High School Mathematics Problems from Alaska
A database
of lessons and units searchable by content and cultural standards,
cultural region and grade level. More units will be available soon.
You can use Acrobat Reader to look at the PDF version of the Cover
Sheet
for the Units and Self-Assessment
for Cultural Standards in Practice.
Tourist
and Traveler Information
Beth
Sukraw
MS Word
Download
Standards:
Estimation
and Computation, Functions and Relationships.
Performance
Standards: A3.3.2,
A3.3.3, A3.3.4, A3.3.5, A3.3.6, A3.4.5, A3.4.6, A4.4.3.
Concepts:
Converting
Units, Creating Tables, Representing values with an Equation and
Graph, Truncating, Rounding, Using a Graphing Calculator.
Carnegie
Chapter: Analyzing
Data and Making Predictions, Connecting Situations to
Equations.
Overview:
The
communities located along the highways, flyways and waterways of
Alaska many times depend on travelers for their livelihood. Most
questions travelers ask before going through a different country
pertain to the conversions discussed in this unit. If you have time,
please include a section on temperature conversions. Also, create a
general rule of estimation for the conversions as an enrichment
exercise. For example, 1 gallon is approximately equal to 4 liters
and 1 liter is approximately equal to .25 gallons.
Tourist and
Traveler
You are employed
with an information center to help tourists travel through Canada to
Alaska. Sometimes tourists are hesitant to travel through Canada
because they are not familiar with the exchange rate or the metric
system. The tables and graphs that you create will be published in a
brochure or as a website for travelers.
The currency
exchange rate as of February 2002 is one US dollar is equal to 1.59
Canadian dollars, and one Canadian dollar is equal to 0.63 US
dollars. If you have access to the current rate of exchange, write it
down and use the current exchange rate.
1 US dollar =
______________________________________ Canadian dollars
1 Canadian dollar =
______________________________________ US dollars
Other conversions
that you may use are:
1
liter |
=
|
.2642
gallons |
1
gallon |
=
|
3.785
liters |
1
kilometer |
=
|
.6214
miles |
1
mile |
=
|
1.609
kilometers |
- Using the
information above, create a table that shows the value of US
currency in Canadian currency. Round to the nearest
penny.
Labels |
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Units |
|
|
Expressions |
|
|
|
10
|
|
|
25
|
|
|
36.50
|
|
|
|
60.00
|
|
|
100.00
|
- Graph the table
of values. Label the axes, define the scale, and title the
graph.
- Write an
equation that represents this table of values. Define any
variables you use.
- Explain how to
use the equation to find the value of money in Canadian dollars
given the US dollars.
- Create a table
that shows the value of Canadian currency in US
dollars.
Labels |
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Units |
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Expressions |
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10
|
|
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30
|
|
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50
|
|
|
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75
|
|
|
100
|
- Graph the table
of values. Label the axis and title the graph.
Looking at the
graph, estimate the value of $80.00 Canadian.
- Write an
expression that represents this table of values. Define any
variable you use.
- Explain how
this equation relates to the equation in #3.
- The vehicles
that travelers use range in size from small, such as motorcycles,
to large, such as motor homes. The amount of fuel they require
also varies. Using the information that 1-gallon is equal to
approximately 3.785 liters, create a table.
Labels |
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Units |
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Expressions |
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10
|
|
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25
|
|
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40
|
|
|
|
50
|
|
|
75
|
- Graph the table
of values. Using the graph, estimate the number of liters in 20 US
gallons. Label the axes.
Click on image for a larger view
- Write an
equation that a tourist could use to find the number of liters
given a known value of gallons.
- Explain how to
use the gallons to liters conversion to write liters to gallons
conversion equation. Make a table.
Labels |
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Units |
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Expressions |
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20
|
|
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30
|
|
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50
|
|
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15
|
|
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20
|
Most vehicles show
both miles per hour and kilometers per hour on the speedometer;
however, the odometer usually displays either miles or kilometers,
not both. Tourists are many times concerned with time and
travel.
- Using the
information that one-mile is approximately equal to 1.609
kilometers, create a table.
Labels |
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|
Units |
|
|
Expressions |
|
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5
|
|
|
10
|
|
|
50
|
|
|
|
100
|
|
|
120
|
- Graph the table
of values. Label the axes and title the graph.
- Write an
equation that represents this table of values.
- Using the same
variables, write an equation that exemplifies the conversion of
kilometers to miles.
Extension
- Now create a
brochure or website format that will help Alaskan and Canadian
travelers and tourists convert currency, liquid capacity (liters
and gallons), and distance (miles and kilometers).
Table of
Contents
For the Teacher's Guides, please email Alaska
Native Knowledge Network
Handbook
for Culturally Responsive Science Curriculum by Sidney Stephens
Excerpt: "The information and insights contained in this document will be
of interest to anyone involved in bringing local knowledge to bear in school
curriculum. Drawing upon the efforts of many people over a period of several
years, Sidney Stephens has managed to distill and synthesize the critical ingredients
for making the teaching of science relevant and meaningful in culturally adaptable
ways." |