2024 Northwest Mathematics Conference

This presentation follows my last year’s with new puzzles. You will be given a number of the best simple, yet challenging, Mathematical puzzles, conundrums and paradoxes that I could find to solve using your creative, lateral, logical, inductive & analytical thinking, however the surprising answers will seem very counter-intuitive! You will be able to share these entertaining and educational puzzles with your students to naturally enhance their curiosity and interest with Mathematical topics. These activities are not really about numbers, since Mathematics truly isn't about numbers, its about thinking logically!  

In this workshop we will dream up, design, and install place-based math provocations. While this experience will be anchored in the place we are in together, Public Math design principles are easily applied anywhere. We may even take this session beyond the room. Enter with a desire to spark math curiosity in others; leave with ideas, inspiration, and tools to enact public math in your own community. 

In September 2024 the St. Johns neighborhood in Portland will host its 4th annual Public Math Day. Learn how organizers brought businesses in this community together to create a place-based math event for families. We included math walks, math play, and math books read by local authors within our day. What elements could your own Public Math Day include? Leave with a playbook to design a delightful day of math for your own community.

One of the features of a rich math task is that it should provide access for all learners - a low threshold and a high ceiling. We'll explore a variety of rich math tasks and be mindful of what makes them rich, and how they provide meaningful and connected experiences for all learners. The tasks chosen will be appropriate for Intermediate grades, but I will also discuss how each could be adapted to be appropriate for Primary and Secondary grade levels.

Every class has a diverse and unique mathematical landscape. In this workshop, we will discuss how we develop meaningful and dynamic math learning through the use of the natural environment, individual perspectives, shared experiences, and the BC curriculum. We will share strategies for embracing fluid and emergent inquiry-based learning in your classroom and we will highlight ways to harness children's natural curiosities and transform them into meaningful math moments. Join us as we navigate the dynamic world of math, where every classroom holds its own treasure trove of learning opportunities waiting to be discovered!

Storytelling in mathematics creates opportunities for children to connect math to their daily lives and the world around them through joyful learning experiences. During this session, examples from primary classrooms will be shared as students engage in problem solving, problem posing, and mathematical storytelling. Different starting points and materials to inspire students will be shared. The mathematical focus of the session will be on developing number concepts, computational fluency, and spatial reasoning.