The purpose of this lesson is to show students that knowing how to think critically about a problem and planning a way to attack it translates directly to problems in everyday life. In the field of healthcare, students will come upon many problems that they may not have the answer to, but must be quick on their feet to think about the problem and how to come up with a solution. When students practice their problem solving skills on word problems, they are developing their reasoning skills for real life problems. Additionally, many of the situations in healthcare that students will be using math in will not be in a nice, neat algorithm, but will be in the form of language, per a doctor or nurse’s instructions, for example. Students will have to know how to identify the problem, and figure out a way to meet the need.
At the end of this lesson, students will be able to:
understand how word problems relate to job skills and everyday life problems
make a plan to solve a word problem
pick from various strategies and tools to solve a problem
Student Target
“I can use tools and strategies to solve word problems.”
CCR Focus Standards
Number and Ratios - Level B
Use addition and subtraction within 100 to solve one- and two-step word problems involving situations of adding to, taking from, putting together, taking apart, and comparing, with unknowns in all positions, e.g., by using drawings and equations with a symbol for the unknown number to represent the problem.
Use multiplication and division within 100 to solve word problems in situations involving equal groups, arrays, and measurement quantities, e.g., by using drawings and equations with a symbol for the unknown number to represent the problem.
Supporting Standards
Solve two-step word problems using the four operations. Represent these problems using equations with a letter standing for the unknown quantity. Assess the reasonableness of answers using mental computation and estimation strategies including rounding.
Solve multistep word problems posed with whole numbers and having whole-number answers using the four operations, including problems in which remainders must be interpreted. Represent these problems using equations with a letter standing for the unknown quantity. Assess the reasonableness of answers using mental computation and estimation strategies including rounding.
Standards for Mathematical Practice
Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them. (MP.1)
Use appropriate tools strategically. (MP.5)
KYAE Employability Standards
E.6 Identify and effectively use skills and materials needed for a particular task.
E.7 Accurately analyze information and respond appropriately.
E.9 Analyze self-performance to better understand strengths and areas for improvement.
