New Year; New Platform

When I started this newsletter in 2020, I wanted something simple. The simplest newsletter site I could find was tinyletter. It turns out that site is owned by MailChimp (which is very much NOT simple), and they shut it down at the end of February. 

After a tiny bit of research, I ended up with beehiiv, which—while less simple than tinyletter—seems usable to me. Please tell me if your experience as a reader ends up being worse in any way. Or better. Or exactly the same, to be honest. Feedback of all kinds is always welcome via talkingmathwithkids.com/contact

Length of the Carrot

For the new platform, here’s the latest version of a classic conundrum. A math homework question has more than one possible interpretation. People get angry about it, or they get angry that anybody else thinks differently from them. Meanwhile, I’m out here watching mathematical definitions take shape in real time. Click on through for a lovely bit of ambiguity. Don’t read too many of the comments if you don’t have a tremendous amount of patience. (See also: How many sides does a circle have?)

Talking Math with Babies

Michaela Epstein wrote about the math a one-year old knows.

Using Number Words

A study from 2006 isn’t exactly hot off the presses, but it’s worth remembering that sometimes small and simple changes matter.

“Even seemingly trivial instances of ‘math talk,; such as saying ‘You two get your coats,’ instead of ‘You guys get your coats,’ may be related to improvement in four- and five-year-olds' math skills.”

Mathy Books for All Sorts of Folks

The School Library Journal wrote about Mathical books and the delights to be found inside them. Read deeply enough and you’ll find Which One Doesn’t Belong? gets a little mention.

Early Math on the Political Agenda

It has been exciting in recent years to see the policy world slowly turn its attention to the subject of early math. I had the opportunity late last year to talk to folks at the National Conference of State Legislatures about the playful, outside-of-school side of math for young learners that we manifest each year at Math On-A-Stick at the Minnesota State Fair. 

Volunteers Needed

Speaking of Math On-A-Stick, that event runs on hundreds of hours of volunteer time, and the volunteer sign up site is live for 2024!

This year’s Fair runs August 22 through Labor Day, September 2. We regularly have out-of-town visitors who volunteer for a shift or two, enjoy the second-largest state fair in the country, and spend a day or more exploring the Twin Cities—all possible over a leisurely long weekend.

So wherever you’re from, come join us! Get in touch directly if you have any questions or need recommendations during your visit.

Children and Families Needed

If you want to play math, but cannot commit to volunteering you are of course welcome to just stop by Math On-A-Stick.

But also, I’ll be leading math play at two events at the beginning of summer, in my new job at MathHappens (more about that in a future newsletter). Kickoff to Summer is a much smaller production than the State Fair, but takes place at the fairgrounds over Memorial Day weekend (May 23–26). We’ll have children help us build a Museum of 3-D Shapes, and play with a large collection of mathy toys.

Then we’ll do the same thing the following weekend in downtown Saint Paul at the Flint Hills Family Festival (May 31 & June 1). This festival is free, and there are lots of artsy things to do in addition to the MathHappens booth.

Hat Tile Contest

Back in December, the National Museum of Mathematics announced winners of their Hat Tile Contest. Top prizes went to a version of Tetris, hat-shaped ravioli, and dollar-bill origami. Lots of fun and creativity in the other featured entries as well (The New York Times article should be free to read via this link).

Hat Tile Blog Post

A high-level recounting of the discovery of this tile is now available at Craig Kaplan’s blog.

Find Me on Bluesky 

At least some of you subscribers got to know me through shared adventures on Twitter. I am a lot less active there these days as I wrestle with the ways in which it is problematic for some individuals, some groups, and possibly our society. I am more active on Bluesky—which is also problematic, but less so for now. You can find me there as @triangleman.bsky.social 

At present, Bluesky is a less unruly place than Twitter always has been; for better and for worse. If you’re there, come say ‘hi’. If you’re not, maybe check it out? There used to be a thing where you had to have an invitation code; that’s over now. Anyone can join; no codes or invitations necessary.

---

The Talking Math with Your Kids newsletter is lovingly compiled and written by Christopher Danielson. Comments, questions, suggestions, and requests always welcome.