1.
Welcome
2.
Exclusive Offer for subscribers ONLY
3.
Website of the Month – Election Time!
4.
Macdonalds Monopoly
5.
A brilliant wrong answer!
6.
BCME 7 Report
1.
Welcome to the April
2010 Newsletter!
Dear
Maths Friends- welcome to another newsletter packed with ideas for teaching
mathematics enjoyably! We have ideas about probability, general elections, the
power of mistakes and more. And all for free thanks to HP Calculators.
Firstly
a Very Happy April, which I know for many has meant a well-earned rest after a
hard term. For me it means – apart from
BCME7 in Manchester (of which more later) - the Brighton Marathon is finally
here, after months of preparation and build-up.
If
I do get round the whole course, it will be a minor miracle, and if I don’t, it
won’t be for lack of trying! Many of you (I have lost count but it is at least
20) have been extremely generous in your sponsorship, which now stands at around
£400.
If
anyone else among the 3,000 or so of you have ever found a useful idea for your
teaching amongst the pages of my monthly newsletters, can I ask one more time
whether you would very kindly consider sponsoring my
efforts? I would be eternally grateful, as would the vulnerable and the
homeless people of Brighton and Hove. If everyone were to give just £3 we would
reach our £10,000 target with ease.
Let’s
get on with it…first the good news:
2. Special Exclusive Offer for Subscribers ONLY
Last
month’s offer proved so popular that I now have no space available for the
summer term. Sorry to all who were hoping to book a date before the end of the
school year; thankfully there is still availability for most weeks in the
Autumn. Due to this, we have come up with a new offer this month. Remember,
these offers are ONLY for you – they are not available to anyone else, and will
NOT be mentioned on the website.
Here
goes: Any school making a firm booking for a visit during APRIL ONLY, for
the Autumn Term, either for consultancy, coaching, workshops or Magic shows,
will receive a free copy of ALL of the following: Magic For Kids, Top 20 Maths
Displays, 100 Top Tips for Top Maths Teachers, AND ‘30 Great Things to Do With a
Calculator’ (when it is FINALLY finished!)
Mention
that you are a subscriber at the time of booking to receive this offer, as I
will NOT be offering it universally: this is strictly an exclusive ‘thank you’
to subscribers.
3. Website of the month: Election Maths!
What
a gift May 6th is. There is so much great data coming in every day from newspapers,
news websites and more. After some extensive searching I have found a
particularly rich seam of ‘real’ data to help children understand what is going
on, and how mathematics can help us to understand and predict all sorts of
aspects of the general election.
Here
is the link to
the Ipsos Mori site with all the data you could ever want – my personal favourite
is page 15, as it shows a fascinating way to demonstrate a genuinely new fact!
Enjoy.
4. MacDonalds Monopoly is Here again!
In
these days of healthy eating, what better antidote than a spot of McMaths? Regular
subscribers will know that I am fascinated by the opportunities for mathematics
which this game throws up each April, despite not particularly wishing to
endorse the culinary mediocrity of the Golden Arches.
So,
once again, if you can bear it, head down to Maccie D’s and liberate a class
set of free game boards, then have a fabulous lesson on probability. What are
the chances of winning each prize? How could we work it out? (And please warn them not to fall for the
hoaxers on EBay who are ‘selling’ Mayfair – they can’t all have it!)
5. A Brilliant Wrong Answer
In
this season of ridiculous exam pressure, we can often become too focused on the
‘right answer’ and forget to give ourselves, and students, the chance to THINK
things through. This was brought home to me this week by my 5-year old son. He
said “Daddy, I know what nine and nine are – they’re 19.”
I
was very interested in this answer and asked how he worked it out. The answer
delighted me!
“Well
I know that ten and ten are 20 and nine is one less, so one less than 20 is
19.” Fascinating answer!
It
made me realize the importance of listening to, valuing and analyzing wrong
answers, and not just be obsessed by the right ones – I learnt a huge amount
about what my son does and doesn’t understand; far more so than if he had given
the right answer. Food for thought.
6. BCME 7
This four
day event, only held every four years, was held this year at the University of
Manchester. Everyone from the world of mathematics education was there: the Maths
Association, the Association for Teachers of Mathematics (yes, there are two,
don’t ask!), the NCETM, OFSTED, HMI, Marcus du Sautoy, ACME, exam boards,
consultants, advisors, publishers and most importantly lots of ‘proper’ primary
and secondary teachers. It doesn’t happen very often, but when it does it is
well worth attending. I thoroughly
enjoyed it, though it was hard work, as I was compering a couple of events (the
Quiz on the first night and the Mathematical Bingo on the last) as well as
delivering a couple of lectures. Many sessions made me think, perhaps Jane
Imrie’s (deputy director, NCETM) most of all.
That’s it
for this month - thanks yet again for being a subscriber, and remember, if you
enjoy the newsletter, please encourage others to sign up at http://andrewjeffrey.co.uk/newsletter.asp
AJx
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