Real Life Math: Percentage (Discounts, Markup, Tips, Sales Tax, & Interest)

But when will I ever use this type of math in real life?

Welcome to my Real Life Math series, where students will practice math skills in practical real-life situations. Math is difficult to grasp for some students simply because it's an abstract idea. When students can see how math works in everyday life, math has a "point" and begins to make sense.

In this class, students will explore one of the most commonly used math skills of daily life: percent. Students will learn the basics of percent and how to find percent as well as several applications of how percent is used in "real life"; including sales tax, discounts, markups, tipping, commissions, simple interest, and compound interest. 

Each lesson consists of a video presentation taught via Google slides. Each lesson will introduce the topic and situations when this topic might come up in real life. We will go through several simple examples as well as word problems for practice. I will give the student the opportunity to pause the video to work through examples before seeing the solution. Students will also have the opportunity for additional practice with a worksheet each week (solutions provided).   I am able to provide support for any questions or concerns and answer messages within 2 business days (usually sooner). Students will be most prepared for this class if they are comfortable with advanced multiplication, including multiplying decimals. 

This class is intended to pace at one lesson a week, though self-paced students may progress at their own speed. Students should be able to view the video and work through the video lesson problems in about an hour. Homework should take 30 minutes to an hour depending on student proficiency.