What's nine times nine, plus 19, times
four, divided by 25, square root, add six, multiply by the number of ounces in a
pound, minus 60, plus 44, square root"?
Answer quickly: 12.
Willie Walker, founder of Project Motivational Math, visited the East campus where he taught showed hundreds of third- through 5th-graders how to immediately answer complicated math questions without doing written calculations.
After two days of training, Walker held a competition for dozens of children and those who finished in the top three in their categories earned a free lunch with Superintendent Mrs. Cluff and their teachers at Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen.
Walker, a former accountant who left the business to become a full-time teacher, is known as "Mr. Math."
"This program is a great way to exercise the regions of the brain responsible for memory and complex math calculations," Walker said. "Real life applications and experiences challenge students to think critically."
Several teachers took the training before Walker focused his attention on the students.
Kendrick Thomas, a third- through fifth-grade special education teacher at the Northeast campus, came away impressed.
"This offers us more strategies to give to the kids," Thomas said. "It's an easier way to make math educational and fun."