As students begin their senior year, much of their focus is on applying for colleges and trying to figure out what path suits them best after college.  This turned out to be a great opportunity to investigate likely starting salaries in prospective professions, costs of living and job markets in cities, and connect them to a possible future life after college.  At the same time in class, we covered a unit on data science that culminated with visual representations of data.  In the end, students made a pitch to their parents during Student Led Conferences based on the research they had done for their potential path.  Students and parents alike appreciated the space and framing of a project that allowed students to explore possible futures from a financial angle.

For our final unit in Differential Calculus, students used all of the tools they have been taught over the years in high school to answer the question - Is packaging of food optimized, and if not, what would it mean if it was?  Students investigated various grocery store items and optimized them for volume or surface area based on their current design.  Afterwards, students reflected on what it would mean for all of these items to be optimized mathematically and what type of impact that would have on company's brands and bottom line.  This project was very challenging for students, as it had them apply our tools of differentiation to a real world challenge faced by companies selling goods.