Something just isn’t adding up. Uncle Norm has been entering tons of different store contests but always seems to get the answers to the skill testing math questions wrong and it’s testing his patience. And he’s using a calculator! What gives? He finds it totally math-sterious. The Rads point out that loads of people don’t really know how to use a calculator properly. We kid you not! So they visit an expert who shows them how to use the calculator correctly, including the pluses and minuses, and the all important clear button. With his newfound knowledge Uncle Norm enters another contest and to his delight wins a year’s supply of pizzas. Definitely delicious and completely calculacious!

The Gist: In this episode, the calculator is used as a tool to observe and explore. The calculator is used as a tool for skip counting (a number pattern process thate mphasizes the role of the ‘+’ and ‘=’ sign) and it is used for puzzles (place valueand ‘words’). The focus is on modeling appropriate and correct use of the calculator: choosing which operations and keys to use to solve a problem; correctly interpreting the solution displayed on the calculator; and, determining the appropriateness of the answer.