Over the years I have taught times tables to hundreds of pupils and some methods work and some do not. The success of the pedagogy all depends on the learner, time of day and the mood that they are in. I have summarised a few ways that teachers, parents and pupils can use to learn, [...]
This is a gold rated Maths starter from the enrich website for selling Data Handling to pupils. The task shows the number of gold medals won in the 2008 Olympics. This is an open ended task that sells a group work scenario activity using ICT. An in depth description of the task can be found [...]
This is an Amazing MATHS TRICK with a calculator that makes a great starter to a lesson. So grab yourself a calculator and follow the steps. Make sure you use the last 8 digits of your phone number!! I have tested it with a few numbers and appears to work each time. The pupils love [...]
This would make a great starter on nets of solids, probability or just a general knowledge question. Two positions of a dice are shown below. When number ’1′ is on the top. What number will be at the bottom?
“How do I make learning your times tables fun?” is a question asked by many Mathematics educators. This blog will be ongoing as I find different resources that educators have used and found effective to promote the engagement and learning of times tables. Please feel free to add your own resources by commenting below; 1. [...]
People for years have been trying to find the solution to life, below is a solution based on a set of simultaneous equations : )! This would make a great plenary to a lesson on simultaneous equations. Enjoy! Life + Love = Happy : ) Life – Love = Sad : ( ______________________________ [...]
A great deal has been discussed about the need for learners to have a good breakfast before coming to school so that they have enough energy to think, learn and progress in lessons. The rise in school breakfast clubs is evidence of this. It has been been proven scientifically that even though your brain is [...]
Look what happens when you reverse 3,14 (Pi), Spooky! This is absolutely mind blowing, I showed this to my pupils and they found it very amusing that when you reverse 3.14 (Pi) it spells out “Pie”. This makes a great starter to a lesson that involves using Pi.
If Pizza shops made Maths questions, Amazing! This would make a great starter to a lesson or a nice revision question before exams. I have used this question in the past at the end of a Volume of a cylinder lesson and it left learners smiling as they left the classroom. : ) It would [...]
The earth is approx. 6,588,000,000,000,000,000 tons. What is this in Standard Index Form? A great Maths starter question to begin or end your Maths lesson on Standard index form. I normally have it as my Maths killer question during a Maths lesson and reward the Maths learner who answers it first, and explain their answer. [...]
Why Mathematicians never play the lottery! This is a great starter discussion on a lesson on probability. “The probability of you dying on your way to getting your lotto ticket is greater than the probability of you winning”
Arthur Benjamin: Lightning calculation and other “Mathemagic”, This video from TED showing Arthur Benjamin in action is absolutely amazing and shows how far we can push our brains if we practice hard enough. I showed this to my classes and set it as a challenge to the learners to learn these tricks, several came back [...]
Get Pupils to understand their Brains! How does your brain work? The Brain is the most important muscle in our bodies but yet we do not really truly understand how it works. If we just spent some time to learn about how our brains work and how we can improve our brain thinking skills than [...]
If there is one video you watch today then make sure you watch this. Truly Breath Taking! This is Full Moon Silhouettes Video, Amazing! The video is not a time lapse. The moonrise is recorded very recently and presented in the video in real time. It was shot in Wellington, New Zealand and looks amazing. [...]
This great Maths idea on how to cut a cake into four equal pieces!! How Do Mathematicians cut their Birthday Cakes? Amazing! This concept makes a great Maths starter or plenary to a Maths lesson on the area of circles. It could be even used as an extension task to stretch and challenge learners. Next time [...]