Class+3+Reflection+(September+13)

= Why Do I Need To Know This? =

I think that today's class will be helpful throughout this year when making lesson plans, as well as when I start teaching. On the Pirate Pad there were five sections, all starting with "Why do we need to learn...", followed by subject areas in a grade 8 math class. It is important to know how these things relate to the real world because I can almost guarentee that everyone in this class will be asked by their student "Why do we need to know this?" It's a common and fair question! Why would you want to learn something that would have no relevence in your life? You need this to be motivated.

We talked about motivation a lot last class. Perhaps this is a way that students can become intrinsically motivated. If you wanted to be a chef, but you hated fractions, maybe you would motivate yourself to learn them, since it will help you later on! Or how about in the present? Lots of students these days are buying stuff online. Algebraic Equations are a helpful way to solving for how much tax they are charging you, or how much your total will come to. There are many real world applications for topics in math, and knowing these as a teacher will definitely help in future years!

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