Module 1 Journal Summary

 

Day 1

Imagine that you are a small business owner. Briefly describe the type of business you would like to run and think of a name for your business.

Day 2

For each equation below, describe a situation in your business in which you might use each equation

p = s – 3500
y = 3x + 10

Day 3

Finding patterns is a very important part of life. If you are the coach of a baseball team and you see that one player is getting a lot of hits, you might want to make the batter a leadoff hitter. You have recognized a pattern, and you are hoping the pattern will continue. Give an example of how finding patterns would help you in the following situations

As a student:

In the world of business
In music
When playing games or sports

Day 4

List the steps needed to perform a simple activity, such as getting lunch, in your journal and copy it to another sheet of paper. Cut your list apart, with each step of the activity on a separate strip of paper. Mix up the strips and place them face down on your desk. Have a partner choose one strip at a time, turning it face up and placing each succeeding strip below the previous one. Record this order of steps in your journal below the first list. Then, read the steps in this new order.

Explain in your journal why the order of the steps is important.

Day 5

Identify each property used in the following equations.

( 9 + 6) + ( x + 3) = 15 + ( x + 3 ) _________
= (15 + x) + 3 _________
= (x + 15) + 3 _________
= x + (15 + 3) _________
5 + ( x + 11) = x + 18 _________
= x + (10 + 6) _________
= x + (16) _________
5 + ( 11 + x) = x + 16 _________
(5 + 11) + x  = x + 16 _________
16 + x = x + 16 _________

Day 6

In a group of 12 students, the mean age is 16, the median age is 16.5, and the mode is 17. You are going to approach one of the students and guess his or her age. Which measure do you think is the most accurate indicator of the age of the person you approach? Write a short essay persuading a reader that your choice is the best indicator; be sure to indicate why your choice is better than the other two.

Day 7

You can find your heart rate by checking your pulse. Find the best at the side of your neck or at your wrist. Have a partner watch the second hand of a clock for exactly 1 minute and tell you when to start counting the number of beats and when to stop. Record the pulse rates for the class in your journal. Answer the following questions in your journal

  1. Which pulse rate was the fastest?
  2. Which pulse rate occurred most frequently?
  3. How did you record the data?
  4. Suggest other ways to record the data so they are easy to analyze.

Another way to check your pulse is to count the number of beats in 10 seconds. Then, multiply this number by 6. Explain in your journal why this works.

Day 8

Does every set of data have a mean, median and mode? Explain.

Day 9

The attendance office at your school would like to create some graphs to represent attendance patterns from the first quarter of the year. For the following exercises decide which type of graph should be used, sketch the graph and justify your choice of graphs.

Example 1. Students with three or more excused absences (reported by grade level) freshmen = 35, sophomore = 22, juniors = 25, and seniors = 19.

Example 2 Total absences by percent: 53% unexcused, 41% excused for illness, 4% excused for family trips, 2% excused for other reasons.

Day 10

Write a description of each type of graph listed below. Next to the description, make a sketch of each type of graph and give examples of when you would use each graph.

Line graph
Bar graph
Circle graph
Stem and leaf plot

Day 11

Explain what is meant by the statement, "Every real number can be matched with a point on the number line."

Day 12

After math class, one of your friends makes the statement that whenever you subtract one number from another, the answer is always less than the original number. Respond to your friend’s remark. Include specific examples to support your position.

Day 13

Give three examples from daily life that can be used in a matrix.

Day 14

Describe how matrices and spreadsheets are similar and how they are different.

Day 15

Choose a sum of money between 25 cents and one dollar. Take turns in your group showing various combinations of coins that are equivalent in value to this sum. For example, to show 47 cents, someone might choose the following coin combination:

# of Coins

Coins

 # of Cents Decimal
1 Quarter 25 $0.25
2 Dimes 20 $0.20
2 Pennies 2 $0.02
5 TOTAL 47 $0.47

In your journal, record the number of combinations of coins your group found for the sum you chose.

Repeat for four more sums, determining for each sum all the possible combinations of coins that are equivalent in value. Make a table like the one above to record all the combinations. For each sum, compare the totals in the last two columns.

Day 16

Fold a small rectangle piece of paper into thirds using horizontal folds. Shade 2/3 of the paper yellow. Then, fold the paper into fourths using vertical folds and shade 3/4 of the yellow part blue.

There are 6 green sections (yellow + blue = green), so 6/12, or 1/2 of the paper is green. You have found that 3/4 of 2/3 is 1/2. You can rewrite this using math symbols as

3/4 * 2/3 = 1/2

Now try folding paper and shading sections to find 1/2 of 1/2, 1/2 of 3/4, and 2/3 of 9/10 and rewrite these as math symbols in your journal. Include your shaded paper in your journal.

Day 17

Answer the following questions and then write a short paragraph relating your answers to the rules for multiplying real numbers. Assume the future is positive and the past is negative.

  1. The value of a share of stock in a company drops $2 per week for each of the next six weeks. What multiplication statement represents this situation?
  2. The value of a share of stock in another company has dropped $3 per week for each of the past six weeks. Write a multiplication statement that describes how much greater the value was 6 weeks ago.

Day 18

True or False: The absolute value of a number is always the opposite of the number. Explain your answer.
True or False: If a< 0, b< 0 and a< b then |a| > |b|  Explain your answer. Show your work.

Day 19

How do you feel about today's test? How did you study for the test? What questions did you find the easiest? The hardest? How can you better prepare for the next test?