Using Math in Everyday Life

Your child may be upset she has to take math classes and is asking why she needs to learn it. From home to school, math is everywhere. It’s used in measurements for recipes and for being able to tell time. The students at the best private schools in Orlando consistently score high on state and national standards tests, but they may still feel uneasy about the math section. With that said, it’s a good idea for you to use real-life world examples to motivate reluctant math learners to enjoy the numbers and score high on exams. 

Cooking and Baking

Math can be found right in your family’s kitchen! Recipes are mathematical algorithms, and cooking and baking both call for a specific amount of ingredients. In order to understand measurements, your child will need to understand math, fractions, and conversions. Working in the kitchen requires a range of math knowledge, including calculating cooking time per item, converting Celsius to Fahrenheit, and understanding proportions and rations. You’ll also need to know conversions, such as changing teaspoons to tablespoons or changing pounds to kilograms. 

Telling Time

Telling time requires knowledge of a lot of math concepts. First, your child will need to know there are 24 hours in a day. If you divide those into two, a half-day is 12 hours. Each hour is 60 minutes, and each minute consists of 60 seconds. We have to understand fractions as well, as time is often told in fractions. Someone who didn’t learn fractions may struggle to understand what “a quarter after four” means. A great exercise that helps with this is to have your child set goals by determining how much time she wants to spend each day on homework. Not only does this teach them math, but it keeps her organized, too!

Shopping

When you’re shopping, you’re using a lot of mathematical equations. If your child’s sneakers are regularly $40 but are 40 percent off right now, you are using math. What about tax? You are adding it on. Relating math to shopping is a great way to help your child understand it. Take her to the grocery store to challenge her with some math play. Give her tasks that force her to count. For instance: gather five apples, weigh a watermelon, and calculate the total of everything in the cart. Playful activities like this should make her see math as a fun subject! For more than 50 years, the best private schools in Orlando have been helping children grow to their fullest potential and become leaders within their communities. We offer unique and dynamic learning environments that engage students and encourage them to become confident and responsible adults. To learn more about what makes us different, contact us today.