W10 Math Lesson: Rules of Exponents

Overview 

Task: Study and work through the following math lesson AND complete the Math Gathering Activity prior to Gathering.

This week we are studying exponents. They are those little numbers elevated just a little bit above and to the right of another number or variable. They are tiny and easily missed if you don't pay close attention. But don't let their size or placement fool you. Exponents are very powerful. For example, 32=9 but 39=19683. The 2 in the exponent compared to the 9 in the exponent may not seem like it would make a big difference but their solutions show otherwise.

Scripture Connection

"...behold I say unto you, that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass." (Alma 37:6)

The Lord asks us to do little things like say our prayers and read our scriptures daily. Like exponents, these may seem like little things, but the impact these little things have on our lives and the lives of others is immense. What difference do you see in your own life when you take the time to do the little things the Lord asks of us? How will this impact your life over time?

Math Instruction and Exercise

This math lesson is broken into several mini-lessons, each containing a lot of material. Be sure to start early in the week in case you need extra time to study and practice. To save you time and quickly discover which concepts you need more help with, you may first take the math exercises quiz. If you choose a wrong answer on any quiz question, you will receive feedback linking to lessons you can study to improve your skills in that area. You may take these quizzes as many times as you like until the due date in order to improve your score.

All the mini-lessons to help you improve your skills in this week's Math concepts are linked below, located in the PathwayConnect Resource Center Links to an external site.. If you still need help after going through the available materials, there are suggestions at the bottom of each lesson page to get more help.

W10 Math Gathering Activity

How many ancestors do you have? Have you ever wondered how many ancestors you have? Or if some of your ancestors come from another place, what percentage of your ancestry is from there? If you represent generation 0 and your parents represent 1 generation back from you, what equation could tell us the number of direct, genetic ancestors you have 5 generations back, or 15 generations back? Exponents can help us with this.

You are working on family history and want to figure out the number of genetic ancestors you have for any number of generations back. If your parents are one generation back and your grandparents are two generations back, how can you go about finding the number of genetic ancestors you have for any number of generations back?

Question 1: Based on what you’ve learned about exponents, find the equation to calculate the number of ancestors for any generation.

Question 2: Use the equation to answer how many genetic ancestors you have 7 generations back.

Hint:
You are Generation 0. You are 1 person.
Your parents are Generation 1. They are 2 people.
Your grandparents are generation 2: 4 people
Your great-grandparents are generation 3: 8 people
And so on...

Question 3: Imagine you have the records of all your ancestors for 7 generations and you know that 16 of your ancestors from 7 generations back came from the same place. What percentage of your ancestry is from that place?

NOTE: If you have some information on your own family history, you may want to figure out some of your own ancestry and share it with your gathering.