Saturday, June 23, 2018

So, in general, I think that what we specifically teach is not too important. So when a student might ask "When will I ever need _______?" My usual response was "never" but it's good brain fodder if you try to learn something. But this response from @fjmubeen to "When will I ever need Pythagoras?" Definitely worth the read.
Curriculum Tags: All
https://medium.com/q-e-d/when-will-i-ever-need-pythagoras-an-honest-response-767fe702113b
If you are looking to exploit the fact that you can program in CL (computational layer) with Desmos then posts like this recent one on the Des-blog is for you. You can start to see the power of some of the things you can do with CL in your arsenal
Curriculum Tags: All
http://blog.desmos.com/post/174703227987/friday-fave-for-june-8

I like this graphic showing what mathematicians do from @NM_Petty. Especially because notice and wonder are there as well as play with ideas and above all, have fun. Read the post for more details and give yourself a pat on the back if you already do these things to help build mathematicians early.
Curriculum Tags: All
https://creativemaths.net/blog/mathematicians-explore/

Some great ideas (9 points to be exact) from @MathforLove on rich tasks. I like that some of the examples are not that complex. Read here
Curriculum Tags: All
https://mathforlove.com/2018/06/nine-points-on-rich-math-tasks/

This is a slick app for making tessellations
Curriculum Tags: Gr7
https://twitter.com/mathemaniac/status/1008541876922839040
And if you want dynamic tessellation then look no further than @sumdumthum
Curriculum Tags: Gr7
https://twitter.com/SumDumThum/status/1010060652386213888


This would work for some fraction fun for sure
Curriculum Tags: Gr7, Gr8
https://twitter.com/Simon_Gregg/status/1008338814052511744


Here is some fun stuff from @benorlin on what if fairy tales were graphs.
Curriculum Tags: MPM1D, MFM1P
https://mathwithbaddrawings.com/2018/06/06/if-fairy-tales-were-graphs/



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Friday, June 15, 2018

Math Links for Week Ending Jun. 14th, 2018

 I saw this Tweet from @mathycathy talking about @saravanderwerf's post about Stand & Talks but my take away was this site I hadn't heard of before called mathhooks.com. On this site are images to start a conversation with students. I have added it to my Best of the Web tab on this blog.
Curriculum Tags: All
https://www.mathhooks.com/8th-grade-hooks

Wondering if teaching through tasks is something you can do? Fear not, @mathletepearce has you covered. Going from teaching through examples with a few tasks at the end of a unit to using tasks for the teaching (with consolidation). Take a look at all the insights on his post.
Curriculum Tags: All
https://tapintoteenminds.com/tasks-teach-lessons/

What a nice and simple Geogebra sketch from @markus_geogebra for kids to play around with and learn the connections between position. velocity and acceleration. Thanks to @mathstechnology for pointing this out.
Curriculum Tags: MCV4U
https://www.geogebra.org/m/pdNj3DgD



A couple of new podcasts to listen to from @BBCMoreorLess. One on whether we should call it math or maths (starts at 17:43) and the other does a good job of looking at some problems with statistics in a critical way, including a bit on estimating the number of wizards in the UK in the Harry Potter series. And then a new episode of the 10 Minute Teacher Podcast with @geraldaungst talking about his book the Five Principles of the Modern Math Classroom
Curriculum Tags: All
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p068w7c8
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p066x9fh
http://www.coolcatteacher.com/e320/

A pretty sweet little Desmos enhancement when manipulating graphs. Now an easy way to zoom in on just one axis using the shift key. Thanks to @jocedage for pointing this one out.
Curriculum Tags: All
https://twitter.com/Lustomatical/status/1007683194928365568


There is a new (to me) solving equations app that is intriguing but perhaps does too much to re enforce poor math habits. In his latest post @ddmeyer uses it to talk about what he looks for in technology and don't forget to look at Graspable Math's response to his post here.
Curriculum Tags: All
http://blog.mrmeyer.com/2018/the-four-questions-i-always-ask-about-new-technology-in-education/

So fun. 3D sinusoidal sculpture. Some great stuff on @mrswoldum's feed and absolutely check out her guest post on @saravanderwerf's blog with details on how it was made.
Curriculum Tags: MCR3U, MHF4U
https://saravanderwerf.com/2016/08/14/guest-post-popsicle-sticks-glitter-math-from-stephanie-woldhum/

Another great animated tessellation done with Desmos from @sumdumthum
Curriculum Tags: All
https://twitter.com/SumDumThum/status/1005995408890269696

What a great and rich pattern. So many different curricula can be looked at with this pattern (depending on how you look at it)
Curriculum Tags: All
https://twitter.com/fawnpnguyen/status/1005174059481481216

This is a great new feed to follow for interesting sets of data and representations. Thanks to @marybourassa for pointing it out.
Curriculum Tags: MDM4U
https://twitter.com/simongerman600/status/1006235880426819584


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Saturday, June 9, 2018

Math Links for Week Ending Jun. 8th, 2018

So here is some more evidence that you can use the thinking classroom model all the time and still cover your curriculum. In this case it's the grade 10 curriculum in BC but there is enough there to see some parallels with our own grade 10 curriculum here in Ontario. This is the masters thesis of @MsMariaAK which includes 18 problems to cover almost all of the curriculum. The full lesson ideas and content breakdown is in the write up.
Curriculum Tags: All
http://www.peterliljedahl.com/wp-content/uploads/Marias-Thesis-final.pdf


 We have updated the congruent triangles Desmos activity. Prior to this update, the dynamic part was done via an external WebSketch. Now it's all done within Activity Builder. It's a two day activity that investigates the nature of triangle congruency and then let's students practice (with some video solutions).
Curriculum Tags: Gr7
https://teacher.desmos.com/activitybuilder/custom/5b05be94b5f7a4090cea6374

We also added to the Geometry doc by including a construction activity for 60 and 30 degree angles. Students work through the Desmos activity while completing the same activity by hand to show how to construct these angles.
Curriculum Tags: Gr7
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1acfewNcogDfcp630BYHioT40XcioahzLp1Jnjl0ZJ9c/edit?usp=sharing





Hey math coaches, are you looking for ways to get some PD to your teachers? Why not try what @HTheijsmeijer did in her district. They offered voluntary after school PD to their teachers. They are a geographically large board so it was set up so it could be face to face or virtual. They did three sessions and they are all online for you to try out and adapt for your own board. Check out her post describing it all below
Curriculum Tags: All
http://modelthelearning.blogspot.com/2018/06/beginning-new-pd-adventure.html

This is not complete but I like where it's going. For students who are trying to wrap their heads around radian measure, this Desmos activity from @LukeSelfwalker is pretty neat. They have to use Radian measure to "unlock" the lock. Right now it's in the building stage but I'm sure it will get more complete over time so keep checking the link.
Curriculum Tags: MHF4U

Definitely some good probability calculations that can be done with this video (and analysis from @fivethirtyeight) where the Houston Rockets missed 27 3 pointers in a row.
Curriculum Tags: MDM4U
https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-odds-of-the-rockets-missing-that-many-3s-1-in-72000/?ex_cid=story-twitter


And speaking of thinking classrooms, I love this way that @alexoverwijk has constructed portable vertical surfaces. Now there really is no excuse. If you're building these, note the bricks embedded on the one side to make it less tippy.
Curriculum Tags: All
https://twitter.com/AlexOverwijk/status/1000086435964350466

You can always count on @monachilabi to have some interesting representations of data. In this case a scatter plot on the connection between acne and stress. Click on the Instagram link for the whole story.
Curriculum Tags: MPM1D, MFM1P, MDM4U, MAP4C
https://twitter.com/MonaChalabi/status/990981708903313409

Here's a nice little data set for students who are into pets
Curriculum Tags: Gr7, Gr8
https://twitter.com/MikeFlynn55/status/1002645269232738305

You and your students should find some patterns in these lights. What questions could you ask?
Curriculum Tags: Gr7, Gr8
https://twitter.com/DonFraser9/status/1003668172845674496


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Saturday, June 2, 2018

Math Links for Week Ending Jun. 1st, 2018

As the incoming president of the OAME, one of my jobs is to organize the annual Leadership Conference. So I did and registration is now open. So come to Windsor and see and hear @ddmeyer, @ctfosnot, @gfletchy and others talk about learning in the 21st century. More info at the link
Curriculum Tags: All
http://oame.on.ca/main/files/conference/L2018.pdf
 I like how @msbjacobs talks about the "box" method or area model of multiplying polynomials in his latest post. I like this method as it not only is visual but it builds on methods that students would have been familiar with from when they did two digit multiplication years ago.
Curriculum Tags: MPM1D, MFM1P, MPM2D, MFM2P
http://themathguy.blogspot.com/2018/05/thinking-outside-box.html




An integer game from @mathycathy is pretty simple and but could be versatile. Students create the game card by putting single digit integers on the card and then decide on the criteria for wining. Each team is assigned either vertical or horizontal and then someone starts by choosing a number in their row and that starts their tally. The other team then chooses their number in their column and that starts their tally. Then the game goes from there trying to get the largest (or the smallest or closest to zero) sum. Check out all the details at the link
Curriculum Tags: Gr7, Gr8
http://www.mathycathy.com/blog/2018/05/an-integer-game/

This is a neat comparison from @FawnpNguyen looking at how lesson planning is like cleaning the house. There are 9 points but really it was the summary that got me: "Like house cleaning, lesson planning can also be an asshole, especially on the weekends. "
Curriculum Tags: All
http://fawnnguyen.com/house-cleaning-and-lesson-planning/

I liked this thread that showed up on the Twitters about how to make the best use of online communities from @sarmatkd. Lot's of good stuff in the comments. Click on the link for all the threads that came of it.
Curriculum Tags: All
https://twitter.com/sarmatkd/status/1002492949257703425

A few from Would you Rather
Curriculum Tags:  All
http://www.wouldyourathermath.com/cookies/

http://www.wouldyourathermath.com/would-you-rather-68/

http://www.wouldyourathermath.com/dice/

http://www.wouldyourathermath.com/ice-cream/

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Saturday, May 26, 2018

Math Links for Week Ending May 25th, 2018

I have been tinkering a lot with Desmos Activity Builder using their Geometry tools, and have come up with over 20 activities that span grade 7-9 ( here in Ontario). They mostly focussing on investigating simple geometric properties but some are more elaborate. I have been trying them out in classes this week and have already found ways to change them to make them better. So new versions will be out soon. Check them out and give me some feedback on how they could be improved.
Curriculum Tags: Gr7, Gr8, MPM1D, MFM1P
http://engaging-math.blogspot.ca/p/desmos-activities_10.html


We have an EggHunt activity on our Engaging Math blog so perhaps that's why this stands out for me from @MathEqualsLove. Here the kids search for eggs and inside are questions about multiplying polynomials. It fits with Easter but really you could do this at any time of the year.
Curriculum Tags: MPM2D, MFM2P
https://mathequalslove.blogspot.ca/2018/05/multiplying-polynomials-egg-hunt.html

Maybe it's because it references one of my favourite stories about Van Halen or perhaps the connection to Freakonomics but really it's the idea that is good from @RobertKaplinsky. That is, the idea that by asking someone to lie, you can find out the truth about what they know (with a shout out to @MrOrr_Geek).
Curriculum Tags: All
https://robertkaplinsky.com/van-halen-king-solomon-formative-assessment-common/

I love this 40s condensation of a 75 min @alexoverwijk calculus class. Forget that it's calculus and just focus on the idea that you don't need to be telling kids stuff all the time.
Curriculum Tags: All
https://twitter.com/AlexOverwijk/status/999676094163947521

I'm trying to figure out what I could do with this image. It looks too cool to not use somewhere
Curriculum Tags: All
https://twitter.com/AllenMath/status/997664000534986754




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Friday, May 18, 2018

Math Links for Week Ending May 18th, 2018

 So last week I was tagged in couple of Tweets from @MathGeek76:


What followed is Twitter to the rescue. If you look in the comments to those Tweets then you will see many new versions of the original activity (see the first tweet for the original student version). And honestly I don't know where the latest version is now but I love the fact that how the versions show all the collaborators. It's turning into a nice little activity about estimation with some nice data management themes. Way to go Internet.
Curriculum Tags: Gr7, Gr8
https://teacher.desmos.com/activitybuilder/custom/5afd034967709753d5d377c4


There is a new resource in the Capacity Building Series. This one is on Fractions across the Curriculum. Fractions research is showing up all over the place now. It's good to know that we are on the forefront of this here in Ontario.
Curriculum Tags: All
http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/literacynumeracy/inspire/research/cbs-fraction-across-curiculum-en.pdf





This reminds me that you don't have to make a grand activity to help students make sense of the world. Sometimes you just ned to ask the right question(s). Here @MrOrrGeek takes a simple question and then digs deep into proportional reasoning. Take a look
Curriculum Tags: Gr7, Gr8, MPM1D, MFM1P
https://mrorr-isageek.com/how-we-can-anticipate-to-fuel-sense-making-stretching-trees/

I posted some of this last week and although @MSBJacobs intended this to be for grade 6 students, I think you can use this with all students grade 6 and above to help students get more comfortable with fractions. By using Open Middle style questions, this helps students do these and be correct in many ways. And one simple thing I like about these is how he uses these number tiles to help students only choose a number once.
Curriculum Tags: Gr7, Gr8, MPM1D, MFM1P
http://themathguy.blogspot.ca/2018/05/open-middle-fraction-problems.html

An interesting puzzle connected to Pythagorean Triples
Curriculum Tags: Gr8, MPM1D, MFM1P
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gBwexpG0IY


It's always fun to make fun of Nicholas Cage. But he's definitely been in a lot of movies. Here's some data about that.
Curriculum Tags: Gr7, Gr8, MDM4U
https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-five-types-of-nicolas-cage-movies/


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