Wake Forest University
Authentic Activities for Connecting Mathematics to the Real World
Check out the handout from a presentation that contains a collection of high school algebra projects connecting a variety of mathematics to the real world. Activities range from simple probabilities to calculus. The activities...
Math Solutions
Dr. Seuss Comes to Middle School Math Class
If you think Dr. Seuss has no place in a math classroom, then take a look at this resource. Based on the classic children's book Green Eggs and Ham, this sequence of activities engages children learning to model real-world contexts...
Illustrative Mathematics
How Many Cells Are in the Human Body?
Investigating the large numbers of science is the task in a simple but deep activity. Given a one-sentence problem set-up and some basic assumptions, the class sets off on an open-ended investigation that really gives some...
Illustrative Mathematics
It's Warmer in Miami
Brrrr it's cold in Alaska! When given the temperatures of Anchorage and Miami in the winter, your mathematicians will calculate how much warmer it is in Miami. Answer key provides two different solution choices. Great as a warm-up for...
Baylor College
Food: The Math Link
Enrich your study of food science with with these math worksheets. They offer a variety of food-related word problems that are great practice for multiplying, identifying fractions, estimating length, and performing calculations...
Curated OER
Sore Throats, Variation 1
Why does Nia's water taste saltier than Trey's if she put more into her cup than he did? Math masters set up proportions in order to compare the mixtures. This task effectively has learners apply the concepts of ratio and proportion to a...
Curated OER
7.RP Music Companies, Variation 2
Real-world multiple-step proportion problems are sometimes hard to find for your math class. Here is one designed specifically to meet that need. Learners use proportional relationships to determine price per share in the acquisition of...
Curated OER
Task: Range of Motion
If you have ever injured your shoulder, you know it takes a while to improve your arm's range of motion. In this real-world example, young mathematicians gain insight into the world of physical therapy while they analyze a case study...
Illustrative Mathematics
Summer Swimming
Here is a real-world application for systems of equations. When is it better to pay an enrollment fee and lower daily rate, and when is it better to pay the regular price? The local swim center is having a special offer, reductions in...
Illustrative Mathematics
Bank Shot
Young geometers become pool sharks in this analysis of the angles and lengths of a trick shot. By using angles of incidence and reflection to develop similar triangles, learners plan the exact placement of balls to make the shot....
Curated OER
Bacteria Populations
Your young microbiologists will interpret and solve exponential equations in this real-world context task set in a hospital research scenario. Learners think in terms of the functions as well as their rates of change.
Illustrative Mathematics
Placing a Fire Hydrant
Triangle centers and the segments that create them easily become an exercise in memorization, without the help of engaging applications like this lesson. Here the class investigates the measure of center that is equidistant to the three...
Illustrative Mathematics
Voting for Three, Variation 2
Here is another opportunity for math learners to apply reasoning to solve real-world problems with ratios. The ratio of the number of votes for two candidates is provided. Your class is asked to use this ratio and information given about...
Curated OER
US Households
Learners construct and use inverse functions to model a real-world context. They use the inverse function to interpolate a data point.
Illustrative Mathematics
Gifts from Grandma, Variation 3
There are three money word problems in this activity, each one is set in the same context. The first asks what was the total amount grandma spent, the second how many grandchildren grandma has, and the third asks how much grandma spent...
Curated OER
Snow Day
It's a snow day, and two brothers attending schools with different schedules each got a late start to the day. But who had the shorter school day? That's what your class will find out as they apply their knowledge of fractions to this...
Illustrative Mathematics
Setting Goals
Setting financial goals is a common occurrence in middle school that your learners can practice using this activity. They will be able to solve for how many hours Seth needs to work to save up for a skateboard, helmet, and trip. The...
5280 Math
Interesting Times
Gain a little interest in functions with a real-life task. Young scholars analyze home loan data with a geometric sequence and series. They use the models to make predictions about the total loan payments at certain intervals in a...
Illustrative Mathematics
Oakland Coliseum
Help algebra learners relate a real-life function that happens at the Oakland Coliseum every time the Raiders play. The resource states that the revenue of the Oakland Raiders home games is a function of the number of seats sold and the...
Illustrative Mathematics
Shape Hunt Part 2
Shapes are everywhere in the world around us, from rectangular doors to the circular wheels of a car. The second lesson plan in this series opens the eyes of young mathematicians to this wonderful world of shapes as they search the...
Illustrative Mathematics
Points equidistant from two points in the plane
Young geometers apply their deductive reasoning skills and knowledge of proving triangles congruent in a task that asks them to prove if a point lies on the perpendicular bisector of a segment, then it is equidistant from the endpoints...
Illustrative Mathematics
Track Practice
And they're off! While two runners are at track practice, your mathematicians' job is to find out who leaves the other in the dust. The activity provides a variety of data that can be computed into unit rates for comparisons. Available...
Illustrative Mathematics
Cooking with the Whole Cup
Whoops! Travis accidentally put too much butter into the recipe. Your bakers must find out how to alter the recipe to accommodate different changes by using unit rates and ratios . The activity has multiple parts and calculations with...
Mrs. Burke's Math Page
The Amazing Pi Race
Add a sense of excitement to your math class with this race across the country. Using their knowledge of all things circular, young mathematicians work in pairs answering a series of pi-related word problems as they hop from one city to...