Buttermultiflies

We were starting to learn about multiplication and wondered if we could use math in our favourite subject... science! Our hand- raised painted lady butterflies were almost ready to be set free.

When we made paper butterfly mobiles, we discovered that all the symmetry in their wings and body parts made wonderful multiplication sentences! So we brainstormed facts (i.e., 3 legs times 2 sides equals 6; 2 spots times 4 wings equals 8; 1x2=2 and 2x1=2) and decorated one side of our "buttermultiflies" with multiplication facts!

Math on the Ranch

I use a ton of math when filling out my 4-H Beef Project Record Book. I have to measure my steer's heart girth with a tape, fill in charts, tables and graphs with the weight and cost of his feed each day, and total those amounts before using division to figure out things like his rate of gain per day and if I've made any profit after I sell him.