Math is Figure-Out-Able!
Math teacher educator Pam Harris and her cohost Kim Montague answer the question: If not algorithms, then what? Join them for ~15-30 minutes every Tuesday as they cast their vision for mathematics education and give actionable items to help teachers teach math that is Figure-Out-Able. See www.MathisFigureOutAble.com for more great resources!
Math is Figure-Out-Able!
#MathStratChat - September 3, 2025
In today’s MathStratChat, Pam and Kim discuss the MathStratChat problem shared on social media on September 3, 2025.
Note: It’s more fun if you try to solve the problem, share it on social media, comment on others strategies, before you listen to Pam and Kim’s strategies.
Check out #MathStratChat on your favorite social media site and join in the conversation.
Twitter: @PWHarris
Instagram: Pam Harris_math
Facebook: Pam Harris, author, mathematics education
Want more? Check out the archive of all of our #MathStratChat posts!
Pam 0:01
Hey, fellow mathers! Welcome to the podcast where Math is Figure-Out-Able. I'm Pam.
Kim 0:09
I'm here. I'm Kim.
Pam 0:10
And this is a MathStratChat episode because we chat about our math strategies. Every Wednesday evening, I throw out a math problem on social media, and people from around the world chat about the strategies they use, and comment on each other's thinking.
Kim 0:25
Alright, so this Wednesday, our problem was if 1.5 is three-fourths of a number, what is half of that number? Go ahead and solve it.
Pam 0:36
Solve the problem anyway you want. The problem is if 1.5 is three-fourths of a number, what is one-half of that number? I got your back, Kim.
Kim 0:44
You might need to go first.
Pam 0:45
I'm going to go first. Okay, if 1.5 or 1 and 5/10.
Kim 0:50
Yep.
Pam 0:51
I'm kind of thinking 15 right now. 1.5, 15. If 15 is three-fourths of a number. 1.5. Ah, I can think about 1.5. If that's three-fourths of a number, I'm thinking 1.5 in terms of 3 chunks because it's three 1/4s. So, 3. 1.5 in 3 chunks is a half, right? 0.5, 0.5, 0.5.
Kim 1:12
Mmhm.
Pam 1:13
So, each fourth is 0.5, but I need one-half or two-fourths. So, two-fourths of the number is 1. It's 2 of those 0.5s.
Kim 1:25
Okay.
Pam 1:25
Okay.
Kim 1:28
I also was kind of thinking the 3 and 2 thing.
Pam 1:31
Mmhm.
Kim 1:31
I looked at three-fourths, compared it to one-half, and I said "That's like a 3 to 2
Kim 1:38
ratio.
Pam 1:39
Ratio, yeah.
Kim 1:40
And it made me think about something we did not too long ago. And so, I said if I want the same 3 to 2 ratio between 1.5 and something, then that needs to be 1.5 to 1. So, the answer is 1
Pam 1:57
Nice, nice. That's nice.
Kim 2:00
Awesome. Alright.
Pam 2:01
Another way I can think of this would be if 1.5 is three 1/4s.
Kim 2:05
Mmhm.
Pam 2:06
I need another 1/4.
Kim 2:08
Mmhm.
Pam 2:08
So, kind of my starting thinking of 1.5 and 3 chunks, and so each of those chunks is 0.5. I need another of those 0.5 to have 4 of those chunks. So, then the whole number would be four 1/2, so four 0.5s. So, that's 2. But then I only want half of 2. And one-half of 2 is the 1 that both of us got.
Kim 2:29
Yeah.
Pam 2:30
Bam!
Kim 2:31
Alright, join us on MathStratChat. We can't wait to see what you do every week and how you think about the problems. Comment on each other's thinking. Make their day. Tell them what a great job they did.
Pam 2:41
Awesome. Ya'll, we post the problems on Wednesdays around 7:00 p.m. Central. When you answer, tag me and use the hashtag MathStratChat, then join us here to hear how we're thinking about the problem. Ya'll, thanks so much for being part of the Math is Figure-Out-Able movement. Math is Figure-Out-Able. Whoo!