A very snowy winter is turning to a long, slow spring here in Minnesota. It is the kind of spring that makes us joyful for sunny 45° days. So I went for a long walk Sunday afternoon. Together with a meaningful percentage of the population of the city of Saint Paul,...
I am very excited to let folks know that Dan Finkel of Math for Love has scaled up 21st Century Pattern Blocks production and availability. They've been available here on this site for a few years now. At first I was making them on a maker-space laser cutter, then...
I was invited recently to give a talk to Reach Out and Read Minnesota, a lovely organization that supports early literacy development by connecting with children and caregivers in medical offices. They are beginning to explore similar work for early math...
I am thrilled to offer you a quick tour of the TMF (the Turtle Manufacturing Facility). Let's start outside, near a bustling street corner here in Saint Paul, Minnesota. In the street-level windows, we have a small Public Math project. We have rendered a scaled-up...
If you have children in your life who are between the ages of four and ten, you need a Pattern Machine. I'm going to tell you what a Pattern Machine is, and then tell you why you need one (or more). What Is a Pattern Machine? A Pattern Machine starts out as a...
I have read a lot of books in the last year. There have been some lovely novels, a bit of nonfiction, parts of a textbook about the mathematics of patterns. Through it all, one page sticks out vividly in my memory, from Grace Lin's The Last Marshmallow. Simple....
The Circle Game was new at Math On-A-Stick this year. Here's how it works: Pick your circle. We have small (4 inches in diameter), medium (6 inches), and large (8 inches).Fill it with bottle caps of various sizes and colors, but without stacking or squashing.Each...
At Math On-A-Stick, we have several plastic bins full of colorful plastic eggs, and a large collection of bulk egg trays—each with five rows of six egg cups. They are very popular with the young ones. When young children approach the eggs table, it is clear to them...