Do the Math on Our Backyard

Open “Do the math on our backyard” (search “math”). Each card has real Montesano numbers and a slider. Read the card, do the math, then read its “The math:” line to check yourself. Use the number the slider starts on unless a question says otherwise.

1. 1.How many young coho salmon does Bingham Creek Hatchery release into the Satsop each year?

   🔎 The “How many salmon come home?” card.

2. 2.If only 3% of those 450,000 salmon survive and return, how many adult coho come home to spawn?

   🔎 The salmon card — 450,000 × survival rate.

3. 3.How big is the MJSHS football field in square feet, and about how many inches of rain do we usually get in a year?

   🔎 The “How much rain lands on the field?” card.

4. 4.About how much does a big bull Roosevelt elk weigh?

   🔎 The “How many of you equal one elk?” card.

5. 5.If you weigh 90 pounds, about how many of you equal one 900-pound elk?

   🔎 The elk card — 900 ÷ your weight.

6. 6.How tall is a Satsop cooling tower, how long is a school bus, and about how many buses stacked equal one tower?

   🔎 The “How tall are the towers, really?” card — 480 ÷ bus length.

7. 7.In December 2007, about how deep was the floodwater over Interstate 5?

   🔎 The “How deep was the 2007 flood?” card.

Challenge · Grades 7–12

1. 8.Using the rain card’s formula, how many gallons land on the football field in a year of 80 inches of rain? Show the steps.

   🔎 The rain card’s “The math:” line.

2. 9.Ocean survival is “usually just a few percent.” Use numbers to explain why the hatchery releases so many fish.

   🔎 The salmon card prompt + “The math:” note.

3. 10.The 2007 flood card divides 14 feet by your height. If a student is 4.5 feet tall, how many times over their head was the water? What happens to the answer as a person gets taller, and why?

   🔎 The flood card — 14 ÷ your height.