In the beginning of term 3, for math, we have studied Linear Equations. The project that we had to complete was baced of our driving question:

“How can we use linear equations to predict how a body of water will change over time?”

We were able to present our findings trough a short Keynote presentation. Creating this keynote presentation was not hard because we had previously researched our chosen body of water. My partner Kai, and I had picked the Colorado River because of the “splash” it had made in the local media. This gave use a lot of data for our presentation. The equation we used for this project is a linear equation in slope intercept form.

Y = MX + B

Y = Depth

M = Amount of water lost, divided by time. This is the slope

B = Amount of water currently. This is the Y-intercept

The data we got from our reasurch was beneficial for our overall understanding of the Colorado River, but we only needed to figure out the variables listed above.

Our Data:

• River will decrease by 5-20% in the next 40 years

• Last 100 years declined by 16% 

• an average flow rate of 22,500 cubic feet per second (640 m3/s).

• Lake reservoir dropped over 140 ft
• The Colorado river has lost 15.6 cubic miles of fresh water in the last 10 years 

• The equivalent of 7,302.36 litres

We finished our project by finding the variables, graphing them, and presenting our findings to the class. Reflecting back on our presentation there are a few things I would change. Our group didn’t specify that the amount of water we have lost would be measured in litres per second, instead of just litres. This would have provided clarity to our final presentation.

I used four different Cericular Competencies in the completion of this project:

I used/improved my ability to apply flexible and strategic approches to solve problems, by not only finding a body of water to base our presentation off of, but also picking a body of water that used LPS instead of depth.

I used/improved my ability to take risks by offering Ideas in the classroom discourse, by explaining our projects mathematics to our class. I also showed this skill when I filled in a fellow student on what he need to do for this project.

I used/improved my ability to explore, analize and apply mathematical ideas using reason technology and other tools. I accomplished this by finding the exact number of water lost in cubic miles and translating that into litres per second. This improved my use of this skill because it challenged me to go out of my comfort zone.

I used/improved my ability to think creatively and with curiosity when exploring problems. I accomplished this by creating a keynote that had animations to help get my point across. These animations suplyed clarity to my final project.