Electronic Math Across the Curriculum

Use the following resources on this page to explore ideas for electronic math activities across the curriculum using your handheld device.

Data Sources for Authentic Problem-Solving
Palm Tools and Activities
Math Resources

Data Sources for Authentic Problem-Solving

Local Data Collection

Light, voltage, pH, temperature

Data-Rich Web Projects

Participate in projects that involve online data collection and sharing. Also, use the archives to compare data over time.

Iditarod
- Official Iditarod
- Iditarod from Scholastic
Journey North - data pages - things to write about!
Olympics
- Olympics from USA Today

Palm-based Data Sources

Web-based Data Sources

News Snapshots from USA Today
Math Today from USA Today
Sports Stats from USA Today
Ask students to create "what if's" for each other
ESPN
Data and Story Library - Statistics Topics
US Census Bureau
CIA World Factbook
USPS Domestic Prices
USGS

Try It
Go to the Data and Statistics page from Escrapbooking. Select a website that provides data that could be downloaded on the Palm.

Palm Tools & Activities

Many Palm-based tools are available to support math activities.

Design specific activities associated with a Palm-based tool.
Develop an e-worksheet for students to record their findings.
More Ideas: Middle School Archives of Ask Dr. Math

Number Sense

Palm Software
- Roman Numerals (Palm Software)
Palm Activities
- Irrational Numbers: Pi
- Irrational Numbers: square root
- Scientific Notation (7.1.1). The editor of an e-journal would like a summary of the chart's most important data. Use scientific notation for all over 1,000 numbers such as 500,000 = 5 x 10⁵. Show the use of superscript in Word to Go
- Prime Factorizations of Numbers
Web Resources
- Infinite Secrets of Pi
- NOVA ROMA
- Roman Numerals Chart
- Roman Numerals from Dr. Math
- Number Systems from 42explore
- Pi from 42explore

Computation

Palm Software
- Spreadsheets to Go
Palm Activity (7.2.2) : Population Statistics
- What is the percentage increase in the population?
Palm Activity (7.2.3): Comparison Shopping
- Compare prices for the same items at different online stores including Best Buy, Walmart, CostCo, and Amazon.
- Compare items in videos, food, furnishings, books, clothing, music, and games.
- Create a spreadsheet showing the comparisons. Each team member visits a different store and returns to their original group to share data.
  - How did the prices compare?
  - What patterns did you see?
  - What was the total amount spent at each store?
  - What would the total be if all the highest prices were combined? What about the lowest prices?
  - What store has the best prices overall?
  - Where would you shop? Why?
  - If you had a 25% discount card for Best Buy, would it make a difference?
  - What if sales tax or shipping were charged by the two least expensive stores? Would it make up the difference?
- Related Ideas
  - Comparison Shopping.
  - Double Your Money.

Algebra and Functions

Palm Software
Palm Activities
- Algebra I & II Calculator Activities
- Graphing Calculator Activities
- Translate verbal descriptions into equations and formulas
- Linear equations
- Rates of change for linear and nonlinear functions
- Slope of a straight line
Web Resources
- What2Learn

Geometry

Palm Software
- Geometry Calculator - use for geometry problems
- Microgeometry - used to calculate volume and surface area
Palm Activities
- Coordinate graphs
- Plot shapes
- Calculate lengths and areas
- Pythagorean Theorem
- Lengths of right triangles
- Construct nets for 3D objects such as prisms, pyramids, cylinders, cones
Interactive Websites
- Dr. Wick
Web Resources
- Geometric Shapes from 42explore

Measurement

Palm Software
- Count It - allows users to customize counters with running totals.
- QDiary - keeps track of sequential values
Palm Activities
- Compare lengths, areas, volumes, eights, times, temperatures
- Scale drawings and models
- Areas and perimeters of 2D shapes
- Volumes and surface areas of 3D shapes
Web Resources

Data Analysis and Probability

Palm Software
- Cells - spreadsheet and graphing program
Palm Activities
- Real-world data
  - Survey and plot (7.6.1). Conduct in-school surveys
  - Make predictions (7.6.2). Predict temperature for a city in the world based on Internet data. Predict number of hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, etc, based on previous years.
  - Mean, median, mode (7.6.3). Use data between different trials within an Olympic event (Olympic Commitee; Winter 2006).
- Graphs: bar, line, circle, steam-and-leaf, tree diagram
- Analyze data for misleading. Examine a graph from News Snapshots from USA Today. What could be misleading about this information?
- Analyze wording of survey questions
- The Eigg and the Internet
  Math in the news with math questions.
Web Resources
- Charts and Graphs from 42explore
- Let's Graph - Grades 5-9
- Statistics & Probability from 42explore
- Against All Odds: Statistics
- Critical Thinking Across the Curriculum
- Sense & Dollars (Interactive)
- Villainy (Interactive)

Problem Solving

Palm Software
Palm Activities
- Investigate the cost of natural disasters
Web Resources
- Scholastic Math Hunt - alegbraic expressions, measurement, fractions, etc.
- Money and You from Scholastic
- Villainy, Inc. Simulation
- Patterns from 42explore

Math Resources

Web Resources

Interactive Activities

Create a Graph from NCES
Figure This: Take a Challenge
Illuminations from NCTM
ReviseWise Maths from BBC
Seventh-Eighth Grade Math! from KidPort

Try It!
Explore online math sources and adapt activities to the Palm environment.

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Developed by Annette Lamb, 1/06.