Experiences

Preserves for winter

Bogumiła Szukalska

Poland

Primary school

Maths

Teaching in class

Direct

I am a teacher of mathematics in primary school, but at the same time I conduct individual classes with students from lower secondary school. I'm trying to diversify the activities and combine them with other subjects and different spheres of life. The project 'Preserves for winter' helped students to understand fractions and ratio, calculating the fraction of the number, and what fraction of a given number is the second number. I started these classes from the proposal that each student prepares for classes recipe for preserves. Class has chosen three most interesting recipes. Thus they were divided into three groups. Each group has developed one recipe, so as to obtain 0.5 litre of the preserve for each student in the classroom. Students have to perform calculations such as: If for 1.25 litre of preserves we need respectively two kilograms of sugar and cherry, how many of these products we have to prepare so each student receives a fixed amount of the jam. Each group performed appropriate calculations for their recipes and a shopping list needed to complete the preserves. Then, experiments were performed in appropriate blending of products to keep proportions so as not to overdose any component. For calculation of the content of substances in solution and that part of the beverage is water. The confrontation of theory with practice allowed students to understand many difficult calculations. They were also familiarized with different types of scoops enabling accurate measuring of the various components and the selection of suitable dishes with adequate capacity. The classes also allowed for cross-subject cooperation because at mathematics lessons students performed calculations and have made the right choices while in the technology lessons preserves were made according to the proposed recipes.