The Three Little Pigs
The Plot of the Story:
The story is about three little pigs that each of them started
building a house. The first pig made his house from straw, he did it because
there was lots of it and it was going to be easy to construct. The second pig
constructed his house from sticks, he also said there would be lots of them and
it would be easier to build therefore they would have time to play outside
after building their house. The third pig constructed his house from brick, he
knew it would take longer but it would be stronger. After the three pigs had
constructed their houses a wolf came and went to the first pig’s house, he blew
so hard that the house collapsed. Afterwards the first pig went running to the
second pigs house to find shelter and they thought they would be safe there, but
when the wolf arrived and started blowing the house also collapsed. Sticks are
not strong and because of this the house fell down. The two pigs were
frightened and went running to the third house; the third pig was calm because
he knew his house would not collapse since he had built it from brick and he
knew even though it would take longer too built it would be very strong. When
the wolf arrived and started blowing at the house it did not collapse and the
three pigs were saved. However the fox really wanted to eat the pigs so he
tried to enter to the brick house by the chimney but the smart piggy put a
really hot bowl with boiling water inside so when the wolf tried to enter from
the chimney he burned himself. In the end the wolf went back to the forest and
was never seen again.
I chose this story because I enjoy it a lot and it is a very simple story in which I can apply mathematical concepts.
There are two ways in which it relates to math:
Input and Outputs
Exponential Functions
This story relates to mathematical concepts. The first
mathematical concept we can relate to is input and output. Every pig used a
different amount of effort and time to build their houses, which can be
expressed as the input. Also each house had a different material therefore they
had different inputs. Each output was different in each house, the weaker the
material and the less time the pig spent in building his house the easier it
was for the wolf to blow the house.
The second mathematical concept which we can relate our
story to is exponential growth. This is because the wolf had to increase his
blowing as the next house was stronger than the one before.
Why is literature an effective way to teach/learn a mathematical concept?
I I believe it is easier to explain mathematical concepts using literature
because it is shown in a more interactive way therefore it is more interesting
for students because of this they pay attention more. Also you can memorize the
concepts and learn them visually, for some this is easier. Also each children
story will have a many mathematical concepts so with one story you are able to
find and explain many mathematical concepts.
Very creative thought about using an everyday children's story and finding the abstract math elements in it. I agree with what you say about students who learn visually having picture books as a resource to learn math.
ReplyDeleteI must say too that I never thought of this story as a "math" story really, but it is! And also, it is a great way of introducing the input/output concept. A lot of times it's hard complex to people what the output and what the input will be, so it's always great to have a way of explaining it in terms of something relatable!
ReplyDeleteI loved your choice! It took me back to my childhood; I would never come across The Little Three Pigs for math assignment. Good job on your math concepts in this story. Also, I do agree with you on the reasons you mentioned regarding the effective way(s) of literature for teaching and learning mathematical concepts.
ReplyDeletegabriela,
ReplyDeletei like that you used a text that was originally not intended to explain a mathematical concept, but you were able to delve deep into the text using some critical thinking skills to apply mathematical concepts to the story line. very creative and well thought out!
i also really appreciated your comment that if you examine a text long enough, you'll find more than just one mathematical concept embedded in the story.
good job!
professor little