several items will cost. I value being made to practice adding and subtracting in my head, quickly - as I look at a restaurant bill to see if it's correct. I appreciate being able to quickly figure percentages when faced with how much tip to leave.

We have several books in the Q's to help our students brush up on their math skills as they prepare for various standardized tests.

GALILEO has a search link for math. You may search Academic Search Complete - National Science Digital Library -
Research Library (at ProQuest) - and Science and Technology Collection - plus adding other databases.

Math is for everyday use!

-kls

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Isn't Luann's math wrong?

If 21 inches = new height and this is a 50% increase, the old height would have to be 10.5 inches.

For the new height to be 21 by adding 7 inches, the old height would be 14 inches which would mean a 50% increase = 28 inches.

The Librarian said...

Math not being my forte - I think she's right - but let's see if I can explain it- 21 minus 7 = 14. 1/2 of fourteen is 7. That would be 50% of 14 - so the 50% increase would be 14 plus 7. Percentages were never my strong suit.

-kls