the genius that is a forced math curriculum

In addition to my landlocked, urban middle-school students learning about graphs while rejoicing in the tales of Molly and her friends as they take a two-week bike tour along the New Jersey coastline (thanks, Prentice Hall!), they can also study rates of change in a more relevant context: snow in the Rocky Mountains. Which span seven states. Yet seem to enjoy the exact same snow conditions.

Right.

If there's one thing kids in Denver know, it's that snowfall distribution is never even, not in the city, let alone the majestic 7-state spread of the Rocky Mountain Range.