Real-World Connections
Math Hero Readers Math Hero Readers spotlight real-world people who use math in their careers, showing campers how math is used in real life. Campers will be inspired as they read about these heroes and how they applied mathematical thinking and learning to their lives.
Making a Plan
Before you start a business, it’s important to make a plan. First, make a list of supplies you need to get started. Next, add up how much they will cost. Then, estimate how much money you expect to earn. The goal is to make more money than you spend! Here’s my simple plan for Lots of Leashes.
Do you have a favorite animal? I do. Dogs! When I was growing up, I didn’t have a dog of my own. Instead I played with my neighbor’s dog, Mugsie. I liked taking Mugsie for walks in the neighborhood. Now I walk dogs for a job. I started a dog-walking business! It is called Lots of Leashes. What is a business? Good question! A business makes or sells things, such as clothing, computers, or cars. Some businesses offer a service. Service businesses include barber shops, restaurants, and—you guessed it—dog walkers! What does it take to start a business? It takes a plan. It also takes math! To be successful, a business needs to make more money than it spends. Take a look at my plan for Lots of Leashes.
BUSINESS PLAN LOTS OF LEASHES
o
EARNINGS PER WEEK
EXPENSES
r k
LEASHES $50
ONE DOG, ONE WALK $10
WATER BOWLS $10
WALKS PER WEEK 10
TOTAL MONEY EARNED $100
TOTAL EXPENSES $60
WORDS TO KNOW
earnings: how much money a business makes or earns
estimate: to judge about how much or how many of something
expenses: how much money it costs to start and run a business
service: the work of helping or serving
Grades K–2 showcases familiar faces from the community like architects, carpenters, and bakers, showing that math can be found in everyday jobs.
MARIE THARP MATH HERO
MATH CONNECTION In the 1940s, Marie and scientist Bruce
Marie Tharp was a mathematician, a geologist, and a cartographer. She used her knowledge to create a map that changed the way people think about Earth. As a kid, she loved playing in the dirt and exploring the woods. In other words, this Math Hero was adventurous!
Heezen began gathering data about the ocean floor. As Marie used the data to create maps, she noticed a huge mountain range under the Atlantic Ocean. It was bordered by a deep valley. She
FAST FACTS WHAT WHEN WHERE WOW!
This painting by Heinrich Berann shows Bruce Heezen and Marie Tharp’s “World Ocean Floor” map.
Geologist, cartographer Lived 1920–2006 Born in Michigan Mapped the ocean floor!
believed that the movement of giant slabs of rock, called tectonic plates, beneath Earth’s surface had formed the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Heezen disagreed. But by the 1970s, they discovered that the Mid-Atlantic Ridge was part of a 40,000-mile mountain range that went around the globe. Their map proved that Marie had been right!
ROCKS AND MAPS When Marie was growing up, she loved helping her father with his job collecting samples of soil and rocks and mapping where he found them. Marie’s father encouraged her to make sure that her life’s work was something she could do and that she liked to do. And that’s just what she did! Marie used her passion for math and science to change the way we see the world.
Get Inspired!
Marie’s mapping of the sea floor helped prove the theory of Continental Drift—that the movement of tectonic plates shaped the planet we live on. The map is so important that it was displayed at the Library of Congress. It was placed next to the journals of Lewis and Clark and the original draft of the Declaration of Independence.
Marie helped her father with his work, which included making maps.
cartographer: a person who makes maps WORDS TO KNOW
data: facts; information
geology: the science that deals with the physical history of the earth and what it’s made of
Marie and Bruce looking at their map of the ocean floor.
Grades 3–5 features real-life examples of people who used math in their careers and contributed to the field of mathematics.
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