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Are we there yet?

January 7, 2006

Growing up I had the privilege of being the son of, “the math guy,” but before you get all jealous, let me inform you that being the son of “the math guy” isn’t always fun.  Here is one example…

Picture a family outing, a husband, a wife, and a carload of their 4 boys.  Being inquisitive boys they would ask, “how much further,” and “are we there yet?” but unlike other children they didn’t receive a straight answer.  Instead “the math guy” a.k.a. Steve Demme would create an on-the-spot word problem.  Such as,

“It is 400 miles to Grandma’s house, we have already traveled 100 miles, and we are   driving at an average speed of 60 mph, how long will it take us to get there?”

“The math guy” would then walk us boys through the process of figuring out how long it would take to get there.

I led a deprived childhood, instead of having my question answered I was given the information and then I had to figure out the answer for myself :-(

Now I am much older and can see the benefits of such an activity and how much I learned from the on-the-spot word problems. Thanks Dad :-)   I even do word problems when I drive home for the holidays, without anyone telling me to!

If you have a favorite way that you incorporate math into your everyday lives, leave a comment and tell us.

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  • Jodi

    Well, I’m not a “math guy” (in fact, I HATED math in school), but I do just what your dad did. So if my son wants to know how long it would take him to save up for a toy he sees in a catalog, I make it into a story problem, and he figures it out himself. My husband is also very good at doing this. So it’s not something reserved just for children of math guys–you are not alone in your misery. :)

  • Jodi

    Well, I’m not a “math guy” (in fact, I HATED math in school), but I do just what your dad did. So if my son wants to know how long it would take him to save up for a toy he sees in a catalog, I make it into a story problem, and he figures it out himself. My husband is also very good at doing this. So it’s not something reserved just for children of math guys–you are not alone in your misery. :)

  • http://www.mathusee.com Sandi Queen (Math-U-See Midatlantic Rep)

    Haha! Ethan, I am in sympathy with you here!
    I have been a Math-U-See user for 15 years, and the Midatlantic rep for 13 years now. I remember in the early days, when we bought our first cash register to use at conventions. The register tape only gave us the total amount of money in (cheap cash register!), and not the breakdown of how much was sales and how much was tax. I called your dad, hoping to get a “quick” formula as to how to calculate the needed amounts for our records…but NOOOOO! He instead had to explain the entire concept to me over the phone, and ask ME how I would go about solving the “word problem”! Haha!
    I eventually got it, and have been thankful ever since…in fact, just this week, I was teaching my 3rd daughter, Haley, this same concept in her Zeta level lesson, and it all came back to me. I almost had her call your dad for a “quick overview”!

    Thanks, Steve!

  • http://www.mathusee.com Sandi Queen (Math-U-See Midatlantic Rep)

    Haha! Ethan, I am in sympathy with you here!
    I have been a Math-U-See user for 15 years, and the Midatlantic rep for 13 years now. I remember in the early days, when we bought our first cash register to use at conventions. The register tape only gave us the total amount of money in (cheap cash register!), and not the breakdown of how much was sales and how much was tax. I called your dad, hoping to get a “quick” formula as to how to calculate the needed amounts for our records…but NOOOOO! He instead had to explain the entire concept to me over the phone, and ask ME how I would go about solving the “word problem”! Haha!
    I eventually got it, and have been thankful ever since…in fact, just this week, I was teaching my 3rd daughter, Haley, this same concept in her Zeta level lesson, and it all came back to me. I almost had her call your dad for a “quick overview”!

    Thanks, Steve!

  • Rosemary Bernard

    Another traveling math game that my eight year old girls have enjoyed is adding the numeral digits on license plates.

    If the license plate was: RXP 363

    The first person to shout out 12 is the winner. Then we all discuss how we came up with our answers. (i.e. I added the two threes first and then added the six.) We can play this game with every car we pass. Some cars have several numeral digits.

    I learned this game when I was younger on a road trip with a “math guy” dad. My girls are able to use this game and practice math: plus the fun, minus the frustration.

  • Rosemary Bernard

    Another traveling math game that my eight year old girls have enjoyed is adding the numeral digits on license plates.

    If the license plate was: RXP 363

    The first person to shout out 12 is the winner. Then we all discuss how we came up with our answers. (i.e. I added the two threes first and then added the six.) We can play this game with every car we pass. Some cars have several numeral digits.

    I learned this game when I was younger on a road trip with a “math guy” dad. My girls are able to use this game and practice math: plus the fun, minus the frustration.

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