SET is a card game that inspires many mathematical questions from players of all levels—from primary students to research mathematicians. Mathematical ideas in SET include counting and combinatorics, probability, geometry, modular arithmetic, vectors, and linear algebra. The book 'The Joy of SET' is a very accessible deep dive into many of these topics. I've outlined … Continue reading Connecting SET with geometry
Category: games
Skyscrapers
This is a quick post mainly for the benefit of my 'Developing Mathematical Thinking' (#math1070) students. Introducing the puzzle Skyscrapers are one of my favourite logic puzzles. They are a Japanese creation, introduced at the first World Puzzle Championship1 in 1992. Skyscrapers are a type of Latin Square puzzle. A Latin Square in an n × n … Continue reading Skyscrapers
Redux: #NoticeWonder and #PrimeClimb
Last year I wrote a post about using the two simple questions 'What do you notice?' and 'What do you wonder?' with my maths pre-service teachers to dig into the mathematically-rich image that accompanies Dan Finkel's game, Prime Climb. This year, I wanted to turn this into a student-driven rather than teacher-led activity. I also … Continue reading Redux: #NoticeWonder and #PrimeClimb
#NoticeWonder and Rational Tangles
Yesterday we held the first of this year's Maths Experience days. We invite students in Years 10 and 11 from different schools onto campus for an intensive one-day program. Students find out about mathematical research, talk to professionals who use mathematics in their careers in some way, and participate in hands-on mathematics workshops. Importantly, they also meet and connect with other students … Continue reading #NoticeWonder and Rational Tangles
Counting in unexpected ways
It was a delight to recently spend five days working with students and teachers in Alice Springs at the invitation of MTANT, the Mathematics Teachers Association of the Northern Territory. I then spent a week in bed with the flu, which is one reason I've recently lost my voice (both physically and online). The main purpose of the visit was to join … Continue reading Counting in unexpected ways
Ramsey’s party problem
I love games that require no special equipment because they can be played at a moment's notice. This is one of my favourite pen-and-paper games. It is played on the complete graph K6. In other words, a board with six dots where each dot is connected to every other dot by a line. Although the game-board can … Continue reading Ramsey’s party problem
The Joy of SET
Just over a week ago I shared one of my favourite mathematical puzzles. Today I'm sharing my favourite mathematical game, SET. There is something in this game for young children to mathematics professors. I give SET workshops each year, for Year 8 students up. My slides are here, along with some notes I wrote several years ago. I suggest at … Continue reading The Joy of SET
