Math Links for Week Ending May 23rd, 2014

How many bird craps does it take to crush a Smart Car? You had me at "bird crap" Mr. Orr. I love this 3Act task that can be used for proportional reasoning. I also love that in the course of the Tweeting and such, Smart actually responded with an info graphic of how many craps it would take from various birds.
Curriculum Tags: Gr7, Gr8, MPM1D, MFM1P
http://mrorr-isageek.com/?p=3046

And another one from Mr. Orr. This time that classic question of calculating the distance from one corner to the opposite corner of a box. Done as a 3acts, this would be fine for any class working on Pythagorean theorem.
Curriculum Tags, Gr8, MPM1D, MFM1P
http://mrorr-isageek.com/?p=3028



I am a big fan of personal white boards for students. And John Scammell has done a nice job talking about what he has learned about using them in classes. Here are his pros:

• How their work “pops” off the boards so that I can see it easily. As I circulate, it’s so easy to provide feedback. 
• How comfortable students are working on a dry-erase surface. They are not afraid to try things. They are not afraid to make mistakes. 
• How easy it is to group and pair students to give and receive feedback from peers when their work is on whiteboards.

It is a really strange thing about how kids will take more chances on these white boards then they will on regular paper and pencil. You can check out the rest of his post here.
Curriculum Tags: All
http://thescamdog.wordpress.com/2014/05/19/whiteboards-in-math/

And if we are going to talk about personal whiteboards we might as well talk about the electronic version. That is, using apps like Educreations, Explain Everything, Doceri etc. I wasn't able to see her session but Dan Meyer saw Marion Small talk about how to use one of these apps to capture student thinking. So as student solve a problem, they record what they are thinking with the app (including all the problems and mistakes). In this way, when you review the recording you can get a better idea of misconceptions that a student might have. And I like the street cred that Dan brings here as one of the creators of Educreations was actually participating in the comment section.
Curriculum Tags: All
http://blog.mrmeyer.com/2014/the-most-interesting-use-of-educreations/

And while we are on the Dan Meyer train, we might as well talk about this new 3Act task that is about expected value.
Curriculum Tags: MDM4U
http://blog.mrmeyer.com/2014/3acts-money-duck/

And we might as well finish of with a quote that Dan made at the workshop he gave in Windsor last week that seemed to have a lot of play on the Twitter.
Curriculum Tags: All

"If you got into math teaching because you were good at math then it's tough to understand why kids struggle" - @ddmeyer #oame #mathchat
— David Petro (@davidpetro314) May 17, 2014

A few weeks back I spoke some of the discussion going on on the web about Common Core and "New Math". Here is a nice video that kinda sums it up, I think. Thanks to Cathy Yenca for this one
Curriculum Tags: All
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0aeyAN0Axo

And finally this week, Randal Munroe's (XKCD, What if) TED talk on his What If website. The best thing about this site (there are many good things) is the fact that he is basically using the Fermi problem as the estimation method.
Curriculum Tags:All
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I64CQp6z0Pk

Math Links for Week Ending Sept 20th, 2013

I really like Adam spencer. Maybe it's because he has a Phd in math but chooses to be a morning radio DJ. Or maybe because he is really good at taking complex ideas and making them understandable by most humans (usually in a humorous way). Here is his TED talk on prime numbers. Another great offering is his Book of Numbers where he looks at all the mathematical properties (and oddities) of the first 100 numbers.

Curriculum Tags: All
http://www.ted.com/talks/adam_spencer_monster_prime_numbers.html

I am a big fan of having part of an assessment being done with technology. Having taught math for several years in a computer lab I would regularly have part of the test done on the computer. I like how Amy Gruen mixed the use of cards and iPads running Desmos to do just that. Specifically here when it comes to transformations but you could see that this could be adapted to just about any topic. 

Curriculum Tags: MBF3C, MCF3M, MCR3U, MCT4C, MAP4C, MHF4U

http://squarerootofnegativeoneteachmath.blogspot.com/2013/08/desmos-test-question.html

Real World math is a site that uses the power of Google Earth and Google Sketchup (both free apps) to bring math to the real world. With lessons that are as simple as estimation to as complex as intersection of planes in 3D (with volume, line graphs and more in between). One small caveat. As a teacher you have rights to the full lessons but you have to request a password first. So you fill out a small form and they email you one. Simple as that. Thanks to Paul Georges for this one
Curriculum Tags: All
http://www.realworldmath.org/

I love this series who's limit is e. Shown very nicely here on Desmos. I especially like the fact that in the table of values you can see the series being built.

Curriculum Tags: MCR3U, MHF4U
https://www.desmos.com/calculator/g0wfrqghzz

Having good questioning skills is not something you are born with. It is an acquired skill. Fear not. Here is a blog post that will give you 26 ways you can switch up your questions. 

Curriculum Tags: All
http://mathforum.org/blogs/max/26-questions-you-can-ask-instead/

You can always count on Yummy Math for quality resources. Here are a few of their more recent ones. As always the handout is free but to get the editable version and solutions you need to be a member.

This one is about the amount of caffeine in various brands if coffee. 

Curriculum Tags: Gr7, Gr8, MDM4U
http://www.yummymath.com/2013/how-much-caffeine/

This next one deals with a good topic for students. Does it pay to go to school. It may start out as if its a data management prompt (which it could be) but you can see how this can turn into something more when you deal with the wage values over the span of decades (and perhaps include interest calculations)
Curriculum Tags: Gr7, Gr8, MCF3M, MCR3U, MBF3C, MDM4U
http://www.yummymath.com/2013/does-it-pay-to-get-educated/

This last one combines slope and Pythagorean theorem when talking about slopes of mountain trails. Since it has slope, this could be used in grade 8 as an extension or be modified to focus mainly on Pythagorean Theorem.
Curriculum Tags: MPM1D, MFM1P, MFM2P,
http://www.yummymath.com/2013/steepness-and-fall-hiking/


I have some mixed feelings about this site but agree with it in principle. Nix the Trix is a site that tries to address the prevalence of using "tricks" to teach math concepts. Think "move the negative to the other side and change the sign". I know that I have been guilty of teaching these in the past but I think I am evolving. By teaching these tricks we gain time in the short term perhaps but students only make those gains in the short term as well. That is, if they don't have the conceptual reason a "trick" works then its just that, a trick, and not a mathematic concept. Just one more rule to memorize with no meaning. No wonder we have to re teach so much from year to year. That being said this site tries to address these ideas in the form of an evolving Google Doc. Take a look.
Curriculum Tags: All
http://nixthetricks.com/

I really love this first day activity. It uses the "What do you know/notice/wonder?" theme. First get them thinking about math in general, then your course, then at the end hit them with a few questions to show the skills they have. In the activity on this post he uses a picture of the ISS but on a similar activity he uses this picture of an underwater bridge. You can see the results of the activity here.
Curriculum Tags: All
http://mathteachermambo.blogspot.ca/2013/07/first-day-precalculus.html

Really quick one from Dan Meyer. Perfect as a Minds On when talking about transformations in grade 7 or 8. Of course there is no need to show students this video, just create your own and work the magic in your own classes.
Curriculum Tags: Gr7, Gr8
http://blog.mrmeyer.com/?p=16933

I like this as a way to introduce trig functions in MCR3U and MCF3M. Follow the link to see the full idea of the lessons. But watch the video to get a sense of how to introduce the concept.
Curriculum Tags: MCR3U, MCF3M
http://rationalexpressions.blogspot.ca/2013/09/the-first-three-days-of-trigonometry.html

Here is a great discussion starter about outliers
Curriculum Tags: MDM4U
http://untilnextstop.blogspot.ca/2013/09/heres-graph-that-makes-statement.html

Math Links for Week Ending Sept. 13th, 2013

I am not sure how long this has been around but it seems to be a repository for all of the in house created sketches for GSP. Very inviting site and these sketches really exploit the power of Geometer's Sketchpad. There is stuff for all grade levels and even an indicator for those sketches that are iPad friendly.
Curriculum Tags: All
http://www.dynamicnumber.org/

Despite the title of this TEDx talk (Why Math Instruction is Unnecessary) I like how John Bennett takes us on his journey of discovery that much of the math that we teach is basically just a construct of our curriculum and not really necessary for everyday life. But the real focus of his message is that problem solving and critical thinking are.
Curriculum Tags: All
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyowJZxrtbg

Many have long said that mathematics was the way to a high paying job. Well now I guess we have the data to prove it. The US Census has always asked about income and level of schooling but in their most recent surveys they have also asked what people's majors were. The Planet Money people have a great podcast on the results (long and short versions below). And the survey says: Applied math (engineering, computer science etc) seems top the list. What's at the bottom? Psychology. A couple of things that resonated with me about this were a) that, in general, it didn't matter where you got your degree and b) it really had more to do with supply and demand. If you want the actual pdf of the full study click here.
Curriculum Tags: All
Long version http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2013/09/11/221417806/episode-485-whats-your-major
Short version http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2013/09/10/219372252/the-most-and-least-lucrative-college-majors-in-1-graph

I am way behind on the I Speak Math blog posts but this one about how now there are more #mathchat had a Twitter chat about the math topic of the day. Now there are these more specific chats that go on. From middle school math all the way to calculus and statistics. Take a look here for your favourite topic.
specific "chats" about math on Twitter now. For a while every Monday and Friday (I think)
Curriculum Tags: All
http://ispeakmath.org/2013/09/02/weekly-math-subject-chats-are-live-now/

Another great TED talk about visualizing data. Chris Jordan is an artist who creates social commentary art that is often more than it seems (when you look closely at it). For example an image of the Titanic made of 67000 images of mushroom clouds (equal to the number of metric tons of uranium/plutonium being stored temporarily around the US). Check out his website (http://www.chrisjordan.com/) to be able to zoom into his works (there are a lot of them). Here is a perfect way to mix social justice and data management.
Curriculum Tags: MDM4U
http://www.ted.com/talks/chris_jordan_pictures_some_shocking_stats.html

"Would you rather...." is a blog that specializes in posing questions that asks the reader to make a choice of two similar situations and use math to justify that choice. There are a lot of different math topics that could be used here but it seems many fit into the Number Sense strand (I could be wrong here as I just skimmed the site). None the less these are great starting points for math conversations.
Curriculum Tags: Gr7, Gr8, MFM1P, MPM1D
http://wyrmath.wordpress.com/

These math "mysteries" are all really attainable for many students to understand (ie they can easily mechanically verify them) but they are some of the most famous unproven theorems. A neat way for students to see how proving something definitely can be very difficult. Included are the Goldbach Conjecture, Perfect Numbers and Mersenne Primes (plus people have suggested others)
Curriclum Tags: All
http://plus.maths.org/content/maths-minute-number-mysteries



I like this App to visualize Factoring from NCTM's Illuminations. Too bad it doesn't work on an iPad but its a nice visualization
Curriculum Tags: Gr7, Gr8
http://illuminations.nctm.org/ActivityDetail.aspx?ID=64

Here is a great way to introduce FOIL in secondary and in elementary I like the suggestion made by @emergentmath "Here's your lesson plan tomorrow: Stop the video after 1:30 and ask "why does this work?""
Curriculum Tags: Gr7, Gr8, MPM1D, MFM2P
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYrgjMubh-c

I don't think you will ever need to describe how a Venn diagram works if you just show this example. There are more on the main site (http://stephenwildish.co.uk/) though not all dealing with data.
Curriculum Tags: MDM4U
http://stephenwildish.co.uk/images/holy.jpg

Redbull sponsored a contest to take the image of extreme thrill seekers in action. Some cool pix but this one fits quite well with modelling quadratics. Just import this into GSP or Geogebra and model the strobed snow boarder with a quadratic. Note that it may look kind of flattened out but that has to do with the fact that the snow boarder is rotating in flight. But it's the centre of mass that follows a parabolic arc.
Curriculum Tags: MPM2D, MFM2P, MBF3C, MCF3M, MCR3U
http://www.wired.com/rawfile/2013/09/red-bull/#slideid-39351

Math Links for Week Ending Dec 28, 2012

Possibly one of the best TED talks on data visualization. David McCandless (who calls himself a data journalist) shows simple representations of data that convey a very definite message. None of the vagueness of normal graphs. Check out the stuff on his website too: http://www.davidmccandless.com/
Curriculum tags: MDM4U, Gr7DM, Gr8DM

How much would a gallon cost? Here is a great ratio & proportions activity that looks at what certain things would cost if purchased by the gallon (for example Mio drink mix). Worksheets are included
http://www.mathycathy.com/blog/2012/11/i-am-a-witness-to-perplexity/
Curriculum tags: MPM1D, MFM1P, Gr7PA, Gr8PA

Visual Patterns is a new website launched by Fawn Nguyen (check her own post about it here). The site is for helping students develop algebraic thinking through visual patterns. This should be perfect for the intro to linear growing patterns or linear relations, even non linear growing patterns
http://www.visualpatterns.org/
Curriculum Tags: MPM2d, MFM2P, MPM1D, MFM1P, Gr7PA, Gr8PA

Here is a nice blog post about ideas for using student white boards in class. Need some whiteboards? Check out Spectrum or http://www.dryerase.com/
http://musingmathematically.blogspot.ca/2012/12/my-whiteboarding-framework.html
Curriculum Tags: All

Add to the list another site that students (both math and science) can access for video tutorials and online MC practice questions.
http://www.goorulearning.org/gooru/index.g#!/home
Curriculum Tags: All

Another TED talk, this time about the power of an algorithm. I like the bit about an algorithm that lead to a trench to be dug from NY to Chicago. All to save 3 milliseconds on a transaction. The first graph he shows is also pretty cool.
Curriculum Tags: MDM4U, All
Here is a YouTube video of Keith Devlin (NPR's Math Guy) having a debate about whether math is more of an art or a science. Its long though.
Curriculum Tags: All

XKCD doing what they do. Nice reference to Zeno's Paradox
Curriculum Tags: MCV4U

The media often gets it wrong. Here is a simple place value error. What makes it worse is its right in the headline.
Curriculum Tags: Gr7NS, Gr8NS