(by Mark O. with help from Sage the intrepid student dog) A gap in the path stretches too wide to cross. The only way over are two creatures standing at its edge. Each are built out of a stack of mismatched blocks. One is short and squat, the other tall and thin. Neither can lie down flat across the gap alone without leaving a dangerous, uneven step in the middle. The only way to make a solid bridge is to get the two creatures to exactly the same size first. Problem: Scaling

(by Mark O. with help from Sage the intrepid student dog) A shapeshifting creature blocks the doorway, half-melted and lopsided, above which two equations float. The shadowy figure had been here first, trying to use one equation to solve the other, but didn't quite do it right. This left the creature mismatched and strange. A small cluster of kids drifts closer to watch as Sage tries to help the creature. As a reminder, substitution is a method for solving a system of equatio

Sage and the kids finished that last room where they solved equations with variables on both sides, and now find themselves in a large room with a locked door at the end. Two metal balls sit in the back corners of the room to Sage's right and left, but not exactly in the corners. A sign next to the entrance has an inscription: "To open the next door, you must tell me where the beams of light meet ... without turning on the lasers." It continues: "The first laser is aimed to

The next room feels very cold. Something is wrong. Chills run down everyone's spines. Another scale sits in front of the team. Sage cautiously steps forward in a crouch, not sure what to expect. As Sage approaches, two ghosts appear, pulling on the scale from either side as it teeters back and forth. The tile on the left side reads "4x - 22" and the tile on the right side reads "8 - x". While these ghosts don't seem too scary, and they seem intent on one another, Sage a

Sage and the kids stroll into the next room with a little more confidence. The kids are even joking around and high-fiving one another. Their previous apprehension towards each other appears to be dissolving. This next room has another scale, but it covered in twisting vines. There are 3 specific vines on the scale and there are words inscribed on each one: Distribute, Combine, and Solve. One of the kids snaps his fingers and says, "I've got it! Remember in class how we

The next room holds a scale like the one before, except the x-side now carries a coefficient: 3x + 5. On the other side is a 11. One of the kids clears the +5 from both pans without a hitch and calls it solved. However, suddenly everyone starts seeing triple! Sage thinks he might know why... Solving two step equations might seem difficult but it's basically just solving a One Step Equation twice. Here's an example: As you can see, it's like a One Step Equation but you apply l

When they enter the next room, they realize they are standing on a literal balance scale with an x-weight on one side. One of the kids adds a 3-weight to only one pan — a miscalculated equation — which makes gravity violently tilt, tossing Sage briefly into the air. The nearby kids scatter for cover at the tremor, clearly used to ducking for exactly this reason. Mirroring the same weight onto both pans settles it level, and one of the kids, watching from behind a rock, visibl

A mist swallows them as they enter the new room. When it clears, Sage and the kids are separated, the kids in one tunnel, Sage in another. Each tunnel ends with a door. The kids' door reads a(b+c); Sage's reads ab+c. The equations must control where the doors lead, but the kids' door is sealed behind glass. Only Sage's equation is open, and only his equation looks changeable. The kids mime frantically until Sage follows their pointing to a few blocks on the floor with letters

Stumbling through corridors filled with numbers and symbols, Sage happens upon a glowing niche. Inside, a book. Sage reaches for the book and opens it. The title says it is “the book of the balancing of the equations”. Sage opens it and reads the first page. “Do you want to help me play a game?” says a picture of a stern man. “Because playing this game will help you get out of here and back to reality.” Ok, the man has Sage’s attention. Sage is ALWAYS up for a game, and going

(by Mark O. with help from Sage the intrepid student dog) As Sage enters the door, he finds himself in a narrow hallway. The walls, floor, and ceiling are all covered with equations. However, these equations seem different than the ones he's been seeing. They seem somehow more solid. And they're multiplying. There are so many letters and numbers that they're actually starting to come out of the walls and are starting to fill the room! Sage is getting worried. The group of kid

Sage peers into the new room to sees a chamber hooked up to a mess of cables. The cables all seem to connect to a door on the far end of the room. chambers. The kids keep their distance as sage approaches. As he gets closer, he notices there are chambers within the chambers, one has a parentheses, one has an exponent, one has a multiplication and division sign, and the innermost has a plus and minus sign. Sage opens the door and discovers that there are controls within each c

(by Chris B. with help from Sage the intrepid student dog) Now that you and Sage reviewed Common Denominators in Post 2b: Are You Ready? Rational Number Operations: Common Denominators, it is time to review adding and subtracting fractions. Let's see how Sage solves the Addition and Subtraction challenge to clear the chasm. Adding and Subtracting Fractions with the same Denominator Adding and subtracting fractions is easy, so long as the two fractions have the same denominat

(by Chris B. with help from Sage the intrepid student dog) Now that you and Sage reviewed multiplying and dividing fractions in Post 2a: Are You Ready? Rational Number Operations: Multiplying and Dividing Fractions, it is time to review adding and subtracting fractions. Before we jump into Addition and Subtraction, let's first refresh on making Common Denominators Making a Common Denominators Remember from your coursework that the value "1" can be written as a number over it

(by Chris B. with help from Sage the intrepid student dog) A massive chasm yawns before Sage and the kids as they enter the room. Looking to his left and right, Sage notices several blocky items strewn on that look like sections of a bridge. However, they are all different sizes. As Sage approaches one, he notices that they have some fractions floating in the air around the blocks. Sage realizes he can interact with the floating math just like in the last room. He wonders if

As Sage starts to feel better adding and subtracting numbers, he notices a group of kids clustered around the far edge of the line. Sage notices that they all seem to be avoiding talking about math. They don't even notice him. Sage turns back to the equations. Sage is feeling better about this room and is starting to be able to solve some of the equations, but then he notices some equations with multiplication and division signs... --------------------------------------------

(by Matthew M. with help from Sage the intrepid student dog) Sage enters the door and sees a vast hall, much bigger than it looked from outside. As he tries to walk past the number line etched into the floor, he is stopped by an invisible force. Sage looks up an sees equations floating in the air involving integers. He wonders if this has something to do with crossing the room. ------------------------------------------------------------------ "Integer operations" just means

Are you taking algebra in the fall? The good news is, you have probably already used it before: If one game item does more damage but another takes less time to reload, which one is actually better? If a hoodie is “30% off” but shipping gets added at the end, is it still a good deal? If someone says one player is better because they scored more points, what happens when you compare minutes played, games missed, or shots taken? That’s what algebra can be used for: finding miss

Compound interest happens when timelines are longer. Interest is applied at predetermined periods. Compound Interest is simply a bunch of Simple Interest formulae lined up together one after the other. What do I need to understand before reading this blog? Simple Interest Arithmetic: Adding and multiplying Pre-Algebra: Applying Exponents Algebra: Concept of "n" and "n-1" Algebra: Applying values to variables, Factoring, and the Distributive Property over Addition Click h

Simple interest happens when you borrow some money from someone for a short period of time, and they get paid back later with a little profit (or interest) for them. What do I need to understand before reading this blog? Arithmetic: Adding and multiplying Algebra: Applying values to variables, Factoring, and the Distributive Property over Addition Click here if you need help with these prerequisites Click here for help with Pre-Algebra and Algebra. Check out moment.of.math

Understanding financial calculations can be very intimidating. Rest assured that even the most complex financial equation is derived from very simple calculations at its core. To understand how mortgages work, how to make the best decision about trading in your car and starting a new car loan, or you simply want to build your skillset in financial math, you need to understand some basics. In this financial math series we will begin with the most basic calculations, Interes