Another good game

Here’s another fun and think-y game to try: Combo King, from Gamewright. It’s got some in common with Yahtzee (rolling for particular combinations of things, adding, multiplying, etc.) but changes itself up from one turn to the next for, it seems, a more dynamic kind of play.  Don’t get me wrong – I’m a Yahtzee [...]

Raising participants

One of the arguments I hear for keeping kids in traditional school programs, even when those programs are not working, is that if you “let” kids focus on what they’re interested in and already good at, they’ll become too self-centered and involved in their own thing.  They won’t learn to be of service.  They won’t [...]

Mathematician’s Lament…

I’m not sure how I didn’t know about this book already, but I’m glad I do now.  It’s called  A Mathematician’s Lament, and begins with the following quote from Antoine de Saint-Exupéry: “If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people to collect wood and don’t assign them tasks and work, but rather teach [...]

Exercise for the brain…

Solitaire has acquired the reputation for being a popular way to waste time in an office job.  It certainly can be that, but it’s also an opportunity for building mental agility and acuity.  It can also be very meditative, fun, and otherwise great, for some.  For others, it’s terrifically boring. If you happen to know [...]

Reference can help the brain do its best work

The other day I was sitting with an 8 year-old as she wrote out the date.  At one point she turned to look behind her at the analog clock on the wall.  ”I always look at the clock to make sure my 9 is going the right way,” she told me. Kids who know they’re [...]

Marmaduke Multiply’s

I’ve lots to say about the flurry of ongoing excitement over Multiplication Facts, as they were, but as long as they continue to torment and elude many a young person (and older person, come to think of it), I shall continue to look for ways to make it a smoother ride.  The other day in [...]

Good Math Match

I was recommending a couple of math books today and realized that Marilyn Burns’* The I Hate Mathematics Book and Math for Smarty Pants make a good team.  The material is similar – offers a wider view of math than many publications and party lines – but the titles invite their readers to adhere to [...]

Math Practice for the Younger…

I hung on to a daily math practice book from my last classroom teaching job, and it’s proven a good keep.  It’s published by Great Source, and is set up as a quick review for a range of math concepts (place value, fractions and decimals, etc.).  It’s called Practice Counts, and comes in several different [...]

Great math practice for pre-algebra and beyond…

The title of Key Press’ Mathercise series is as accurate as could be – every page is exercise for the math brain. The pages contain three problems each – one reasoning, one solving, one sketching. As with other Key Press materials, the book doesn’t seem to put off students by crowding too much on a [...]