Thinking Thursday: John von Neumann

Thinking Thursday math journal prompt

Writing to Learn Math: What did the author mean? Put the thought in your own words. Do you agree or disagree? Why?

Do you want your children to develop the ability to reason creatively and figure out things on their own?

Help kids practice slowing down and taking the time to fully comprehend a math topic or problem-solving situation with these classic tools of learning: Notice. Wonder. Create.

Continue reading Thinking Thursday: John von Neumann

Math Game Monday: Walter Joris’s Sequencium

Learn a new game with Math Game Monday

This game takes strategic thinking and planning ahead, and it makes a great journaling prompt, too.

Many parents remember struggling to learn math. We hope to provide a better experience for our children. And one of the best ways for children to enjoy learning is through hands-on play.

So what are you waiting for? Let’s play some math!

Walter Joris’s Sequencium

Math Concepts: strategic thinking.

Players: two players or two teams.

Equipment: blank paper, colored pencils or markers.

Continue reading Math Game Monday: Walter Joris’s Sequencium

Thinking Thursday: Counting Puzzles

Thinking Thursday math journal prompt

Writing to Learn Math: When students create their own math, they forge a personal connection to mathematical concepts and relationships. And it’s fun!

Do you want your children to develop the ability to reason creatively and figure out things on their own?

Help kids practice slowing down and taking the time to fully comprehend a math topic or problem-solving situation with these classic tools of learning: Notice. Wonder. Create.

Continue reading Thinking Thursday: Counting Puzzles

Math Game Monday: Symmetry Challenge

Learn a new game with Math Game Monday

This game builds visual thinking skills.

Many parents remember struggling to learn math. We hope to provide a better experience for our children. And one of the best ways for children to enjoy learning is through hands-on play.

So what are you waiting for? Let’s play some math!

Symmetry Challenge

Math Concepts: symmetry, geometry.

Players: only two.

Equipment: graph paper or blank hundred chart, colored pencils or markers.

Continue reading Math Game Monday: Symmetry Challenge

Thinking Thursday: Words Help Us Think

Thinking Thursday math journal prompt

Writing to Learn Math: Writing helps students stretch their thinking and make sense of new ideas.

Do you want your children to develop the ability to reason creatively and figure out things on their own?

Help kids practice slowing down and taking the time to fully comprehend a math topic or problem-solving situation with these classic tools of learning: Notice. Wonder. Create.

Continue reading Thinking Thursday: Words Help Us Think

Introduction to the Science of Counting

fantasy elf archer

One of my favorite rabbit-trails to explore in middle school math is the science of counting and probability.

It’s a great topic because the calculations are relatively easy, mostly multiplication and division. But there’s a lot of thinking that goes into figuring out just what calculations we need to do.

Counting is not only for little kids! It’s part of discrete mathematics, which means the study of things that are not continuous—things that come in discrete chunks—and it’s important in game design, computer programing, and cryptography.

Prealgebra and Geometry games book

This post is a section of my Prealgebra & Geometry Games book where my daughter and I explore the fundamental counting principle, the key to solving many counting and probability puzzles.

Continue reading Introduction to the Science of Counting

Math Game Monday: Decimal Product Game

Learn a new math game every week, for free

This game builds understanding of decimals, and also of the inverse relationship between multiplication and division.

Many parents remember struggling to learn math. We hope to provide a better experience for our children. And one of the best ways for children to enjoy learning is through hands-on play.

So what are you waiting for? Let’s play some math!

Decimal Product Game

Math Concepts: multiplying decimals, decimal place value.

Players: two players or two teams.

Equipment: printed game board, colored markers or a set of matching tokens for each player, two paperclips or other small tokens to mark the factors.

Continue reading Math Game Monday: Decimal Product Game

Thinking Thursday: Pentagram

Thinking Thursday math journal prompt

Writing to Learn Math: At its heart, geometry is all about seeing connections and relationships.

Do you want your children to develop the ability to reason creatively and figure out things on their own?

Help kids practice slowing down and taking the time to fully comprehend a math topic or problem-solving situation with these classic tools of learning: Notice. Wonder. Create.

Continue reading Thinking Thursday: Pentagram

Math Game Monday: Bowling

Learn a new math game every week, for free

This game builds calculations skills and helps develop fluency.

Many parents remember struggling to learn math. We hope to provide a better experience for our children. And one of the best ways for children to enjoy learning is through hands-on play.

So what are you waiting for? Let’s play some math!

Bowling

Math Concepts: addition, subtraction, multistep calculation, column addition (for final score).

Players: any number.

Equipment: one deck of math cards, game board, ten tokens for covering numbers, pencil or pen, and (optional) scratch paper for adding up the scores.

Continue reading Math Game Monday: Bowling

Thinking Thursday: W.S. Anglin

Thinking Thursday math journal prompt

Writing to Learn Math: What did the author mean? Put the thought in your own words. Do you agree or disagree? Why?

Do you want your children to develop the ability to reason creatively and figure out things on their own?

Help kids practice slowing down and taking the time to fully comprehend a math topic or problem-solving situation with these classic tools of learning: Notice. Wonder. Create.

Continue reading Thinking Thursday: W.S. Anglin