There once was a girl,
Who was oh-so cold cool,
She left trails of ice cubes,
All around school...
And when she got A's,
On any math test,
She bragged all day,
She claimed to be "best...
Her name was Dotty,
And she thought she was great,
She thought other students,
Just couldn't rate..
Multiplication quiz?
"Easy!"
Said Dotty, the girl,
As pencil point twisted,
Her hair in a twirl...
But when she looked at the sheet,
Which lay on her desk,
She didn't have answers,
She'd just have to guess...
What made it so hard,
Why was it so tough?
What made this math quiz,
So tumble and rough?
One number was positive,
The other was not,
Positive times negative,
She didn't feel hot...
-3 x +3 =
"I won't be the coolest,
Or baddest,
Or flyest,
I won't be the best,
The queen,
Or the highest!
I can't figure these out,
They're not like I learned,
I need some math help,
I feel really burned..."
But no one helped Dotty,
Because Dotty was cruel,
No one helped Dotty,
Ms. snotty at school...
So she sat at her desk,
Feeling all queasy,
Searching for answers,
Though answers were easy!!!
In multiplication,
If the signs are the same,
+3 x +3= +9
A positive answer,
Will win you the game...
Even two negatives,
-3 x -3 = 9
Because signs are a match,
Give answers that end,
In the positive batch!
But if signs are opposite,
Like the words,
Beg & give,
Multiply quick,
You get negative...
-3 x +3 = -9
So Shall we help Ms. Cool Dotty?
Shall we show her how now?
No,
Let her learn slowly,
She's not the cat's meow...
Let her sit and learn,
As her ego does crumble,
Let her answer these problems,
As she learns to be humble...