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3 Examples of How to Incorporate Sports into Your Child’s Math

February 25, 2015 by CFBISD

Members Of Female High School Volleyball Team

3 Examples of How to Incorporate Sports into Your Child’s Math

How many people have seen the movie, Moneyball? It’s about Billy Beane, a Major League Baseball Team’s General Manager, and how he changed the game of professional sports.

Beane looked deeper into the statistics of player’s… statistics nobody cared about, and used them to turn around his team’s season and make the playoffs. His analysis changed the way most sport’s franchises evaluate their players and how organizations build winning teams.

Most People Never Look at the Numbers in Everyday Life

Most people never see the mathematics behind things that occur in our everyday lives.  Sports are no exception. In fact, athletes and sport’s franchises rely heavily on numbers to be successful.

Professional sports teams like the Super Bowl Champion New England Patriots spend a lot of money to analyze statistics to put more victories in the win column. Our own Dallas Mavericks spend millions of dollars each year to hire people to crunch numbers and solve equations based on sports statistics. Numbers and math are the new way to look at sports.

3 Examples of How Sports Use Numbers and Math

Next time the athlete in your family does not want to do his or her math homework, remind them of these three examples of how math is used in sports.

  1. Hockey and the Use of Angles – Hockey players use angles when they hit the puck against the boards to make a pass around a defender. They have to equate in their heads very quickly when they hit the puck against that wall. They will need to know how the direction changes to make the best pass possible?
  1. Should a Basketball Player Shoot a Three or a Two Point Shot? – Have you ever wondered why some basketball shots are awarded three points instead of two? It’s all about mathematics. The probability that a shot behind the arc will make it into the basket is less than a shot that is closer to the hoop. As a basketball player, you have to analyze risk vs. reward when choosing which shot is best for your team.
  1. Using Math to Block a Shot in Volleyball – How you set up the block in volleyball is based on the probability your opponent will hit the ball down the line or across the court. Your split-second decision, based on math, could be the difference between your team winning the match or losing to your cross-town rival.

Everyday an athlete has the ability to see math at work. Whether they are shooting a three pointer, deciding to bunt in a baseball game, or even trying to impress their friends at billiards, math is always around us in sports. Where can you find math in your sports life?

Additional Fun Math Questions to Ask Your Athlete

  • An expert states that the NBA is staged. What data would you use to prove him/her wrong?
  • Your favorite baseball player has a .300 batting average. If he gets up to the plate 10 times during a two-game series, how many hits is he likely to get?
  • Your team converts fourth downs 20% of the time, should your team go for when it’s 4th and 2 at your opponent’s 48-yard line?

Do you have any questions about additional ways you can incorporate sports into your child’s mathematics? Leave your questions in the comments below.

Filed Under: Academic Enrichment Tagged With: Academic Development, Academic Enrichment, childhood, children, Enrichment, Fun Math, Math, Math Skills, Math with a twist, parenting, Practical Math, Statistics

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