Math Memories

Mathematics is more than just a personal interest, it is a family interest. My mom received a degree in math education from Utah State, and as the first child, my math instruction started at an early age. At 6 years old, i remember a rode trip our family took to visit my grandma. Instead of the classic car game of I spy using color, we would use shapes. "I spy a triangle," my mom would yell. My dad and I would then frantically point to every triangle shape we could find until the correct one was located. This game taught me shapes, and also made me very competitive as later in car rides I couldn't help but search the land for well known shapes, hoping to get a head start if we started playing.
Another experience I remember as a child, was baking with my mom. I was that child that had to be involved in everything, so I would put on my little pink checkered apron, push a chair to the counter and beg my mom to let me help until my pestering would win out her patience. My job was to pour in the contents once she had measured them. Some of the recipes would be the same and I would become familiar with how much we needed of certain items. For example, when making cookies I got to dump two cups of flour into the bowl. One day, however, i remember my mom handing me a third cup of flour to pour in. I pointed out her mistake but she explained we had grandma and grandpa visiting and grandpa ate a lot of cookies so we needed to make more. Although learning exactly what a fraction was wouldn't come for another 4 years, understanding the concept of fractions was introduced to me.

Both of these experiences to a degree have shaped the way I think about my discipline. From an early age I learned that math was enjoyable; it makes games and makes more cookies. I also learned that math is more than just a subject in school, and a homework assignment; it has real world application.
I want my future students to also learn to see the value of math, and to find joy in its contributions. Mathematical concepts can be applicable to everyone's life. Everyone has background knowledge or experiences that can link to a mathematical concept. As a teacher accessing these experiences will help the students comprehend  the material we are learning. For example, when teaching about fractions, using food and recipes will help students understand why they need to know it, and hopefully motivate them to truly learn the material. A fun before reading activity might be having students discuss in groups, different shapes they have observed. We could even play "I spy" in small groups in a geometry class.
I have never really thought of these experiences as having any value to my future career. However, in thinking back my love of math didn't come when i started college, it started when i was a child. The greatest thing I can give my students through these experiences is my love for math.