Guest appearance on The Mathematicians Podcast
For a special edition of The Mathematicians Podcast, host Ben Cornish invited me to join him in conversation about my similarly-titled book, The Mathematicians’ Library.
Mathematics – Heritage – Education
For a special edition of The Mathematicians Podcast, host Ben Cornish invited me to join him in conversation about my similarly-titled book, The Mathematicians’ Library.
Next time you’re in a museum, gallery, library, or archive, keep an eye open for these mathematical themes!
Tags: blogpost, galleries, libraries, mathematics, MathsComm, museums, National Numeracy, online, writing
“The resource uses a story-first approach to promote richer experiences and telltale signs that maths is nearby, and highlights things that have been found to be necessary prerequisites for creating any type of maths-focused resource.”
Tags: archives, education, galleries, libraries, mathematics, MathsInMuseums, museums, online, ResourceDevelopment, resources
Maths Week Scotland comissioned me to write some learning resources. The original brief was very open: they wanted five maths-themed activities, related to the Scottish Curriculum for Excellence, to be offered to teachers (and anyone else looking to explore mathematical themes) for free on their website.
Tags: D'Arcy Wentworth Thomspon, Eleanor Pairman, John Napier, Mary Somerville, mathematics, Maths Week Scotland, online, resource creation, ResourceDevelopment, Scotland, Sheila Scott Macintyre
Maths is everywhere, but you might not know it. You might also not think of a museum, gallery or heritage site as someplace to learn and explore mathematics. But every museum, gallery, or heritage site is abundant with opportunities to explore aspects of mathematics, though in most they can be a little hard to spot.
Tags: mathematics, museums, online, talk, training, workshop
Something which people in learning and education roles in the heritage sector cite as a barrier to development of maths-focused activities and resources is a lack of confidence in being able to spot the mathematics that’s all around them, but they do recognise that it involves far more than just counting and calculating.
Tags: education, mathematics, MathsComm, museums, online, talk, training, workshop
“…captivated the audience and sparked meaningful discussions…”
– Stacy Mann, Senior Advisor for Families, Early Years and Childcare at Campaign for Learning.
Tags: conference, mathematics, MathsComm, online, STEM, talk, training, workshop
Drawing on his work in museums and schools and his academic work, Tom will focus on the ‘infectiousness’ of mindsets with regards to mathematics, exploring the idea that positivity towards mathematics is essential for success in mathematics, and that attitudes towards the subject are not just based on 3-4 hours per week in the maths classroom but also on maths-related experiences for the rest of the waking week. To succeed, children need to experience positivity and growth mindsets towards maths in all areas of their lives, and parents have an essential role in shaping these experiences.
Tags: conference, education, mathematics, MathsComm, museums, online, talk, training, workshop
“Could exposure to mathematical themes whilst visiting museums help to change the negative attitudes towards mathematics that are prevalent in modern British society?”
– Extract from abstract for a talk delivered at the BSHM Christmas Meeting 2023.
Tags: education, mathematics, MathsComm, museums, online, talk