Monthly Archives: August 2011

Girls’ Angle Bulletin, Volume 4, Number 6

Posted on August 31, 2011 by

The latest issue of the Bulletin is now available.  The Girls’ Angle Bulletin has faithfully come out at the end of every even-numbered month for four full years!  That’s over 700 pages of math. The cover illustrates the fact that … Continue reading →

Posted in math, Math Education | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Remedial or Enrichment?

Posted on August 29, 2011 by

Last week, a math teacher asked me whether Girls’ Angle focuses on remedial mathematics or enrichment mathematics.  I think it’s a very important question so I have decided to blog about it.

Posted in Math Education | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Drawn to Math

Posted on August 27, 2011 by

Lots of people like to draw and many people strive to make more realistic drawings. That desire can motivate lots of mathematics! Perspective drawing is one of the keys to making realistic drawings, and, at the same time, offers a … Continue reading →

Posted in math, Math Education | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Circles, Squares, and Parabolas

Posted on August 24, 2011 by

If you take two circles, you can position them before your right eye in such a way that one will perfectly overlap the other. In other words, a circle is geometrically similar to all other circles. The same is true … Continue reading →

Posted in math | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

My frog jumped higher than Yours!

Posted on August 21, 2011 by

In this post, all I wish to do is share an incident that happened about 5 years ago, before I started Girls’ Angle.  I’m not going to interpret it, analyze it, or draw any conclusions here… just describe what happened. … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Barycentric Coordinates

Posted on August 19, 2011 by

Draw a triangle and add a point P somewhere on its boundary or in its interior.  Next, connect P to each of the three vertices.  The triangle will be split into 3 smaller triangles, possibly degenerate. Label the fraction of the area of … Continue reading →

Posted in Contest Math, math, Math Education | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Math Contests v. Mathematics

Posted on August 18, 2011 by

In math contests, participants match wits against humans (the contest designers). In mathematics, participants match wits against the mathiverse!

Posted in Contest Math, Math Education | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Time Limits: Limitations and Lamentations

Posted on August 16, 2011 by

Yesterday, a parent asked me if we’re going to have time limits for solving math problems in Math Contest Prep.  She was concerned because her daughter does not like working under severe time constraints. Well, I share this parent’s concerns … Continue reading →

Posted in Contest Math, Math Education | Tagged | Leave a comment

Two Games of No Chance

Posted on August 15, 2011 by

I’d like to publicize two simple math games for kids that should be more widely known.  Both games are hands-on and immediately engaging. Both lead to a number of important mathematical concepts.  Both involve a start state, a goal state, … Continue reading →

Posted in Math Education | Tagged | Leave a comment

Avoid Computations – Use Variables!

Posted on August 12, 2011 by

If you’re like me, you’re prone to computational error. One technique that helps minimize such errors is to use variables and delay substitution of specific values for as long as possible. Problem #14 on the 1990 AIME can be used … Continue reading →

Posted in Contest Math | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment