Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Math Poetry Project!

My school has a Literary Magazine that gets published once a year. They ask for submissions from all students, and this year, I decided to offer an optional 20 point project where students had to write a poem about math. It was very open-ended, but it had to be worthy, in my mind, of submission. In other words, no, a Haiku did not count (yes, that was asked!) The only requirement was that students had to get a writing conference beforehand (and submit rough drafts to me, where I helped them as well.)

The results were fantastic! I strongly suggest this project because it gives students a way to discuss math and reflect on math that they so rarely get to do. So many were about anxiety. I hope writing about it made them feel better! Some are also written by students for whom English is a second language, which definitely was out of their comfort zone. I am really proud of all of my students who submitted a poem. Here are some of them, my favorite being the first one on Fixed vs. Growth mindset.
 
Test Day
Today is the day of the big math test 
Last night I studied so much I got no rest 
As the day continues I know what’s coming 
I get all nervous and my brain starts humming 


I used to arrive and take out my pencils 
But now I unpack all the utensils 
Add calculators and compasses to the list
Once the bell rings, I clench the pencil in my fist 


As the teacher begins the short review 
I start to feel like I might have the flu
I try to listen and pay attention
But I simply can’t with all this tension 


I need every fraction of a second I can get 
And as the time runs down I begin to sweat
I look up at the clock, watching the hands tick 
And stare at my paper. Which answer to pick?


As I see everyone starting to finish 
My hope of scoring well is beginning to diminish 
I must finish this page quick 
With all this stress, I might get sick


Just as I’m about to turn it in 
My entire head begins to spin 
I check through the test just once more 
Searching for any mistakes that would lower my score


The test is finally over now 
And the only thought in my mind is “wow”
After a few days of anxiously waiting 

It turns out I got a pretty good rating!


Infinity

Shall I compare it to a school’s day?

It is greater than all the galaxies,
A buffet of values that can’t be weighed.
Earth cannot contain its immensity
So grand, so fine, in its complexity,
When others try to count it, it’s in vain,
As abundant as the Aegean sea.
If others try to grasp it, it’s their bane;
Its eternalness will never once fade.
As many digits as there are in pi
Its size is comparable to a parade.
It is impossible to specify;
It is always a magnificency;
It stays the largest, as infinity.

He met math
With a glance
Through his lens
And loved it twice.

Once in China
In Winter with ice
Once in English
In one long always warm season

In different schools,

Low low scores,
On math tests,
Vanished his smiling face.
Every night, he studied and suffered. 

Many, many times
A barrier of languages tricked him. 
Time, and the sand flowing in the hourglass
Hid his broken heart.

Math made him hurt.
Math made him love.
He was and is hurt by the scores 
But among all subjects,
Math affects him the most
His love since he was small.

Today is the day of the big math test 
Last night I studied so much I got no rest 
As the day continues I know what’s coming 
I get all nervous and my brain starts humming 

I used to arrive and take out my pencils 
But now I take out all the utensils 
Add calculators, compasses, and graph paper to the list
Once the bell rings, I clench the pencil in my fist 

As the teacher begins the short review 
I feel like I might have the flu
I try to listen and pay attention
But I simply can’t with all this tension 

I need every fraction of a second I can get 
And as the time runs down I begin to sweat
I look up at the clock, watching the hands tick 
And stare at my paper. Which answer to pick?

As I see everyone starting to finish 
My hope of scoring well is beginning to diminish 
I must finish this page quick 
With all this stress, I might get sick

Just as I’m about to turn it in 
My entire head begins to spin 
I check through it once more 
Searching for any mistakes that would lower my score

The test is finally over now 
And the only thought in my mind is “wow”
After a few days of anxiously waiting 
It turns out I got a pretty good rating.


In eighth grade, I was so good at math,
Now that thought just makes me laugh.
Nine more hours till the test,
Just keep studying and hope for the best.

Slope, range, and domain
All floating through my brain.
Seven more hours I have to study
To try to make Algebra II my buddy.

So many formulas in my head,
Don’t think I will ever get to bed.
Five more hours till the test,
Now is not the time to rest.

The long word problems cause me pain,
There’s my grade down the drain.
Three more hours to gain knowledge,
With a C in math, will I get into college?

As graphs of equations circle my brain
I wonder, will conics drive me insane?
One more hour until I’m done.
Maybe studying functions will be more fun.



In-Test Stress

Equations flowing through my veins
Transformations filling up my brains
Numbers racing through my head
“You don’t need to study more!” is what my mom said
Little did I know that she was very incorrect
It seems that this test has surpassed my natural intellect
As I search my memory for previous knowledge
I question if I will ever be accepted into my dream college
I know, I know, I’m being melodramatic
But how in the world does one graph a quadratic?

Parabolas, hyperbolas, curves, and more
It’s looking like I won’t get a good score
But then it comes to me, parent functions and all!
Maybe this test won’t be my downfall
My pencil starts to write very fast
I begin to put my confusion into the past
Domain and range? Easy, I know this
There is not one question that I will miss!

Seven minutes remaining on the clock
I’m reviewing my answers, my focus in lock
Two minutes to go and I turn in my test.
A huge weight has been lifted off my chest.
Next time, I will make sure not to get so upset
Because if I try my best, it’s a deserving grade I will get.

Life is Mathematic

Life can be like a linear function

But when challenges arise, it’s like the sine
Challenges can give life vibration
While without them life is a straight line

Life can be like a linear function
While troubles can be like holes
Holes may halt the function
But the function always continues

Life can be like a linear function
And your attitude can be the slope
A positive attitude gives life ascension
While a negative attitude can only cause a drop

Life can be like a linear function
And I hope you perceive your life with satisfaction

Functions are like karma, 
you give something you get something.
Functions are unique,
different parent functions and different graphs.
Functions must pass a test, 
a vertical line on a graph to prove one input goes to exactly one output.
Functions can be treated like numbers, 
you can subtract, multiply, divide, and add them together.
Functions can be like mountains,
intervals of increases and decreases, and peaks and troughs.
Functions are like long movies,
sometimes they just never seem to end.
Functions are also like toddlers,
they can’t always go very far before stopping.
Functions are like elevators, 
they go up and down but not always forever.
Functions can be expressed in many forms, 
equations, graphs, maps, or tables.
Functions are like rollercoasters,
up and down, and steep and not.
Functions are patterns, 
easy to predict and always following a rule.
Functions are like a crystal ball,
they help us to predict the future.
Functions are like glasses, 
they enable us to see and visualize real-world things.
Functions are like blueprints,

they enable us to easily understand how the world works the way it does.


It winds you through its paths

Gives you calculations on top of calculations
All in pursuit of the satisfying solution
But, make one mistake
And that answer is gone
So very treacherous
These twists and turns
Of mathematics can be
Equations on top of equations
Operations, for example
Can put you on a rollercoaster of math  
Like the graph of sine
And then, after so much calculation
The work results in one painfully simple solution
Like one
(5xy + 6x^7+9y^18)^0
If one does not notice
In a brief moment of not paying attention
That there is an exponent 0
They might puzzle themselves with the problem for hours
Mathematics
The solving of every problem is a journey
Filled with highs and lows 
Like the maxes and mins of a parabola
At some points, the min is hit
One might consider giving up 
But when they decide to continue
And then finally scramble through the last calculations
And box in the set of numbers that answers their questions
How satisfyingly simple it is
What a numerical miracle
What a feeling of giddiness fills the person at that very moment
Because of mathematics
Mathematics, which is really just
One long, arduous journey 
Made up brick by brick 
Problem by problem
Number by number



focusing, scribbling, erasing, and rewriting
these are parts of the thrill of math.

graphing, translating, reflecting, and shifting 
even if it involves making mistakes
when you’re passionate about something
just doing it sparks joy

sitting, plotting, computing, and 
graphing, translating, reflecting, and shifting
can bring such satisfaction.

formulating, equating, expressing, and understanding,
it requires hard work,
time
dedication
and passion
but in the end, it is worth it.

working, thinking, calculating, and stretching your brain
when the difficulty rises,
there are challenging problems,
that are not so easy.
but a part of the joy of solving
is doing these things
in ways you might not have thThe Missing Variable: x2 + 9x + 20 = 0 

Something is missing
An incomplete whole
For x I can’t find
Its answer, my goal

The problem seems hard
We do not comprehend
Try and we try
But we hit a dead-end

We cannot give up
Commitment is key
We must solve for x
Then we’ll be free

Digits on the right
Then zero we said
Quadratic formula?
Factoring instead

Put parenthesis
X has been squared
For two solutions
Do not be scared

Nine’s the coefficient
But it’s not lonely
There is a constant
Of twenty only

Multiplies as twenty
Adds to be just nine
I will guess and check
Till these numbers fit fine

Could it be two and ten?
When added, twelve is seen
What about six and three?
Multiplied it’s eighteen

Factoring is hard
Too many numbers
Forever my mind
Will be full of wonders

Wait! I got it?
The answer is mine
Added it’s twenty 
Together it’s nine

After many efforts
Four and five will work
The problem’s nearly done
Soon I can smirk

X plus five is zero
also works with four
Just two solutions
There are not any more

Now subtract the numbers
Onto the other side
Negative four, negative five
I am filled with pride

X was hard to find
There was a struggle
With math you must grind
But after the trouble

There has been a breakthrough
Something is clear
You have reached success
The end, you are here
Night-gebra
By my nightlight, I study my book
I’ll learn these equations
By hook or by crook

Hours are spent finding eccentricities
Staring at these complex ellipticities
I scramble to simplify
As I kiss my sleep goodbye

I put in my airpods
Thinking about the odds
The rhythm makes me tap
Feeling it’s a trap

Wishing I could figure it out 
But all I do is doubt
My abilities?
All liabilities!

The crescent moon shines into my window
Oh how I wish to lay on my pillow
But the problems go round and round with no near end
As I search every corner for a dividend

My morning alarm starts to blare
Algebra hates me, I swear
Should I give up and just stay at home?
It’s easier to write a poem!

Sir Cull
360 degrees 
and a shape that always puts you at ease,
I come in all different sizes, always aiming to please.
I am defined by area, which can vary,
But fear not, my radius and pi are not very scary.
There is also an equation for my shape, which has many components
If you know these are the center and radius, then you are in the bonus!
The points defined as the center are k and h,
But be careful because in the equation, they are not so great!
They are not so great because they are opposites of their true value
Which trips people up and makes them blue.
H is subtracted from X while Y subtracts K,
Don’t forget to put each in parentheses and square, or Mrs. Winer will not let you stay!
Do not get excited as there are a couple more steps,
But do not be scared because these are easier than the rest!
Add an addition sign between the two terms, which will almost wrap it up,
Then do not forget to add an equal sign, and the last term is abrupt!
The most important part as we see it in every circle equation,
It is the radius, and will never go under the process of evasion!
Don’t forget to square the radius at the end though,
Because if you do not, the problem will not flow!
Last but not least, there is another term that you can not forget,
It is defined by 2𝛑r, so don’t you fret!
It defines the perimeter of the circle, which is essential,
But do not overhype the circumference, as it is not always frequential.
As you can see, circles like me are fun,
Just because they are complicated does not mean they cannot be a pun.
After all, everyone is complicated and that is a fact,
Without complications no one would be in tact.
And most importantly, without problems, there would not be math,
And without math, the idea of me, as a circle, would never be in your path!
Maybe you guessed, maybe you could not
But I am the greatest, being the only alive shape that you got.
I am the one,
The only,
Mr. Sir Cull


Clarity in the Storm

Swirls of numbers,
No order to be found
They run rapidly through my mind
The pieces don’t fit,
I see no respite from the chaos

Then slowly the storm starts to calm,
With time I see clearly,
I’m no longer overwhelmed
Every breath calms me 
The world stops spinning 

Deep breath,
Step one,
Deep breath,
Step two,
The clouds are fading away 

Finally, I’ve opened a gap in the clouds
Patterns,
Everywhere, they repeat  
They guide me forwards
Clarity like never before

Before, the storm swept me up,
But now, I’m carried high above the chaos below
Winds swirl like cube root functions
I’m lifted through inequalities and decimals
I feel a weight lifted from my shoulders

The equations start to fit,
Pieces connect in new ways,,
The chaos of the storm is gone
What I need is right here,
I’ve made sense of what’s in front of me

Something shimmers in the distance
The concept floats closer and closer
Through the mist I see it faintly, 
Warm rays meet me with satisfaction
The answer to my confusion is here


Today has been a long day
I have had so much to do
I can’t even find the right words to say 
But I have to see the day through.

I may have drifted off in class
I probably should have paid more attention
But I didn’t realize we were going so fast 
And I know you have the best intention

I started to focus again 
And looked at the board
But all I saw were marks of pen
And my brain just spiraled downward

So I find it a bit of a challenge
To be the best, to know the most
When the lack of sleep has done so much damage
All day during school I feel like a ghost. 

I can’t seem to grasp the concepts like everyone else
I take a bit more time
But when I do, the feeling is like nothing else 
And the world feels like it’s mine

There come the days I want to give up
Because I get the problem wrong every time
My world is not going to blow up 
So I need to finish the climb

I wake up I study 
I study all day
I always feel so cruddy
And I never have time to play 

But when I get the problem right
I feel like I can touch the sky
My face lights up so bright

And you can see teardrops in my eye

2 comments:

Dave John said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Dave John said...

These math steps are beautifully defined and it really looks informative. Most people are facing problems preparing for their math exams and other subjects, and that's why they want a good guide to make themselves a professional writer and a quick learner. The expert Online Book Ghostwriters have helped many clients in these situations.