Making Math As Easy As Pie

In college, I was an English major for a very good reason: I could barely pass math.

Don't get me wrong. I can figure out how to take 30 percent off an item at my beloved Target, but that's the extent of my math skills, at least without a calculator.

So by the time my daughter Ally entered fourth grade and began studying fractions, I knew I was in trouble. Numerators, denominators, greatest common factors, least common multiples — it was all Chinese to me...and I studied French in school.

Ally began struggling more with the advanced math concepts and I started struggling with the fact that I couldn't help her. Though we worked diligently each evening on her math homework, reading the lessons and attempting to work out the assigned problems, Ally was not keeping up with her class.

After she came home in tears with her third failing test, I knew it was time to find a better way to help my frustrated 10-year-old daughter conquer fractions.

After some thought, I realized there may be a better way to teach this math lesson. It was time to bake a pie.

This wasn't just a comforting after school snack, though. To help Ally visualize fractions, I had her measure out one cup each of sugar and flour and one tablespoon each of cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and butter.

When the recipe called for 1/8 tablespoon of nutmeg, we divided the whole tablespoon into eight equal parts. After adding one part to the mixing bowl, Ally could see there were seven parts, or 7/8, left of the nutmeg.

It was like a light bulb lit up her face. Finally, she was starting to understand conceptually how adding fractions can make up a whole number. We did the same thing with the next ingredient.

"This isn't so hard," Ally said, smiling as she stirred the ingredients together. "What's next?" For the first time, Ally was showing some excitement about fractions. As we continued dividing and mixing, she realized it would be more challenging to make two pies simultaneously, and soon we had two mixing bowls on the kitchen table.

"Are two 1/4 cups the same as a half a cup?" she asked.

I didn't have to answer. After measuring, she could plainly see that it was. By the time we put the pies in the oven, Ally's confidence was high as she began tackling her math homework.

And about an hour later, we enjoyed what turned out to be the tastiest math lesson we ever had. I just hope there's a sale at Target by the time she gets to percentages.