Yesterday, I got totally distracted by my own projects, looked up at the clock, and realised that it was time to make supper, and the kids had been watching videos all afternoon. Bad Mom. But I have only one thing to do to the LaTex template, and it will crank out pdfs of my patterns that match my style sheet…Besides, M’s eye exercising program wiped him out. Excuses Excuses.
So, on reflection, it was a solace to remember that we did actually did do some math yesterday.
I was putting away some watermelon, when it occurred to me that the surface area of the cut part on the quarter melon was the same as the half. 
I asked M if they would need the same amount of plastic wrap, more or less. He guessed that the half melon would need more plastic wrap than the quarter. We talked about it a bit, then I picked up the quarter melon, and used it like a stamp to show how it’s two cut sides were approximately the same as the straight cut side of the half melon. Then we laid the two pieces of plastic wrap on top of each other, and they were about the same size. M grinned at me.
At K’s bedtime I read “Pa Grape’s Shapes,”
Which prompted M to ask if ovals weren’t just a form of circles. When I replied that circles were a form of ovals, but not all ovals were circles, he gave me that look.
Time to gather some stuff: in this case, a trifold board from an old presentation, scribbled on by K, ready for service; some not too stretchy cotton yarn, and pins driven in enough not to wobble.
I traced several ovals, moving only one pin, and noticed that all the ovals, and the final circle where I used just that pin, all met at one point.
OK you grown ups, why did they all meet at one point?
M was not actually all that impressed. The use of taxonomy for mathematical figures just seems fussy right now. But my original point was that, phew, we did fit some math in yesterday.
My kids have often stated their dislike for math. But then I remind them that it’s all around us every day. Glad you found some good examples!
Thanks, me too.
Love this. Days seem to fly by, and I always feel a little better when I can say “phew, we did some “fill in the blank of whatever subject I’m currently on the paranoid side that my kids are being neglected in.”” Even if we just figured out how many extra chores my Boy Child would need to do to buy a coveted Pokemon game or how much Girl Child should sell her jewelery designs for, we at least did some math, and since it had an application, chances are that they’ll remember it.