EDU10003: The World of Maths Assignment 3: Maths Resource Folio

This assignment, a Maths Resource Folio for the EDU10003 course, explores the application of mathematics in real-world scenarios, particularly within early childhood and primary school settings. The folio emphasizes the differences and intersections between numeracy and mathematics, illustrating how children can engage with mathematical concepts through activities such as calculating speed during running, using colored candies to learn fractions, and playing with blocks to understand shapes and mathematical operations. The assignment also highlights the importance of creating stimulating learning environments using displays and visual aids to foster children's interest and understanding of mathematics. The folio includes evidence, rationale, and application sections for each week, providing practical examples of how mathematical concepts can be taught and integrated into children's daily lives, promoting both their cognitive and physical development.

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EDU10003: The World of Maths
Assignment 3: Maths resource folio
Part A: Introduction
Mathematics is a science which employs the application of logic shape, arrangement,
and quantity. Maths is always with us, whatever we do in real life involves mathematics, it is
the building block for everything we do in our lives today, includes architecture, money
engineering, art, mobile device, and mathematics is even applied in sports. Numeracy is the
ability of an individual to reason and employ simple numerical concepts (Tout, 2011).
Elementary numeracy skills constitutes comprehending vital arithmetic like subtraction,
multiplication, division and addition For instance an individual can easily understand
equations like 6+3 = 9 ( addition), 7-2= 5 (subtraction), 5*3 = 15 ( multiplication), 9/3= 3
( division). Numeracy also includes measurement, geometry, probability, operation sense,
number sense and statistics (Margie Pearse, 2011).
Numeracy and mathematics enjoys some similarities, both numeracy and mathematics
will deal the following aspects;
 In both, there is visualization of concepts
 In both mathematics and numeracy, there is development of strategies
 They both involve critical and creative thinking
 Both communicate their thinking in various ways
 Both engage in solving the problem in different methods.
 In both, their connection and reflection of constructing knowledge
 Both involve reasoning and asking of the ongoing questions
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These two concepts are not one and the same things even if they have several
similarities, hence there are some differences between them which are shown below (Tony,
2013).
 Numeracy involves the ability of the numerate to grasp mathematical
concepts to deal with qualities and other circumstances.
 Mathematics is a field of learning which deals with space, numbers, and
concepts which correlate objects and their qualities. It explains specialized
operations which are employed to solve very technical difficulties in other
areas of study. There is no scientific notion which can be taught or explained
minus making reference to mathematical concepts like division, addition,
multiplication, and subtraction (Peter, 2011).
 Mathematical ability will require a specific to fathom and accomplish
individual finances, a mathematician is anticipated to have information on the
median. Mean and the percentage which makes him or her to effectively
control his or her portfolio. While numeracy entails the ability of an individual
to be able to employ mathematical concepts to enable them to understand
things around them.
 Numeracy is a mere part which involves just a part that is outside mathematics
while mathematics is a highly broad field of study which than numeracy.
Therefore there is many intersecting between a large circle (mathematics) and
a small circle (numeracy) (Mullan, 2014).
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Since numeracy is a literature of mathematics thus it majorly deals with reasoning and
analysis of mathematics concepts and ideas. So these are examples of numeracy;
Handling money
Children use receipts from the supermarket to develop several skills of analysis where theirs
may ask them to select few things from the receipt and add them using mathematical concept
(addition). For example from £ 7,£8, £2 which gives £17.
Weight and measures
On summer seasons children enhance their knowledge of the ability to approximate the
amount of water needed to paddling pool. So they can employ these approximates using some
standard measuring units like liters, ml, etc.
Data handling
A survey may be conducted may be in school, where the marks of students may be obtained
and this can be used to obtain, mode, median, mean as well as representing the information
on graphs like bar charts, pie charts, pictograms and frequency polygons.
Mathematics is actually used to obtain the values used in the analysis (numeracy) (Clive,
2011). Mathematics is employed to calculate the mode, median, and the mean before they are
analyzed in the numeracy. We can as well use mathematics to calculate the volume of a
substance and its weight before its analysis (numeracy) begin. And for the handling money,
the amount of money needed to do the purchase is calculated first before their analysis
through mathematics.
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Part B: Collection of resources
WEEK 7: Maths in real world
Evidence:
Children can employ mathematics in real life to calculate, the time they take to run over a given distance.
They can as well calculate the speed of each child through the application of the formula for speed. The
below diagram clearly shows their activity (Tucker, 2014);
Fig 1: Calculating the speed of children (Tucker,
2014)
Rationale:
Children find it fun when they employ mathematic concepts in obtaining their speed during running as they
compete. From fig 1 above, they can obtain their speed after taking the measurement from the starting point
to the finish line (distance covered) (Donna Kotsopoulos, 2014). There is also somebody recording time taken
for each child to reach the finish line (time taken). Then they use their mathematical concept of division and
calculate their speed as below;
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Speed: Distancecovered
timetaken
Application:
Children employ the use of mathematics in real life as their play in a group, through playing they learn a lot
of mathematical concepts which will highly improve their mental growth as well as their physical growth.
This will also highly promote their communication system as all these are done through communication.
During playing (running) they ask questions like, how long distance should we cover? How much time did
each child take to cover the total distance? What is the speed of each child? All these questions have
answered the moderator, this can be their fellow child or even somebody who is relatively older. For
example, if the distance from the starting point to the finish line ( distance covered ) is 100 meters and the
time is taken for child 1, 2,3 are 30,35,38 seconds respectively for the children in the age range of 8 years –
10 years (Kilpatrick, 2013). Then their speed can be calculated as follows;
Child 1: Speed= Distancecovered
Timetaken = 100
30 = 3.33 m/s
Child 2: Speed= Distancecovered
Timetaken = 100
35 =2.857 m/s
Speed= Distancecovered
Timetaken = 100
38 =2.63 m/s
From this information given, the children can as well calculate the time they take to cover every distance not
only 100 but even 50 meters, 30 meters and so on (Gifford, 2012).
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WEEK 8: Maths and early childhood
Evidence:
Using colored candies in children to teach mathematics in children. As they use the colored candies it very
easy for them to learn fractions in mathematics. The figure below shows an evidence on how the colored
candies can be employed to reach mathematics.
Fig 2: Shows colored candies used in learning mathematics (Sarama, 2013)
Rationale:
Since children love colors and playing, they will highly develop more interest in mathematics (fractions).
This will hence make them to develop a positive attitude in mathematics as well as having a good background
in solving mathematics of fraction, therefore, becoming good young mathematicians (Sarama, 2013). Like in
the figure above, the children will learn how to handle the fractions as they count the total number of balls
and then express each color to the fraction. This will also help the children to develop the concept of counting
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in children as they are still at an early age. It will even make the work of their teacher easier as the children
will now understand very fast than those who are very new to the fractions.
Application:
Coloured candies are very important to the children especially as they use them to play because in the process
they learn a lot about the fractions. As in the figure above, the children will count the total number of balls as
19. Where the blue candy balls are six, green candies are four, the red candy balls are three, the brown candy
balls are three, the yellow candy balls are three and the orange being zero. After identification, the children
will use the concept of counting to know the number of each candy ball color. Then they will employ the
concept of addition to add the total number of candy balls (6+4+3+3+3 = 19). After the concept of addition,
the children will use the concept of division to obtain the fraction of each candy ball color (Montague-Smith,
2011). This is done as below;
Blue candy balls= 6/19
Green candy balls= 4/19
Brown candy balls= 3/19
Red candy balls= 3/19
Yellow candy balls= 4/19
Orange candy balls= 0/19
At that early stage, this analysis can be done in a group of may be three children at 12 years old. After that
successful analysis of the fraction by these children, they will highly develop an interest for the mathematics
especially fraction which will really help them to do well in mathematics as they reach middle primary school
and later in high school.
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WEEK 9 MATHS AND PRIMARY SCHOOL:
Evidence:
Children become good mathematicians through playing with blocks, this is because they will be involved in
counting, addition and knowing the shapes of objects. This may involve pedagogy which is the deliberate
process of nurturing development. The below diagram can be used to support this development. In
pedagogical terms, the child will use the blocks of different shapes, sizes and their numbers which enable the
child to understand mathematical concepts at an early stage.
Fig 3 : Showing a child using block to learn mathematics (Alexander, 2013)
Rationale:
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From the figure 2 above, the child will be able to know the different common shapes we have like a prism,
cylinder, circles, cubes, and cuboid. Through playing with these blocks the mathematics concepts and shapes
of the blocks become familiar to them while she is still very young. The child may learn how to sort the
shapes in different color, shapes, and sizes. After sorting out the child may employ the mathematical concepts
like addition, division, multiplication, and subtraction (Alexander, 2013).
Application:
Children develop a lot of mathematical concepts and make them be good mathematicians as they fully
understand these blocks. These children can measure the length of the blocks using a ruler and obtain the
volume of each cube using formula (Saracho, 2010).
Volume = L×L×L
They can as well obtain the measurement of length of the cuboid and using the measurement she can obtain
the volume as follows;
Volume =L×W×H
The other shape may be very complex for these kids at the age of 6-9 years. They can use these blocks to do
some simple multiplications by, for example, putting the blocks in 3 groups of 5 each and when all the blocks
are added gives the result of 5×3 = 15 blocks. The same concept can be employed for the other three
mathematical operations. Potential of play gives `` a bridging tool to school`` which is very vital to the
development of children's mind into the mathematical world. Incremental development of the child’s
measuring and geometric skill will highly be improved through using the playing blocks which hence makes
the children like and enjoy mathematics so much.
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WEEK 10: MATHS and Learning environment:
Evidence:
Young children need to be put in an environment which highly motivates their interest in learning
mathematics to enable them have a good background in learning mathematics. The use of displays will help
a lot for the children to have a positive attitude towards learning mathematics. The figures below show the
displays for children to learn mathematics;
Fig : 4 a mathematical display (Way, 2012)
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