Math teacher looking for movie examples to promote problem-solving.?

Question

Hello all,

I am an 8th grade math teacher. I want to show two short movie clips that promote the problem solving process. More specifically, I would like the first clip to show a person or group of persons coming up with a plan. I was thinking perhaps a super-hero movie would work well here, but it does not have to be.

The second clip I would like to show is an example of a plan going bad because the person or group did not "check their work." The best example I can think of is Office Space when the computer program rounded to the wrong decimal place and they stole too much money from their business. I like this clip, but it has too much cursing in it.

The two parameters are:

I would prefer that there is little or no cursing.

That the movies be fairly new and relevant to 8th grade students.

I would love to hear what you come up with. Thanks in advance!

Answer 1

I think it's the movie entitled, Beautiful Minds.

Answer 2

Neat idea.  One movie that comes to mind is Pursuit of Happyness.  In one scene, the main character (Will Smith) wrangles a job interview by solving a rubics cube.  It's been a while since I saw the movie, but as I remember it, the character faces a series of dilemmas that he has to solve.  And the movie is based on a true story.

I can't think of a PG movie that involves not checking your work, but Roadrunner cartoons are classics when it comes to calculations gone awry.  If this generation hasn't seen them, you could also contribute considerably to their cultural enlightenment.

Answer 3

Apollo 13 has a great problem solving scene where the engineers dump out all the supplies and they have to come up with a way to save the astronuts......

Also October Sky has several different scenes about problem solving but the best one for math (although the math may be a bit much for 8th grade but they will get the idea) is when the boys use trig to prove they didn't start a fire.

Answer 4

I love Office Space too, but you are correct on the cursing.

Sandlot--the kids have to find a way to get the baseball back out of the yard...too funny...no worries on language.