Iris Mack's Blog - Mathematics Education

Thanks for Your Vote to Help Phat Math Qualify for a Chase Grant

Sat, 30 Jun 2012 16:00:00 --0100

Check out how we exceeded our goal for the Chase grant - with plenty of time to spare. Thanks!

Fun Teaching Moments: Musical Instruments for Kids

Sat, 17 Dec 2011 12:56:00 --0100

Several of my friends laughed when I told them I bought musical instruments for my youngest nephews - ages 2, 5, and 6. I bought them a tambourine, maracas, bongos and a xylophone. We are going to start a kiddie band this Christmas. BTW, I bought ear plugs for their parents! LOL! After some thought, one of my friends emailed: "Musical instruments, you gave me an idea... those kids have everything these days.. it's so hard to find something original to buy for them." I replied: "You can't go wrong with musical instruments. I ordered inexpensive kids' versions via amazon.com. You can teach lots of things with music - math (fractions, counting, etc.), discipline, fun, team work, etc. I know this from personal experience - having played musical instruments since 5th grade." If you can't afford to buy the musical instruments, you can try making some - a bongo for example. You can make your own. There are instructions on the internet. Happy holidays!

Miss USA 2011: Should Math Be Taught In Schools? (video)

Thu, 11 Aug 2011 19:01:00 --0100

I am assuming this is a joke. Right? Otherwise, America is in big trouble!

Some Tutors Treated Like Celebrities in Hong Kong (video)

Tue, 31 May 2011 17:45:00 --0100

With their glamorous photographs splashed across Hong Kong billboards, celebrity tutors enjoy a near cult-like status - and millionaire lifestyles - in the exam-obsessed city.

PhatMath Included in "25 Useful Networking Sites for Grad Students"

Tue, 03 May 2011 16:24:00 --0100

The math edutainment social network PhatMath has been included in the 25 Useful Networking Sites for Grad Students. This list also includes some heavyweights - linkedin, facebook, twitter, plaxo, youtube, etc.

Mastery-Based Learning (video)

Sat, 09 Apr 2011 22:39:00 --0100

Is this the classroom of the future?

Iris Mack on Huffington Post: "Outside the U.S., Math Isn't Just for Boys"

Mon, 21 Mar 2011 23:57:00 --0100

I hope you enjoy my recent article on Huffington Post.

Doodling in Math Class: Snakes + Graphs (video)

Sun, 19 Dec 2010 19:17:00 --0100

My, things have changed since I studied math! Watch this math teacher doodle with snakes and graphs!

Ancient Egyptian Math Is Identical To Math Used In Modern Computers (video)

Fri, 17 Dec 2010 07:17:00 --0100

In 2008 mathematician and author Michael S. Schneider put together this incredible video illustrating how the mathematics used by Ancient Egyptians is identical to that used in computers today.

TED TV: Teaching Kids Real Math With Computers (video)

Thu, 18 Nov 2010 05:22:00 --0100

From rockets to stock markets, many of humanity's most thrilling creations are powered by math. So why do kids lose interest in it? Conrad Wolfram says the part of math we teach -- calculation by hand -- isn't just tedious, it's mostly irrelevant to real mathematics and the real world. He presents his radical idea: teaching kids math through computer programming.