Students learn about how math is used in real word careers

Recently, sixth grade students at Trinity Christian Academy (TCA) in Addison, learned how math is used in the real world during “Math to the Future Day.” Throughout the day the students gathered on Main Street (main hallway) and “traveled” through the following rotations held in different classrooms:

• Bank – Students solved math puzzles to unlock a bank vault and obtain a code which prevents a computer virus from spreading worldwide. (Dallas Panic Room helped to create the escape room on-site in the classroom)

• Emergency Room – Students put on scrubs and performed the order of operations on a blow-up dummy.

• Market – Students “shopped” for grocery items and calculated subtotal, tax and total.

• Movie Theater – Students watched a classic movie, while discovering mathematics in music, sports, architecture, art and nature. “Mathematics is the alphabet upon which God has written the universe,” – Galileo.

• Restaurant – Students placed an order for their table and calculated tax, total, tip and split check.

• Sports Arena – Students acted as general managers and assembled the best possible salary-capped roster for their pro-basketball teams based on actual player statistics.

• Town Hall – Students presented an essay about how math can be used in their future career.

Students came to school wearing clothes that best fit the future occupation of their choice but had no idea what they would be doing in class. Each classroom was decorated to look like the different “real world” setting and teachers wore costumes to match the classroom.