Solving for M
Page 14
So much for that, I think. But then Mom surprises me. “I think missing a few days of school would be just fine,” she says.
“I can finally shave!” I say a little too loudly.
“What?” Mom asks. She’s totally confused.
“Kids these days,” Jeannie says with fake disapproval.
“Okay,” Grandma Beau says. She’s tapping and clicking away at Jeannie’s phone. “I have some points we can use, too. One benefit of being part of the digital economy.” Grandma Beau gives Mom a look. Mom and I both roll our eyes.
Grandma Beau hands the phone back to Jeannie. “I need your password,” she says.
Jeannie types in her password.
“Jeannie, dear,” says Grandma Beau, “please don’t tell me that your password is password.”
Jeannie shrugs. “Wow, I have like twenty gazillion points.”
“Twenty gazillion isn’t a real number,” I say.
“Well, I have elite status. Or platinum-supreme or something. Not sure. Too bad we don’t have more people to bring along.”
And that gives me an idea.
“Okay.” Jeannie sighs. “It says this package is twenty thousand points per person. But…if we pay at least ten days in advance, there’s a 10 percent discount, and kids under thirteen are free, but that’s for the hotel portion only, not the flight. I am so confused.”
I take my math journal out of my backpack to help Jeannie tackle this innovative problem and embark on a reflective discussion of this very relevant math challenge.
“We are most likely done with data,” Mr. Vann announces. “At least, we probably are. And to increase the probability that we have enough time to start a new chapter on this final day before April vacation, we will possibly be moving to chapter five. I’d give it a seventy percent chance. If I were a betting man, I would almost definitely put my money on chapter five.”
Mr. Vann starts writing a list of words on the board.
“Welcome, Principal Mir,” he says suddenly, even though his back is to the door. Then he turns around with his usual flourish.
Principal Mir is not alone.
“Mr. Vann,” she says formally. “May I introduce Ms. DeAngelis? She has been selected to take the reins for Grade Five Pod Two math next year.”
I look at Dee Dee. Dee Dee looks at me. We both look at Chelsea. Chelsea’s staring at the floor.
I can’t believe they actually did it. I can’t believe they fired Mr. Vann.
Was it because of the test? Was it because we didn’t do well?
I thought I did fine, although I guess Mr. Vann never gave me an actual score. He just gave me an RM. But I’m sure Dee Dee knocked it out of the park, and I know Chelsea attended to precision, and Dan said the test was as easy as the pie that Chelsea brought in for her data representation, but not nearly as delicious.
I feel the words starting to bunch up in my throat. I need to tell Principal Mir that Mr. Vann is not the problem. Mr. Vann helps you with your problems, and not just your math problems. I raise my hand as high as I can.
“Hold that fine thought, dear Mika,” Mr. Vann says to me. “Most delighted to meet you, Ms. DeAngelis,” he says with a dramatic bow.
Mr. Vann seems surprisingly polite for someone getting fired and meeting his replacement.
And even though it’s completely unlike her, Chelsea shouts out without even raising her hand. “But what about you?”
“Looping,” Mr. Vann says mysteriously. He traces circles in the air with both index fingers.
“Loopy?” Dan asks. I can’t believe he’s actually here the day before a vacation.
“Loop-ing,” Mr. Vann repeats. “Which is to say that we, dear thinkers, will be together for yet another go-round on this crazy carousel. We will meet again in September to begin the sixth-grade textbook. Or perhaps we will be ready to start the sixth-grade textbook right before summer. I always find the best time to start something new is right before a vacation. Don’t you agree, Chelsea?”
Chelsea looks just as confused as the rest of us. Then she gets it. She smiles a huge smile. I get it, too.
Highbridge Middle needed to hire a new math teacher for Grade Five Pod Two because next year Mr. Vann will be teaching Grade Six Pod Two. Next year, he’ll be teaching us.
Principal Mir shows Ms. DeAngelis to an empty seat in the back of the room.
“I’ll leave Ms. DeAngelis to observe,” Principal Mir says, adjusting the pencil behind her ear. “I’d like her to get a sense of how we do things here at Highbridge Middle.”
Mr. Vann salutes, and then reaches into his desk drawer. He takes out a pile of spinners from the game Twister.
“One to a customer!” everyone shouts.
Math Journal Entry #25
Think of something, anything that can be considered as an experiment in probability. How would you express the likelihood of all the different possible outcomes?
Explain your thinking using words, numbers, and/or pictures.
Innumerable thanks to:
Jennifer Weltz, whose dedication and energy require very large numbers to describe; Phoebe Yeh and the team at Crown for helping this story to grow exponentially; Dr. Mark Albertini at the University of Wisconsin for sharing his expertise and very valuable time; Jennifer Naalchigar for so thoughtfully rendering Mika’s journal using words, numbers, and pictures; P.J. + N2, always my #1 readers; all the outside-the-box educators I’ve had the privilege to learn from as a student, colleague, and parent; and my mom.
Solving for M is the story of one family’s experience with the issues and emotions surrounding a melanoma diagnosis. The good news is that developments in melanoma treatment and specific considerations for melanoma patients are advancing at a rapid pace. Options and outcomes are better today than they were just a few years ago, and hopefully, someday very soon, this particular M will be completely solved.
Jennifer Swender taught elementary school students for over a decade before turning to writing full time. She is the author of several picture books and early chapter books and develops curriculum materials for students and teachers. She once had a gig writing questions for math tests, which came in handy for Mr. Vann’s math journal “explorations.” Jennifer lives in Massachusetts with her family.
jacobsandswender.com
@JenniferSwender
Jennifer Naalchigar has been dreaming and doodling in her diaries from a young age—just like Mika. Unlike Mika, Jennifer showed limited promise in math, but she has thoroughly enjoyed exploring Mika’s personality and reflecting her thoughts, fears, and dreams through her diary entries.
After working in publishing for several years, Jennifer turned her attention to illustrating full time and is now represented by the Bright Agency. She lives in Hertfordshire, England, with her husband and daughter.
@naalchidraws
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