This is part of the Five Minute Friday series.
Really? Today’s prompt is “Roots.”
You can’t get a better writing prompt for a math blog if you pushed really hard!
So what is a root? And what does it mean to have many roots?
A root is the opposite (the inverse) of a power or exponent. When you raise something to the power of 2 (or square it), you’re using the exponent 2. If you want to undo this, you take the square root.
When we do this for roots of larger numbers, it gets much more entertaining. Like the 4th root.
Raise 3 to the 4th power… you get 81 (which is 3*3*3*3). So when you take the 4th root of 81, you get back 3.
That’s not the intent of the prompt, though…
Indeed the FiveMintueFriday prompt wasn’t meant for math. So let’s consider the other “roots” in math. What are your math roots? What kind of math roots are you establishing for your children?
Do you have positive math roots? Do you say happy and positive things about math when it’s mentioned. Do you make a point to point out where you do math daily (like setting your alarm clock)?
If you do, you’re establishing some very good math roots for your children.
Share your thoughts in the comments or on twitter/x.
