In my very first Sine of the Times blog post from January 2012, I wrote about the paucity of fractions that young learners typically encounter in their math classes. While they might construct visual representations of 1/2, 2/3, and 8/12, it's unlikely they'll create models of 7/31, 36/19, or 5/101. That's a shame because without … Continue Reading ››
Angles are a thorny concept to teach because of the fundamentally different ways in which they can be used and understood. In the article What's Your Angle on Angles?, the authors divide the concept of angle into three main groups: angle-as-figure, angle-as-wedge, and angle-as-turn. In the Web Sketchpad game below (and here), we focus on angle-as-turn. Given an … Continue Reading ››
In my recent posts, I've introduced interactive models for comparing fractions and multiplying fractions. To continue the fraction theme, below (and here) is a Web Sketchpad model in which the need for equivalent fractions arises naturally through the rules of a game. The model displays two arrays. Dragging the four points changes the arrays' dimensions. The goal is to drag … Continue Reading ››
Metamorphosis is a New York-based company that offers professional content coaching to transform the mindset and practice of both teachers and administrators. I recently had the pleasure to collaborate with Metamorphosis staff members Toni Cameron and Kara Levin as well as mathematics coach Ariel Dlugasch from P.S. 276 in a coaching learning community that brought … Continue Reading ››
News alert! Scott and I wrote the cover story, Connecting Functions in Geometry and Algebra, in this month's Mathematics Teacher. You can read the article in print, but better yet, go to the free online version. This is the first time Mathematics Teacher has incorporated live dynamic-mathematics figures into its online offerings, allowing readers to manipulate … Continue Reading ››
For the past few years, Scott Steketee and I have collaborated with the author team of Everyday Mathematicsto integrate Web Sketchpad deeply into their curriculum. As part of that work, I just completed a websketch that nicely mixes practice with logical reasoning. Students are challenged to find a hidden treasure on … Continue Reading ››
Four years ago, my colleague Scott Steketee and I set out to develop an interactive game to help students develop strategies for thinking about and solving multiplication problems. As we examined the existing apps on the market, we discovered that most focused on the drill aspect of learning one's multiplication facts. We set our goals higher. We … Continue Reading ››
March 2023 UPDATE: If the dilation games below whet your appetite for challenges based on transformations,check out these Reflection and Rotation gamesas well. What does dilation feel like? I recently had the opportunity to work with a group of students who were testing activities that treat geometric transformations as functions (what … Continue Reading ››
In a prior blog post, I introduced my new puzzle, Arranging Addends, that mixes arithmetic with logical thinking to create an engaging playground for mathematical discovery. Let’s revisit this puzzle and introduce some new variations. Take a look at the puzzle below (and here), built with Web Sketchpad. Your goal is to arrange … Continue Reading ››