Eye On Education: Math On The Merrimack River
BOSTON (CBS) - Math teachers are taking advantage of a local historic treasure for their lessons. Students say by seeing the real-world applications, the knowledge is sinking in.
As their teacher instructs her students, "OK, so drop it really quickly to the bottom."
She says, "Almost every day you'll hear this is so much better than being in the classroom!"
And the math classroom is where it begins.
Studying calculus and trig, kids often ask: "When will I ever use this?"
Amesbury High School teacher Jess Regis says, "Real world application that's what we're going for."
But these Amesbury students are ready to use their knowledge as they head out on a glorious October day and bus over to the edge of the Merrimack River.
"I love rowing and I love Math and there's no better way to put them together," says senior Chris Belmont.
When math teacher Jessica Regis first floated the idea four years ago her friend Graham McKay hopped on board to help create this uniquely New England learning experience.
Graham runs Lowell's Boat Shop which is the oldest continuously operating boat shop in America started in 1793. Today these kids from Amesbury High School are having Math class on the water.
"We're probably going to do a bunch of equations with triangles figuring out how far we are because we don't know," said junior Lauren Byron.
Jess explains the lesson, "So today they're taking a depth measurement of the river while simultaneously taking an angle measurement with a sextant of the boat shop," Regis says. "So ultimately we're going to map out the bottom of the river."
Graham McKay of Lowell's Boat Shop adds that he enjoys seeing how the students grow. "Using those tools that they wouldn't otherwise use is one of my favorite parts," he says.
The students have been preparing in the classroom learning how to take their measurements but the real learning happens once they're out on the boat.
"It's so much easier to understand the math when you have real world applications," another student adds.
And it's more than just angles and numbers
History, teamwork and adventure.
"Math on the River" is paid for by grants so there is no expense to the students. But Jessica Regis says funding is difficult and hopes increased awareness of the program will help it live on.
If you have an eye on education story, email us at eyeoneducation@cbs.com or tweet me @PaulaEbbenWBZ.
