Real Life/world Mathematics

Hi all,

Hope you're having a good day.  I'm planning my lessons for today, and I realize that what made me fall in love with math - as a subject, a discipline, and finally as a subject to teach - was how it was used in real life.  I wonder if I can present my content in such a way that students can fall in love with problem solving and math.  I try - but usually the "word problems" don't get rave reviews.  Instead, students want the easy, sequential steps to get the answer.

However, life problems are almost never that easy.  That's what makes life interesting.  We have to make decisions based upon partial data, uncertainty, and sometimes nearly no information.  These decisions have large consequences - like financial issues, how the class will go (for teachers), what life looks like in 5 to 10 years, when we can retire, etc.

I wonder what it would look like if problem solving were as highly prized as reading.  No one would ever admit to not being able to read.  But students who can't do math wear it like a badge of honor.  I have been to 14 years of training on how to help students read better - this year it's close reading - but have NEVER had a district initiative in problem solving or math. 

Have a great one . . . . I'll just be over here problem solving ;)

Mark

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