Math Up the Olympics! Part 1

As athletes from around the world gather for the upcoming Olympic Games, it's the perfect moment to capture your child's interest in the exciting events that are about to take place – and take advantage of that interest to introduce some related mathematical concepts.
None of these activities will even cause you to break a sweat, but they will allow you to have fun with your children as you watch the games, read about them, and—perhaps—win gold medals for your amazingly quick calculations. Just don't blame us if by the end of it all you're planning a family vacation to the next Olympics!

Practice Converting Measurements Since the Olympics are an international event, distances and speeds are measured using the metric system. It can be difficult for a child to grasp the concept that people around the world use different units of measurement for the same thing, so the concrete examples of the Olympics provide the perfect way to illustrate how this works.
First, explain to your child that 1 meter is equal to 3.28 feet. That means that, for instance, the 100-meter dash is equivalent to a run of about 328 feet. Challenge your child to convert the following distance events into feet:

• When divers plunge into a pool from a board that's 10 meters high, the distance between them and the water is how many feet? (33 ft.)  
• When speed skaters complete a 500 meter race, how many feet have they skated? (1640 ft.)

Your child can also try out some currency conversions! He'll boost his research skills as he determines the current exchange rate for the Olympics host country, and practice a little math calculating how many of that currency he can get for 10 U.S. dollars.

Money Skills for Kids - 3rd Grade activity

Once your third grader has mastered counting coins up to $1.00, in school he'll begin to working numbers that make up larger dollar amounts. Chances are, he'll want to go to a store and make a purchase using his own allowance and savings. In which case, he will need to know what bills and coins he'll need to make his purchase. And when it comes to numbers, practice makes perfect. This activity will not only help him practice his math skills, like counting and addition and subtraction, but it will also give him a chance to learn more about things like purchasing and money exchange, which are important concepts to learn as he grows up.

What You Need:
•Collection of several old greeting cards (or you can make your own)
•Dollar bills and coins (5 one dollar bills and several of each coins (half-dollars, quarters, dimes, nickels and pennies)
•Unlined paper to make your cards and markers to decorate you them (if you make them yourself)
•Several shoppers and one cashier

What You Do:
1.Begin this activity with a warm up. Show your child a greeting card, toy or book and state the price. Have him arrange his bills and show what he would use to buy the card. Provide him with assistance if needed. Challenge him to come up with different dollar and coin combinations to reach the same amount.

2.You will need to either collect (you can use cards that are already used) or make a collection of greeting cards and write prices ranging from one to five dollars on the backs of the items. If you decide to make your own greeting cards, have your child make cards for various occasions using the unlined paper. Be sure he writes the prices on the backs. When the cards are completed, display them on a table for a "shopper" to browse the selection.

3.Choose one person to be the cashier for the card shop and at least one more person to be a shopper. Recruit Moms, Dads, siblings, grandparents, etc. to shop or take turns being the cashier in the card shop. Each person will select a greeting card and will give the cashier the appropriate number of bills and coins. The cashier should check that the amount is correct. You may want to have the shopper count the dollars and coins aloud for the cashier. (Everyone will most likely need to share the same money and use it more than once for multiple purchases.)

4.Allow your third grader to take turns playing both the role of the cashier and the shopper.
You can also do this activity with things other than greeting cards. A collection of baseball cards, for example, or any toys you have lying around the house. Just be sure not to write the prices on anything that you wouldn't want to be written on! A small piece of paper with the price will work just fine, if you prefer. This activity will allow your child to practice his counting skills and prepare him to make purchases on his own the next time you travel to the store together. You may be surprised at his new found confidence and purchasing skills!