In celebration of Earth Day on April 22, members of the Middle School Math Department teamed up for a “vertical celebration,” during which each grade explored a common theme through age-specific math activities!
With Earth Day at its core, the grades were split into groups by real-world topics including Water Usage (Cl. 4), Sustainability (Cl. 5), Recycling (Cl. 6) and Carbon Footprint (Cl. 7).
In Room 601, Class 4 students gathered on the rug with Math Teacher Lindsey Chase. “It’s Earth Day—yay!” she said as she pulled up her “Water Usage” slides.
The girls began the lesson by learning more about how water waste affects the environment and how quickly water waste can add up. “The average person uses 82 gallons of water a day,” began one student. (Each girl took a turn reading a line off of the slides on the board.) “A faucet drip every second can waste 3,000 gallons of water a year,” read another.
“Something that seems minor could have a huge impact,” underscored Ms. Chase. Once the students finished reading, their teacher passed out a packet containing real-world math problems with three levels of difficulty for students to work on in pairs. One question read: “You water your plants using ⅔ gallon of water each time. If you water them 6 times a week, how many gallons do you use in a week?”
Meanwhile, inside Room 704, Class 6 students tackled their problems related to recycling. “Why is Earth Day important?” asked Head of Middle School Mathematics and Class 6 Teacher Katie Adams, sharing that the first Earth Day was celebrated in 1970.
“Because even one day matters,” one student said, “And it helps serve as a reminder to take care of our planet every day!”
When asked to think about how Chapin recycles, the students noted several initiatives they’ve seen in the Gordon Room from the recycling and composting bins to using regular dishes and silverware instead of plastic. “If you ever have an idea for another way Chapin can recycle or be sustainable, tell an adult!” Ms. Adams encouraged.
“Math plays a huge role in understanding and improving recycling,” their teacher continued. Using geometry, she explained, one can calculate the size of bins, design collection systems and figure out how much space is saved in landfills. Using data and statistics, students can track how much they recycle, compare efforts across communities, and make predictions about the long-term impact of better habits.
Energized by their discussion, the Class 6 students tackled the equations in their packets with lively conversation about Earth Day and all that it embodies! Classes 5 and 7 conducted similar lessons related to their topics in their respective classes.
