Cookie Ratios – Baking with Grandma’s Recipe
Cookie Math – Baking with Grandma is a hands-on, real-life math activity that engages students in using ratios and fractions to solve a cooking and budgeting challenge. Students are given a recipe written in familiar kitchen units (like cups, tablespoons, and eggs) and must convert them to standard grocery units (pounds, gallons, bags) using a provided conversion chart.
Once quantities are converted using equivalent ratios and fractional reasoning, students use cost data to compute the price of each ingredient. They then add up the total cost for baking 25 cookies and calculate the cost per cookie.
🧠 Skills and Concepts Reinforced:
- Applying ratios and equivalent fractions in context
- Performing unit conversions between measurement systems
- Using proportional reasoning to scale and compare quantities
- Solving multi-step word problems
- Calculating total and per-unit costs
🛠️ Key Features:
- Realistic recipe and shopping scenario that students can relate to
- Conversion chart bridges two measurement systems
- Embedded cost analysis promotes budgeting and decision-making skills
- Strong integration of math, life skills, and critical thinking
This worksheet helps students see how ratios and fractions apply beyond the classroom — in the kitchen and at the grocery store.
Learning Objective
Students will apply their understanding of ratios, unit conversions, and proportional reasoning to solve a real-world baking and budgeting problem. They will convert recipe quantities from kitchen measurements (cups, tablespoons, eggs) to standard grocery units (pounds, gallons, bags), then use this information to calculate the cost of each ingredient and determine the total and per-cookie cost of producing a batch. Through this activity, students connect mathematical reasoning to real-life decision-making in the context of shopping and cooking.
Randomization Prompt
To support individualized learning and reduce answer copying, this worksheet is fully randomized per student. Both the quantities of ingredients in Grandma’s recipe and the purchase prices at the grocery store are different for each student. While the structure of the task remains the same, every student works with a unique set of numbers, ensuring they must apply their understanding of ratios, fractions, and unit conversions independently to solve the problem.
