Published in Math Simplified·5 days agoMember-onlyWorking with Negative SpacesFirst, what do I mean by negative spaces? Negative spaces are places where things aren’t, but yet kinda are. For example, if we look at the picture above, we see two people’s faces or a vase. When we see the vase, the people’s faces are the negative space and when…Math3 min readMath3 min read
Published in Math Simplified·Nov 21Member-onlyUsing Fractions to Solve Percentage ProblemsThere are three ways to solve percentage problems: 1) treat it like a ratio, 2) the 10% method and 3) substitute in a fraction. Today I’d like to talk about that third option. This is a method that works with a limited number of percentage problems. The problems need to…Math3 min readMath3 min read
Published in The Haven·Nov 6Member-onlyWhat They Don’t Tell You About AgingFirst off, who is “they”? Who is responsible for telling us ANYTHING about aging? Is there some sort of government agency that’s supposed to be putting out a manual? I never got mine. Or maybe it’s some non-profit group who does the aging equivalent of Schoolhouse Rock. …Aging3 min readAging3 min read
Published in Math Simplified·Oct 21Member-onlyNew, Easy Way to Divide Fractions and Mixed NumbersI’m SO excited. (I know you guys will understand — my husband just looked at me.) I did something by accident today, and when I thought about it, it was not only mathematically valid but applicable to dividing any fraction or mixed numbers. …Math3 min readMath3 min read
Published in Math Simplified·Oct 17Member-onlySubtracting Mixed Numbers.This week’s math hack is a trick to make things simpler when you’re subtracting mixed numbers. First, I always treat the whole part and the fraction part of mixed numbers separately. Second, when we borrow, instead of adding the whole to the top number we can do the subtraction first…Fractions3 min readFractions3 min read
Published in Math Simplified·Oct 11Member-onlyDividing Mixed Numbers By Whole Numbers.I like efficiency. Though I like math, I don’t like doing math I don’t need to. That’s why the traditional way of dividing mixed numbers by whole numbers makes me a little crazy. Most of the process is doing (changing to an improper fraction), and then almost immediately, undoing (changing…Fractions2 min readFractions2 min read
Published in Math Simplified·Oct 3Member-onlyDivide FirstI always encourage my students to work with the simplest numbers possible. Doing so not only reduces the chances for error but often makes the problem easy enough to do in your head. When we’re doing something that requires both multiplication and division, I tell them to divide first. Some…Mathematics Education2 min readMathematics Education2 min read
Published in ILLUMINATION·Oct 3Member-onlyWhy We Should Value That Loud Dumb KidAs a teacher, we all fantasize about teaching the perfect class. We come in ready, with lesson plans and examples. The lecture smoothly moves from one idea to another, with good coverage of the ideas and seamless transitions. …Teaching3 min readTeaching3 min read
Published in Math Simplified·Sep 12Member-onlyCan I Divide by…?I’m always telling my students to simplify, simplify, simplify. However, most people don’t know how to tell when something is evenly divisible by a given number. I’ve figured out a lot of tricks to tell and have compiled them into this list. …Math3 min readMath3 min read
Published in Math Simplified·Sep 4Member-onlyExpanding the FOIL methodMost of us learned the FOIL method as a way to multiply algebraic expressions. FOIL stands for First, Outer, Inner, and Last, which is how we multiply the terms. (X + 2)(X — 3) = X² -3X + 2X -6 = X² -X -6 However, we can expand the use…Math3 min readMath3 min read
