Board games are a celebration of problem solving, and problem solving is at the heart of a quality mathematics education… The mathematics might be hidden, but I guarantee you that it will be there.
— Gordon Hamilton, MathPickle.com
Commercial Games 8
Continue reading Build Problem-Solving Skills with Board Games
You can find just the song here: http://vihart.com/music/gauss12days.mp3.
Send in your submission for the Math Teachers at Play blog carnival by Wednesday night.
While you’re waiting for Friday’s carnival, check out the new Carnival of Mathematics.
In algebra 1, we spend a lot of time working with quadratic equations. Among other things, we want to know how many roots (solutions) an equation has and whether the roots are real or imaginary numbers.
One way to visualize this is by asking:
I wish my algebra teacher had explained it like James Tanton does. It makes so much sense!
Kitten and I covered triangular numbers a couple months ago in our Competition Math for Middle School book, but I think it’s time to revisit the topic. I like the method James Tanton gives in this new video:
Hooray! The MathCounts Mini videos are back. September’s edition is all about translating word problems into algebra:
You can practice turning words into math with these MathCounts Problems of the Week.
The Engineer was away on a business trip, and Kitten and I were in the mood to veg out on YouTube, so I hunted for some golden oldies. We used to watch Square One TV faithfully, back when my eldest was in first grade. I can’t believe they haven’t released this show on DVD!
We found recordings of my two favorite songs (“Nine, Nine, Nine” and “8% of My Love”), but the picture quality was horrible. This video was the runner-up:
My car makes a loud, scary, grinding noise, and of course the repair shop is closed until Tuesday — so instead of visiting relatives for the holiday weekend, I get a quiet “writer’s retreat” at home.
If you’re stuck at home, too, perhaps you’ll enjoy this bit of fun…
6/28 is τ Day.
Tau = τ = one turn around the circle = 
How do mathematicians celebrate τ Day?
Protest! Share anti-π propaganda.
And eat two pies…
Wow! And to think, I was proud of myself for finishing a crochet afghan. Once.
Chain several. Leave straight to work in rows, or connect into a loop. Single crochet until your patience runs out, increasing every nth stitch (add an extra sc in the same place). Experiment with different colors and patterns. This pdf will give you more ideas.
The more frequently you increase, the frillier your hyperbolic plane will be, while a less-frequent increase makes it easier for students to see the structure. Daina Taimina recommends a 12:13 ratio (increase after every 12th stitch) for classroom use.
Hat tip: 2010 MAA Found Math Gallery, Week 45, and authentic arts by jenny hoople for the pdf.
Denise Gaskins' Let's Play Math 