5 Maths Gems #17

Ho-ho-hello together with welcome to my seventeenth weekly gems post. This is where I circular upwards some of the best maths didactics ideas I’ve seen on Twitter. I’ve got some crackers for you lot today. 

1. Balancing

Do you lot retrieve inward Gems 13 when I featured the vivid balancing problems from Don Steward? My readers loved them! Well this calendar week Damian Watson (@dwatson802) shared the visual algebra puzzle website SolveMe Mobiles which has similar problems for purpose on an interactive whiteboard, tablet or computer. The website, from the Education Development Center, allows users to both create together with solve mobiles. The website says that 'the logic of these puzzles is the same every bit the logic behind the solving of equations together with systems of equations, exactly the visual format makes these puzzles, together with the logic they develop, accessible together with appealing...'. 

And there's already been some skilful feedback on Twitter:

2. Blanks

Sarah Aldous (@mathsfeedback) shared a prissy sentiment for didactics logs that could last used for a publish of topics. The sentiment is that you lot position questions upwards around the room together with students reply on a post-it, exactly their reply must differ from the answers already given.

Here's my examples of similar questions for fractions:

together with indices:

You learn the idea. Students brand suggestions for the blanks together with inward doing hence they demonstrate their agreement of the topic. Plus, they receive got to intend creatively if their sentiment has already been taken.

3. Dictionary
Steven W. Anderson (maths lexicon for kids. This lexicon from Jenny Eather is actually lovely - it's the best maths lexicon I've seen for students. Definitions come upwards alongside examples together with interactivity. Here's the definition of the intelligence following (check out the website yourself to play alongside the interactive features).

And here's the definition of sector. Again, it's interactive.

And here's 2 to a greater extent than examples - palindromic together with perpendicular.

4. Simultaneous Equations

I honey this Linear Simultaneous Equations.

5. Whiteboards (again!)

I've written well-nigh vertical whiteboards together with acrylic sheets earlier (see Gems 7) - I honey these ideas together with promise that 1 twenty-four hr current I receive got the budget to practice both.  Andrew Stadel (blog post this calendar week well-nigh his sense of using large whiteboards - it's good worth a read. One sentiment is 'Placemat':

If students are working on a chore together, they operate individually on split sections of a large whiteboard, hence purpose the centre to tape their terminal answer. This approach helps students compare their operate together with back upwards each other. It's likewise a skilful means for the instructor to assess private agreement together with depository fiscal establishment lucifer that everyone is contributing to grouping discussion.

Another sentiment is Brain Dump:

Here nosotros receive got an picture inward the middle together with students write downward everything they know well-nigh it inward their private sections, earlier they compare together with hash out their answers.

And nosotros receive got Number Talks:

In this instance a publish is written inward the middle together with students operate inward their private sections to write downward every bit many ways they tin compass the sack intend of to brand that number. 

Do read Andrew's postal service for the total details together with links to lots to a greater extent than ideas. If your division doesn't receive got the budget to purchase large whiteboards or acrylic sheets hence you lot could purpose flipchart newspaper for these activities. Whiteboards are much amend though, because of the power of the eraser ('because the markings tin compass the sack last easily erased, students are at nowadays inclined to write without hesitation') - you lot tin compass the sack read well-nigh this inward the fantabulous post Whiteboards vs. Chart Paper by Thomas Ro (@MrT_Ro). 

That's it for this week. I'll exit you lot alongside a smashing work for your students from UKMT, shared past times Matt Smith (@mathsmatt). Find the angles inward the rhombus, assuming there's 1 equilateral together with 3 isosceles triangles.