Weekly Math Fact: Prime Numbers

The longest prime number has been discovered and it's 17,425,170 digits long, surpassing the prior number discovered in 2008 which was a measly 12,978,189 digits long.

Discovered by University of Central Missouri mathematician Curtis Cooper, the number is 2 raised to the 57,885,161 power minus 1, NBC reports.  A prime number is by definition a natural number greater than 1 that has no positive divisors other than 1 and itself.

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Back to School Checklist

Imagine this scenario.

One day a student arrives at the college or university of his choice for the first time as a freshman. He is so excited to start his new adventure as a college student, inevitably facing new challenges and meeting new people. Knowing that things would not come easy, but ready for all that was ahead of him, this student is confronted with the Mathematics Placement Exam to see what level of college math the student is qualified to take.

The results of the exam make it clear that the student is nowhere near ready for the course that will help him achieve college credit, an unfortunate situation that occurs far too often with incoming college freshman. Before taking the math course of his choice, he will have to revisit previous math concepts by taking a non–credit course, delaying his progress toward college graduation.

This is not an uncommon situation. Nor is it a situation without a solution, as we will see in a minute.  This is a reality that many students go through when entering college, causing them to give up on potential careers in fields that relate to math. We want to stop this from happening early on! The problem can be fixed in grade school.

With that in mind, I have created a Back to School Checklist consisting of three simple questions:

1. Are your child’s math skills ready for the coming school year?
2. Is your child being placed in the right math class?
3. Do you have resources identified in case your child needs extra help with math?

To properly gauge your child’s math capabilities, ask them the appropriate question for the corresponding grade-level they just finished:

• Second Grade: Can you efficiently compute 7+8+9-10?
• Third Grade: How much is 99+99+99? This should be done mentally!
• Fourth Grade: Count from 0 to 7 by 1 3/4?
• Fifth Grade: Which is greater: 9/10 or 18/19? Explain.
• Sixth Grade: Half way through the second quarter, how much of the game is left?
• Seventh Grade: How much is 6 1/2 % of 250? Explain.
• Pre-Algebra: On a certain map, 6 inches represent 25 miles. How many miles does 15 inches represent? Explain.
• Algebra: Solve 4x+3=0. This should be done mentally!

Make sure these questions are solved as efficiently as possible because if the appropriate measures are taken, higher grades will only be the beginning of your child’s math experience. Your child will have an improved attitude towards math, they will be better prepared for future math classes, and they will be prepared for college level work when the time comes.

And from college… Who knows where math can take your child?

Counting, The Basis of Number Sense

I have often heard students coming out of a class saying, “That stuff doesn’t make sense!” This is because many students have not developed a good general sense of the mathematical subject matter that is presented at school. Students are not provided with enough context when they learn material in school. Context provides students with a suitable environment to integrate new ideas and information in a meaningful way. Unfortunately, rather than integrated learning, fragmented learning (learning without a sense of continuity) takes place in today’s schools. To fill in the gap between fragmented and integrated learning, student’s need to establish Number Sense.

So, Number Sense… what is it? Number Sense is the ability to appreciate the size and scale of numbers in the context of the question at hand. There are three elements that fall under Number Sense: counting, wholes and parts, and proportional thinking. Today we will focus on counting.

Counting, simply put, is the ability to count from any number, to any number, by any number, forward and backward. When I ask students to explain what counting is, they will usually respond by counting from 1 (1, 2, 3…). Although this is completely correct, kids need to grasp how to count from other arbitrary numbers, for instance, 28 (28, 29, 30…). How about when counting by 2s? Starting from 2 (2, 4, 6…) is easy to get down. Can our kids do the same when starting from 3 (3, 5, 7…)? After a good deal of practice, an experienced counter will know how to count to 250 by 1s forward and backward; to 300 by 2s, 5s, and 10s; and to 3,000 by 100s.

As children are learning to become experienced counters, they should also be learning how to group the numbers they count. Parents, ask your child questions like “A group of 10 take-away a group of 3 leaves how much?”

Another important idea at this stage is interval: the distance from one number to another—the space between two numbers. From 6 to 7 is 1, and from 7 to 8 is 1, making a total distance from 6 to 8 of 2. Another important aspect of counting is its connection with the basic math operations: addition (counting how much altogether), subtraction (counting how much is left), multiplication (counting in equal groups), and division (counting how many of these are in that). The basis of Number Sense begins with counting.

Remember, children don’t hate math, they hate being confused, frustrated, and embarrassed by math. Once they understand math, the passion will follow naturally.