Friday, October 27, 2017

What's the Best Deal?

It might be a close race, but I think students might like their phones, tablets, and gaming consoles more than school. The enjoyment I see from kids at my part-time job (Best Buy) can SOMETIMES exceed the excitement I see when I'm teaching linear or quadratic relations...okay, all the time. Depending on the course you're teaching, it can be a good idea to incorporate a weekly flyer into your class, to discuss discounts and better deals. Around this time of the year, flyers at any retail store are going to be pretty thick, so you have many options to choose from to answer the question: "what is the better deal?".

I've used this activity in a MEL3E night class, where I grab a few flyers and have students work in partners or a group of 3. I ask specific groups to tell me what is the best deal with respect to percentage discount and not actual price. I'll give one group laptops, another televisions, appliances, etc. It serves the purpose of students practicing working with percents, and also lets me know what the solid deals are (and yet still procrastinate on my Christmas shopping). At this time last year, my students (many above the age of 30) were gearing up for Christmas, so having them use a real flyer, instead of a made up worksheet, made this assignment more appealing. I'm sure many teachers have done this. I can give credit to the customers that always...always...ask: "which is the better deal though?".

Have a great day gang.


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4 comments:

  1. UnknownOctober 28, 2017 at 3:09 PM

    Hi Shadi,
    I like this activity. It suits both young (high school age) and adult students and grabs their interest. This activity fits the mathematic for work and everyday life course which many students are required to take to enhance their understanding of real-life situations where math in involved.
    Thanks for sharing ….

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    Replies
    1. UnknownNovember 1, 2017 at 8:39 AM

      Thanks for the comment Zahraa. I like doing this activity during Christmas time because then it really is more appealing to the students (especially adults). Without any prompts, they discussed why a certain product is better than another not just based on specifications, but more importantly because of the percent discount.

      Cheers

      Delete
  2. PennycookROctober 30, 2017 at 12:49 AM

    What a neat idea. The fliers are free and designed to be eye-catching, and your students are sure to be interested in the very latest new technology on offer. I also find that bargain hunting tasks like this can bring out a competitive side in students, since being money-wise has an element of worldly street cred to it.

    Financial literacy is, in every sense of the word, a valuable life skill. The Ministry of Education seems to agree, and is due to invest in revamped high school Careers courses with a money skills component starting this time next year. I wonder if anyone in the course is aware of the pilot projects mentioned in this article?

    Ontario launches plan to teach high school kids financial skills:
    Teaching money skills expected to become part of mandatory careers course by fall of 2018.
    https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2017/03/23/ontario-launches-plan-to-teach-high-school-kids-financial-skills.html

    Thanks for the idea, Shadi

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    Replies
    1. UnknownNovember 1, 2017 at 9:22 AM

      Interesting read Roderick, thanks for the post. I do agree that "both money skills and digital literacy are critical tools for high school kids". This activity can help with both, especially if students can look up products online at different retail websites.

      Cheers

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