George Khnouf Blog Post 3.

The Crow And The Pitcher, An Aesop's Fable. 

George Khnouf.

Blog Post 3. 

1. The Crow and the Pitcher by Aesop is a story that talks about a crow that was very close to death that found a pitcher that was full of water.  When he put his beak into the pitcher he could not reach the water.  He kept trying to get to the water but was not able to because it was too far down the pitcher.  The crow then thought of a brilliant idea: he took a pebble and threw it into the pitcher and got another pebble and threw it in and so on.  The crow kept throwing pebbles until he was able to get the water to a level where his beak was able to reach and thus quench his thirst and live.

2. The mathematical concept that I believe exists in this story is the concept of functions as well as input and output.  The output or outcome (y) of a certain situation depends on the input (x).  Think about it this way: the output of the situation given in the story is how much the water will rise in order for the crow to drink water and survive.  The input in this situation is the number of pebbles being thrown into the water.  In other words, the level at which the water will rise for the crow to drink water depends on the pebbles thrown into the pitcher.  This model is a function because each output is paired with exactly one input.  When the input was one pebble the water rose to higher level, when another pebble was thrown and the input was 2 pebbles it rose to a higher level and so on (each output is matched with exactly one input).

3. I believe using literature is effective in teaching math because it creates an image in people’s heads, which will make mathematical concepts easier to understand and apply.  If real life situations or stories were used in math I believe it will make the teaching process more effective, efficient and entertaining for both the students and the teachers.