ALL my math game books are on sale now at the Playful Math Store.
What a great way to prepare for a summer of mathematical play!
Get Ready for a Summer of Playful Math
Musings: Mathematical Beauty
Memories…
We were eclectic homeschoolers back in the Dark Ages before there was an internet. Our primary curriculum was the public library.
As we went along, I noticed how many of our homeschooling friends felt uncomfortable with math, and even hated or feared the subject.
Math anxiety runs rampant in Western culture. By one researcher’s estimate, more than 90% of adults experience some level of math anxiety — that is, discomfort, avoidance, and even emotional pain when faced with a math calculation.
So I became a sort of “math evangelist” in the homeschooling community, spreading the news that we can find beauty and fun even in math.
Playful Math Carnival 180 via Math Hombre
If you’re into math education — or just curious about how learning math could possibly be fun — you’ll definitely want to check out the latest edition of the Playful Math Carnival.
It’s a collection of awesome blog posts curated by John Golden and published on the Math Hombre website:
The whole point of the carnival is to show that math doesn’t have to be tedious or repetitive. Through a bunch of fun and engaging posts, we celebrate math that’s playful, creative, and totally relevant to everyday life.
Because what could be more relevant than having fun while we learn?
In this edition, you’ll find everything from math puzzles and games to humor and much more — even an interesting math art game.
So if you want to mix up your math teaching and make it more enjoyable for your students (and for yourself), definitely check out the Playful Math Carnival. Happy reading!
Algebra Puzzle from Lewis Carroll
On a friend’s blog, I found this delightful letter written by Charles Lutwidge Dodgson to a young man named Wilton Cox.
The pseudonym Lewis Carroll comes from an alteration of the Latinized name Carolus (for Charles) and the replacement of Lutwidge with Lewis.
Morning Coffee: What Is Mathematics?
One of the best ways we can help our children learn mathematics (or anything else) is to be lifelong learners ourselves.
Here are a few stories to read as you sip your morning brew. . .
Download your printable Morning Coffee journal
This week’s rabbit hole started with a thought-provoking blog post by Sara Van Der Werf…
“We are all mathematicians. We all have the power to notice, describe, and generalize patterns. You have all had this ability since birth.
“If we believe this then every day we must plan lessons that allow students to act as mathematicians. We must put something in front of our students to notice. We must put something in front of our students to describe, to generalize.”
—Sara Van Der Werf
Read more about how to develop mathematical thinking in this fourth installment of professional development for homeschooling parents.
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Are you looking for more creative ways to play math with your kids? Check out all my books, printable activities, and cool mathy merch at Denise Gaskins’ Playful Math Store. Or join my email newsletter.
This blog is reader-supported. If you’d like to help fund the blog on an on-going basis, then please join me on Patreon for mathy inspiration, tips, and an ever-growing archive of printable activities.
“Morning Coffee: What Is Mathematics?” copyright © 2025 by Denise Gaskins. Image at the top of post copyright © Kira auf der Heide / Unsplash.
Monday is Square Root Day
On May 5, we celebrate one of the rarest math holidays: Square Root Day, 5/5/25.
Here are a few ideas for playing math with squares and roots.
What is a Square Root?
Five is the square root of twenty-five, which means it is the number we can “square” (multiply times itself) to get 25.
The root is the base number from which the square grows. In physical terms, it is the side of the square.
Imagine a straight segment of length 5, perhaps a stick or a piece of chalk. Now lay that segment down and slide it sideways for a distance equal to its length. Drag the stick across sand, or pull the chalk across paper or a slate.
Notice how this sideways motion transforms the one-dimensional length into a two-dimensional shape, a square.
The area of this shape is the square of its root: 5 × 5 = 25.
What do you think would happen if you could drag the square through a third dimension, or drag that resulting shape through a fourth dimension?
How many shapes do you suppose might grow from that original root of 5?
Skit: The Handshake Problem
If seven people meet at a party, and each person shakes the hand of everyone else exactly once, how many handshakes are there in all?
Our homeschool co-op held an end-of-semester assembly. Each class was supposed to demonstrate something they had learned.
I threatened to hand out a ten question pop quiz on integer arithmetic, but instead my pre-algebra students presented this skit.
Cast
1-3 narrators (or more, if you have a large group)
7 friends (non-speaking parts, adjust to fit your group)
Props
Each friend will need a sheet of paper with a number written on it big and bold enough to be read by the audience. The numbers needed are 0, 1, 2, 3, … up to one less than the number of friends. Each friend keeps his paper in a pocket until needed.
Charlotte Mason Math: Living Books
[An addendum to my earlier Charlotte Mason Math series.]
“Our business is to give [children] mind-stuff, and both quality and quantity are essential. Naturally, each of us possesses this mind-stuff only in limited measure, but we know where to procure it; for the best thought the world possesses is stored in books; we must open books to children, the best books; our own concern is abundant provision and orderly serving.”
— Charlotte Mason, Toward A Philosophy of Education
Most homeschool teachers, whatever our curriculum or schooling approach, understand the importance of teaching with living books. We read aloud biographies, historical fiction, or the classics of literature. We scour library shelves for the most creative presentations of scientific topics that interest our children, and encourage our high school students to go back to the original documents whenever possible.
And we teach math with a textbook.
Not that textbooks are inherently bad, because math is an abstract science. We need to meet the ideas — the “mind-stuff” — of math on their own terms, and textbooks can help with that.
But it’s not enough.
Musings: Math Is a Social Game
Childhood Memories
When I was in school, math was something each person did on their own for homework, quizzes or tests.
Even when the teacher sent us to work on the chalkboard, each person did their own problem. We would never think to collaborate on math.
To look at someone else’s answer was considered cheating.
Morning Coffee: Anyone Can Learn Math
One of the best ways we can help our children learn mathematics (or anything else) is to be lifelong learners ourselves.
Here are a few stories to read as you sip your morning brew:
- Download your printable Morning Coffee journal.
Once again, my rabbit hole started with a thought-provoking blog post from Dan Finkel…
“Not everyone can become a great artist — but a great artist can come from anywhere.”
—Ego, from Ratatouille
“Ego’s parsing of the phrase anyone can cook is not obvious, and it’s not really the primary meaning of the phrase. The truth is, there are really three meanings all wrapped up there: anyone can learn to have the joy and pleasure of cooking in their life, even if they don’t become a master chef. Some people will get serious about it. And the visionaries who change the way we think about the art can come from anywhere — lock them out of the field and we all suffer.”
—Dan Finkel
Read more about how anyone can learn math in this third installment of professional development for homeschooling parents.
* * *
Are you looking for more creative ways to play math with your kids? Check out all my books, printable activities, and cool mathy merch at Denise Gaskins’ Playful Math Store. Or join my email newsletter.
This blog is reader-supported. If you’d like to help fund the blog on an on-going basis, then please join me on Patreon for mathy inspiration, tips, and an ever-growing archive of printable activities.
“Morning Coffee: Anyone Can Learn Math” copyright © 2025 by Denise Gaskins. Image at the top of post copyright © Kira auf der Heide / Unsplash.
Denise Gaskins' Let's Play Math 