More real life possibilities for Math

After I wrote yesterday's post, I did a bit more research on sites that offer lessons and activities to connect math to the real world and stumbled across this post in Education World.  The author found 24 places on the internet divided into five different areas.  The first, collections of real world math activities, includes one where students from around the country wrote the word problems.  Then there are the online math activities with specific focus, online data sources (authentic data), math collaboration, and more real world math ideas at Education World.
I pulled up a few sites to check them out and was rather impressed with the ones I viewed.  Also some of the sites are no longer viable including one on using math with planes.  I thought this would be of interest to my students but it does not seem to be up and running, so check each one.
On the other hand, I did not see NASA's educational web page with some really awesome problems.
Enjoy.

"When will I ever use this in real life?

This common questions is asked by students who need a reason to study mathematics.  I can point to a chart on the wall, answer it with examples but they still just shake their heads and tell me they are never going to need it.  I stumbled across a lovely website called Appreciate Math which gives some nice real life examples.  There are not too many examples but it looks like the site author recently started.  The entry on Math in Nature has a short 2:44 video I can show my students to give them a chance to see mathematics in real life.  I may even take the entries and have my students read and summarize the material as a way of helping answer that question and to get them to practice their reading and writing skills.
Most of my students see reading and writing as something that only happens in English or Social Studies.  As a school we are trying to increase test scores by increasing reading and writing across the core subjects. 
Enjoy.