Real-World Math Activities for Grades 3–12

An ounce of cola

Which is more expensive; gasoline? milk? or cola? Students calculate the per ounce cost of each of these liquids in a story about a man doing errands. After...

Number Sense Math and Food Grades 4–6

Cost of light bulbs

This activity has been updated (2026). See the new activity here: https://www.yummymath.com/post/light-bulb-cost-comparison/ There's a lot of misinformation out there about the cost to consumers of CFL and LED...

Algebra Number Sense Grades 4–HS

The Blue Marble

April 22nd is Earth Day. Use this activity to demonstrate the various mappings of our 3-d Earth to a 2-d piece of paper. Students compare maps with this...

Geometry Math and Science Grades 5–HS

Mom's matzo ball soup

Passover is one of the three high holidays in the Jewish calendar and celebrates the Exodus of Jews from slavery in Egypt. Let your students review fractions in...

Number Sense Math and Food Grades 2–5

Shamrock Shake

For Saint Patrick's Day add a little nutrition math to your celebration. In this post we look at calories, carbohydrates, sugars, fats, and proteins to decide what would...

Number Sense Math and Science Grades 4–6

Nobel prize in physics 2013

François Englert and Peter W. Higgs François Englert and Peter W. Higgs were jointly awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics 2013 for the theory of how particles acquire...

Algebra Number Sense Grades 5–HS

California wildfire

Wildfires are burning in the Sierra Nevada Mountains near Yosemite National Park. In this activity we ask students to examine various maps of this California region, calculate distances...

Number Sense Geometry Grades 4–7

Bits, bytes, and nibbles

Clicking on the image will show it larger. I'm not very good at understanding how large my device capacities are and how big the files that I want...

Algebra Number Sense Grades 4–HS

Methane math

Updated! Carbon dioxide and methane are our two most prevalent human-contributed greenhouse gases. This holstein cow is one of many huge contributors to our methane production. Let students...

Algebra Number Sense Grades 5–HS

My teacher says this stream is parabolic. Is he correct?

Instead of asking students to just believe what you've said, why not ask them to verify your assertions? Students plot the points of the stream, perhaps map them...

Algebra Number Sense Grades 7–HS

Father's Day blueberry surprise

Father's Day is coming up, and there is still time to have a tiny fraction review in the guise of celebrating Father's Day. This is a short activity...

Number Sense Math and Food Grades 3–6

Big gulp

Do you or your students love sugary drinks? What if it were against the law to order a large sugary drink where you lived? On September 13th, 2012...

Algebra Number Sense Grades 5–7

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