Euclid the Game

A really nice website just stumbled upon is Euclid the Game.

This game starts by challenging you to construct an equilateral triangle, given a segment, with just 3 simple tools that approximate a straightedge and compass.

From there, you progress through some standard constructions that everyone should know (but none do, of course – that makes it more fun). I can’t wait to see how far these constructions progress.

Bard Math Circle Survey – please participate!

Dear Math Circle Participant,
Please help us measure the impact of our math circles by participating in the following math circle survey:

Math Circle Survey: http://goo.gl/vO77DM

This survey is being conducted by the National Association of Math Circles (NAMC), a program of the Math Science Research Institute (MSRI) of Berkeley, CA. The Bard Math Circle has received support from NAMC in the form of several mini-grants over the years, which has helped us provide math enrichment programming at no charge. For more details, you can read our annual reports at the bottom of our documents page: http://www.bardmathcircle.org/p/math-circle-problem-sets.html
The math circle movement in the US is at a very early stage of development, and mathematicians across the country are sharing math problems, lesson plans, and developing best practices. NAMC and other groups support math circle activities, and seek funding through grants and donations. This survey is intended to quantitatively measure the impact of math circle activities, and this information will be of enormous help in improving programming, and gaining additional funding.
To participate in the survey, your parent or guardian must sign the waiver form on the first page of the survey. It’s a little over the top in terms of legalese, but that is standard for high quality surveys designed to collect data for educational studies. Please do participate!
Sincerely,

Japheth

Japheth Wood, PhD
Bard Math Circle

Chess in the Clove

Saturday, May 10, 2014
Platte Clove School Chess Club
2255 Platte Clove Road, Elka Park, NY 12427
Swiss Tournament Challenge
Three Grade Groupings: 1-3;4-6;7-8 Unrated—5 Rounds
No Entry Fee
Trophies to Top 3 in Each Group Team Awards for 1
st, 2nd, and 3rd Place Medals to All with 2.5 or More Points Certificates for All!
Free Refreshments during Tournament
Participants and family members
Welcome to Dinner with Platte Clove Community after Tournament
Check-in: 11:00am
Games Start: 12:00am Awards: 5:00pm Dinner: 6:00pm
Please pre-register by May 7, 2014
email: pcschess@mailstack.com Or Call 518-589-5103

Pi-Ku – Pi Day Haiku!

Bailey Middle School held a Pi-Ku contest, and math teacher Sheila Shaffer reports that they received over 100 entries in two categories:
  • Use of imagery
  • Really about pi/circles/etc

The directions were that it had to be about circles.
And now the winners!
Imagery winner- Indira Delacorte (6th grade)
      Undisturbed
      Plant stalk blows on sand, forming a circle.  Salt stings my eyes.
      Pi, I think, patterns of delicacy, never repeating.
Circle winner- Kaitlyn  McDowell (6th grade)
      Pi, so fine.
      I thought that it was edible, but I can’t eat numbers
      So I ate the piece of paper that I wrote the numbers on.
Congratulations, and Happy Pi Day!

Summer Math Programs

It’s time to start thinking of the summer. Many students attend summer academic programs, and here are lists of the math camps that have the best reputations across the country:

These can be very different programs, so please leave questions, comments or anecdotes in the comments below.

Supporting your Child as a High Achiever in Math and Science

While students took the AMC 8 Exam at Bard College on November 19, 2013, parents were invited to attend a panel discussion on Supporting your Child as a High Achiever in Math and Science. Here is some information about the panel members, panel discussion, and additional information sheets below.

PANEL MEMBERS

Halle Kananack, (moderator) math educator and consultant
Halle Kananack is a K-12 math coach. She also leads professional development sessions for teachers, and is a writer for a Common Core-aligned math curriculum. A former middle school and high school math teacher, Halle also taught at SUNY Ulster, through the Bard Prison Initiative, and for a variety of adult-ed and GED-prep programs. Halle is passionate about math education and its potential to mentally empower us. She believes that genuine understanding, creative thinking, and having fun are essential ingredients to the math experience.

Ben Houston, STEM Professional
Ben Houston is the parent of an 8th grader and a 4th grader who both excel at math and science. He is a licensed professional engineer and currently works in digital mapping, having cross trained in cartography, geodesy and surveying. To him, math and science are like art: something found in the beauty of everyday life, and by making such topics simply an extension of everyday life as opposed to isolated academic endeavors, kids can then be free to explore them with fun, freedom and creativity.

Jing Ju, Parent
Jing Ju is a full-time mom of two boys. She was previously a software engineer with advanced degrees in science and engineering. She grew up in China, and everyone in her family loves math.
She has a positive attitude towards math and really believes that Math is beautiful, math is fun, and math is straightforward.
Jing Ju has higher academic standards, and she helps kids practice math skills through games.
She encourages kids to explore their math potential. They are allowed to learn math according to their own pace.

Deborah Mosher, NY State Master Teacher
Debby Mosher is a math teacher at Linden Avenue Middle School in Red Hook New York, where she has taught 7th grade math and 7th grade accerated math for 15 years. Previously, she was a computer programmer at IBM where she worked on mathematical modeling of computer software and hardware. She recently was named a Master Teacher in New York State. One of her mathematical interests is learning about the lives and contributions of famous mathematicians in history, and using that material to create excitement for students in math class.

Japheth Wood, Bard Math Professor
Japheth Wood is a math professor at Bard College. He directs the Bard Math Circle and the New York Math Circle, and works with both pre-service and in-service math teachers in New York City and the Mid-Hudson Valley. He sees math circles as a low-stakes math enrichment activity that has potential to inspire and prepare students and teachers mathematically, and a way to connect mathematical professionals, teachers and parents to support mathematical education in ways that are not possible otherwise.

Questions

For Math, we have heard about AMC, MathCounts, MathOlympiad, CML etc, what are such similar, well defined programs and resources for Science for Middle Schoolers?

What career opportunities can my daughter explore in math and science, and how can I support her when she starts to think about career choices and colleges with a focus in math and science?

Does Bard support math circle students by offering any summer programs for students?

Additional Information

Supporting High Achieving Middle School Math Students
Eli Byers & Deborah Mosher, New York State Master Teachers

Information Sheet from Mrs. Lin

More information to come! If there is information you’d like to include but isn’t here, please email bardmathcircle@gmail.com.