TEXT

BOOK

PINK PENC L MATH

MATH
FUNDAMENTALS
101
Tanya Zakowich
Copyright © 2022 Pink Pencil Math

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced in

any form without permission from the publisher. For

permissions contact: [email protected].

M Y N O T E - P AGE
 ABOUT TANYA

Tanya believes math isn’t just about crunching numbers; it’s about
strengthening our confidence to build the career and life we dream about!

A past literal rocket scientist, she now designs easy, bite-sized video
courses with relatable examples, useful tricks, and common mistakes
she’s made as a student and engineer.

With over 1,000,000+ followers on TikTok and Instagram

(@pinkpencilmath), Tanya hopes to one day build a school that gives people
the problem solving skills to rise above any challenge - whether they’re
studying in school, changing careers, or just trying to file taxes!

Tanya Zakowich
Heyy
!!
Hey!
!
 Success

What people think it

looks like

What it really
looks like
 In 3000 BC, it took the
Egyptians thousands of
years to invent numbers.

In 1687, it took Isaac

Newton 20 years to
publish Calculus.

In 2022, we're expected

to understand a math
problem in 1 minute.

Take your time and go at a pace that

works best for you! What's
important is that you keep going :)
The 5 Secrets to Master Math
and just about anything in life

1
Link Your

2
Interests

Think Slow
Dive Deep
3
Make Mistakes to
Grow Your Brain

4
The 4% Rule
5
Push Through
the Dip
 The 5 Secrets to Master Math
and just about anything in life

Link Your Interests

Learning something you have zero interest in is HARD. Our minds naturally
move towards things we find interesting and away from things that aren't.

math
homework

beach

How do we retain math concepts and make learning a little more enjoyable?
By linking what we learn to things that interests us on a day-to-day basis!

3 3

() ( ) ( )
3
2 2 2 AAPL: $158
3
3 3 3 Recipe
1 1
c
------
3 ups flour
- -----
-----

3
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c
4 ups sugar
- -- -- -- -- - - ---
-- -- -- -- --- --- ---- --- -- -- -- --- ---- --- -
-- ---- --
- -- --- --
-- -

1 1
cups but
4 ter
--- -
-- - - - -
 The 5 Secrets to Master Math
and just about anything in life

Think Slow, Dive Deep

Speed isn't important in math. What is important is to
deeply understand mathematical ideas and connections.
Whether you are fast or slow isn't really relevant.
- Mathematician Laurent Schwartz

We have been conditioned to think that fast = smart. This is from years of schools
testing how fast we can memorize our times tables or finish a test. Some of us will be
slower at memorization than others, but it has nothing to do with our mathematical
mind! This is why the last students to turn in exams are often the highest scorers.

If you dart across the ocean in a speed boat, you will miss all
the wildlife and coral on the ocean floor. The only way to see
the beauty is to stop the boat and dive down. Math is all
about making connections in our lives and solving real-world
problems. The only way to do that is to slow down and
explore what the world has to offer!
 The 5 Secrets to Master Math
and just about anything in life

Make Mistakes to Grow Your Brain

I don't know anybody who get's exited about mistakes. But when you make a
mistake, your brain physically grows. Errm what? When we do something
incorrectly, our brain has a mini freak out and synapses fire electrical signals
that strengthens links between our brain cells.

This is why you may tell a kid a thousand times not to touch fire, but it's
only when they make the painful mistake of sticking their finger in a
candle do they truly understand why they should never touch it again!

The best way to learn math (or anything!) is to make mistakes. The more mistakes
we make, the more we grow! If you get 50 problems wrong on test, it is without a
doubt demoralizing, but you now know 50 ways how not to do something. The most
successful people in life are the ones who have made the most mistakes but kept
going. Mistakes can be embarrassing, but we will always come out stronger!
 The 5 Secrets to Master Math
and just about anything in life

4
The 4% Rule
Have you ever played a sport and was so absorbed in the moment that the outside
world stood still and time seemed to fall away? This is an example of a flow state.
This can happen for all sorts of things like writing a paper on your laptop, painting a
canvas, or playing an instrument.

What's so great about a flow state? When we are fully immersed in a challenging task,
almost feeling one with it, we are at our most creative, productive and happy selves.

Sooooo how do we get into this flow state?

By working on a challenge that is 4% harder than what we can currently do! Less
than 4% will make us bored. More than 4% will make us anxious and stressed
out. This rule applies to any challenge in life as well as math!

Less than 4% 4% More than 4%

Boredem Flow State Anxiety, Stress

But how do we measure what 4% harder is?
We can't quantify 4%, but we do know that 4% is a small percentage! It shows that
we perform the best when working on a tiny challenge, one at a time. If you ever
find yourself getting anxious from a math problem, it's time to dial everything back,
break the problem down into smaller pieces, and take one baby step at a time.
 The 5 Secrets to Master Math
and just about anything in life

5
Push Through the Dip
Often, people give up without knowing success was just around the corner.

Success!!!

s!
where people quit Succes

When learning something new, we ALL go

Challeng through the learning dip.
e
But keep going, success is always closer Did i just
than we think! do that?
I don't
understand

Maybe if I
Why am I so do.....?
bad at this?

I'll try
This is way again
too hard
I'm
stuck!
 Chapters

1.World of Numbers 2. Add & Subtract 3. Multiply 4. Divide

5. Prime, Factors, 6. Fractions 7. Mixed Numbers & 8. Decimals

Multiples Improper Fractions

9. Percentages 10. Exponents 11. Roots, Radicals & 12. Order Of

Fractional Exponents Operations
 Contents

World of Numbers 38 Multiply Positive & Negative Integers

40 Absolute Values
2 Types of Numbers 42 Multiply Numbers with Lots of Zeros
5 The Number Line 43 Multiply 1 Digit (The Traditional Way)
6 Positive & Negative Integers in our Lives 44 Multiply 2 Digits (The Traditional Way)
46 Multiply Numbers (The Box Method)
49 Practice
Add & Subtract
53 Answers
8 Useful Terminology
9 Properties of Addition
Divide
10 Properties of Subtraction
11 Even vs Odd 58 Useful Terminology

12 Add & Subtract Integers 59 Division is just Repeated Subtraction

13 Double Negatives Reminder 62 Divide Positive & Negative Integers

14 Add (The Traditional Way) 64 Long Division (The Theory Behind It)

15 Add (The Grouping Way) 65 Long Division (The Basics)

17 Subtract (The Traditional Way) 71 Long Division With Remainders

18 Subtract (By Adding) 72 Long Division With 2 Digit Divisors

23 Subtract BIG Numbers with Zeros 73 The Partial Quotient Method

24 Practice 78 Practice

27 Answers 81 Answers

Multiply Prime, Factors, Multiples

31 Useful Terminology 85 Useful Terminology
32 Properties of Multiplication 86 We Factor Money All The Time

37 Multiplication is just Repeated Addition 87 Divisibility

 Contents
88 Divisibility Shortcuts Mixed Numbers &
90 Prime Numbers Improper Fractions
91 Prime Factorization
Mixed Numbers vs. Improper Fractions
94 Greatest Common Factor (GCF) 135
When Should You Use Each Type?
97 Multiples 136
Convert Mixed Number to Improper Fraction
98 Least Common Multiple (LCM) 137
Convert Improper Fraction to Mixed Number
101 Practice 137
Add Mixed Numbers
104 Answers 138
Subtract Mixed Numbers
140
Multiply Mixed Numbers
144
Fractions 145
Divide Mixed Numbers
Practice
108 Useful Terminology 146
Answers
110 How To Write Negative Fractions 148

111 Types of Fractions

Decimals
113 Fraction or not Fraction?
114 Equivalent Fractions 151 Useful Terminology
115 Simplifying Fractions 152 Decimal Place Value
116 The 4 Checks to Simply BIG Fractions 153 Repeating Decimals
120 Add & Subtract Fractions with the Same 154 Rounding Decimals
Denominators 155 Tricky Rounding 999
121 Add & Subtract Fractions with Different 156 Add Decimals
Denominators 157 Subtract Decimals
124 The Fail-Proof Butterfly Method 158 Multiply Decimals
126 Multiply Fractions 159 Long Division (Decimals instead of Remainders)
128 Divide Fractions 161 Decimal ÷ Decimal Long Division
130 Practice 162 Convert Fractions to Decimals
132 Answers 164 Convert Decimals to Fractions
 Contents

165 Practice 207 The Hockey Stick & Bacteria Growth

168 Answers 208 Zeroth Power

208 First Power

Percentages 209 Fractions With Exponents

212 Negative Exponents
172 Useful Terminology 214 Confuse These No More!
173 The Love Triangle 215 You Can't Add or Subtract Powers Unless...
174 Convert Decimals to Percentages 216 Multiply Powers
174 Convert Percentages to Decimals 218 Divide Powers
175 Convert Percentages to Fractions 219 Power of a Power (The Power Rule)
176 Convert Fractions to Percentages 221 Compound Interest
178 Percentage of a Number 224 Practice
182 Chop Your Percentages 228 Answers
184 Translate ANY Percentage Word Problem
187 Calculate Discounts & Sale Price
Roots, Radicals &
189 Calculate Your Annual Income
Fractional Exponents
190 Simple Interest

192 Percent Change 233 Useful Terminology

194 Reverse Percentages 234 Square Roots

195 Percent of a Percent 236 Find The Square Root of ANY Number

196 Practice 238 Higher Order Roots

200 Answers 240 Negative Radicands

241 Negative Roots

Exponents 242 Easily Find Square Roots of Decimals

243 Multiply Roots
205 Useful Terminology 244 Simplify Roots
206 An Exponent is just Repeated Multiplication 247 Add & Subtract Roots
 Contents

249 Divide Roots

251 Simplify Fractional Exponents

254 Multiply Fractional Exponents

255 Divide Fractional Exponents

256 Confuse These No More!
257 Practice

261 Answers

Order Of Operations
266 Useful Terminology
267 Math vs English
268 The 6 Types of Groupings
270 GEMS

272 Solve 2 Operations

273 Multiply is NOT Before Divide

274 Solve Multiple Operations

277 Viral Internet Problem 6 ÷ 2(1 + 2)

279 ( ) in a ( )

280 Fraction Bars

281 Tricky Fraction Bars

283 Exponent of a Group

284 Challenging Roots

285 Solving Percentages

287 The Four 4s
289 Practice

292 Answers