We had fun welcoming back Ms. Mardi Nott along with a new group of students from Austin High School. Their field trip consisted of touring the museum, including the La Belle exhibit, and spending time with MathHappens to learn about how navigation relates to mathematics.

We had two groups of about 30 students, each for an hour. The students split up into crews at four tables, which were our “ships” for the day. Students had to move their ships as a team and go to four different stations to learn new concepts. But first, they had to know more about what it was like to navigate a ship way back when we didn’t have GPS.

Students adjust to “carrying” their “ships.”

Intro Activity: 

Students had to lift and carry their “ships.” Then, they had to feel what it was like to navigate a ship. Everyone closed their eyes except the captain and moved around, following the captain’s lead. Finally, as an even more accurate simulation, the captains had to keep their eyes closed and open them for a short while every few seconds. This reflected how a ship’s crew didn’t know where they were unless they were constantly monitoring their latitude and estimating their longitude, which involved the use of mathematical tools.

The four stations: