Fifth graders at West School in Long Beach took on the roles of travel planners as a culminating project of their first mathematics module of the school year. After learning all about decimals and operations in the classrooms, students utilized their skills to budget and map out trips from start to finish.

The students researched destinations that interested them and found transportation, hotel accommodations, tourist attractions, restaurants and shopping that fit within their budgets. They created spreadsheets and converted United States dollars to currencies to those used in their selected vacation countries. The project connected the curriculum to the real world and emphasized the importance of math in everyday life.