Percent Problems

We have been talking about different types of percent problems. This week the boys have been working on word problems that involve part/whole or is/of. They have had fun trying to find the unknown (variable). One boy said, "This is fun because it is more like a game than math." I am telling them to treat it like a game. The boys are finding the answer first and then explaining why as a form of checking themselves. This is where Random Guy is coming back into the picture. One of the problems I gave them this week was:

On field day Barry entered 16% of the events open to his age group. If he entered 12 events, how many events were there altogether?

One boy even did a podcast of his explanation to help the other Boys in the class.

Example

The boys have also started asking about sales tax and how you find it. We talked a little about the process and next week we will be comparing the different states and their sales taxes. We went on a field trip this Friday and one of the boys asked his mother for a little more money so he would have enough for sales tax. I thought that was cute. The boys are very interested in sales tax and how it makes a difference in their purchases. The lesson really has them thinking about how math can effect their everyday life.