Standard+4

****Standard 4 ** **Teachers know how to teach. **  The teacher understands and uses a variety of instructional strategies, including the use of technology, to encourage children's development of critical thinking, problem solving, and performance skills.
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**Evidence 1 **: Online Lesson on Home Mortgages and Car Loans 

**Rationale 1 **: For this lesson, students in Advanced Algebra with Trig used the website [|www.bankrate.com] to find the total amount paid over the course of a home loan and car loan. To figure out the amount paid over the course of a 15 year and 30 year home loan, students used [|www.shorewest.com] to find a house that was on sale that they would want to buy. For a car, students used the website [|www.autotrader.com] to find a car they wanted to buy and how much the total cost would be for a 36-month loan and a 48-month loan.

This lesson on home mortgages and car loans demonstrated the following mathematics and technology standards:

**Mathematics **

D.12.1 Identify, describe and use derived attributes to represent and solve problem situations F.12.2 Use mathematical functions in a variety of ways F.12.4 Model and solve a variety of mathematical and real-world problems by using algebraic expressions, equations, and inequalities

**Technology **

A.12.3 Use a computer and productivity software to organize and create information <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">B.12.3 Locate and access information sources <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">B.12.6 Interpret and use information to solve the problem or answer the question

<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">The goal of this lesson was for students to see some real life applications of compound interest. Frequently, I have students ask when will they use a certain math topic outside of school, and these are perfect examples that most students will experience or use in their life. Also, by comparing the amount of interest paid over a 15 or 30 year home loan, students realize how an exponential equation grows at a much faster rate than a linear equation. Hopefully, when students get older, they remember how fast interest occurs on a car or home loan and use this to make sound financial decisions. Lastly, by using an online calculator, students have a tool to use in the future when they are in the position to buy a car or home.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">This lesson demonstrates that I am able to use technology to show students how math topics are used in the real world. By using the online calculator, it made it easy for students to find the total paid over the course of a certain loan rather than using a lengthy equation to find this information. Also, buying a car and a house are major financial decisions in a person’s life, and hopefully students saw how much more costly buying a car and home are than just the purchase price.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">I was able to use this lesson for my Advanced Algebra with Trig class and it seemed to work well. <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Students enjoyed picking out their dream car and house and were shocked how much they would have to pay in interest over the course of the loan. A lot of students had me double check if their answers were correct because they could not believe how much in interest they would need to pay.

**<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">KSD **

**<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">4.K.3 The teacher knows how to enhance learning through the use of a wide variety of materials and technological resources. ** <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">There are mathematical equations that can be used to figure out the total cost of a home or car loan, but they are very lengthy and confusing. By using the website, students were able to quickly find the monthly payment, the total cost of the loan and how much in interest they pay over the course of the loan. Also, these websites can be used by students in the future when they are ready to purchase a home or car.

**<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">4.S.1 The teacher carefully evaluates how to achieve learning goals, choosing alternative teaching strategies, and materials to achieve different instructional purposes and to meet student needs. ** <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">When learning about applications of compound interest, students usually are given an equation to use to find the answer. As I mentioned before, the equation for home and car loans are complicated to use. By using the online calculator on [|www.bankrate.com], students were able to worry less about the lengthy equation and concentrate more on their answer and what it means. Also, students really enjoyed this lesson because this was a real world example of where compound interest is used in everyday life and they were able to see the cost of buying their “dream” home and car.

**<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">4.D.1 The teacher values the development of students critical thinking, independent problem solving and performance capabilities. ** <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">When first covering compound interest, students just find the a single answer such as the amount of money in a savings account or the value of a car. When completing this lesson, students must go a few extra steps and make sense of their answers to find the monthly payment, total amount paid over the course of a loan and total amount of interest paid.