MathHappens at SXSW EDU 2025!

Jordan VaratCommunity Partnerships, Events, Intern Experience, Making Math, Math at Home, Math Rooms, Partner Spotlight, Sharing Ideas, We think math is fun!

MathHappens Foundation was delighted to participate in SXSW EDU 2025 right here in our headquarter city of Austin, TX. The conference provided a stimulating environment for exchanging ideas and fostering valuable connections. We participated this year as an exhibitor, and used the opportunity to recreate a Math Room! Throughout the education conference, our exhibit in the Expo Hall was a

Quilts and Math at Neill-Cochran House Museum

Lauren SiegelCommunity, Community Partnerships, Intern Experience, Museum, Take and Make, Ways to like math

Sunday Funday means hands on activities at the Neill-Cochran House Museum in Austin, TX and MathHappens was the invited program on Sunday March 9, 2025.  On special exhibit currently, but also part of the regular collection… Quilts!!.  This museum invites visitors to “step into Austin History” and the quilt collection is a visitor favorite.    Paul Cato, Communications Director at

Math Night at Wieland Elementary, Pflugerville, TX

Lauren SiegelCommunity, Events, Intern Experience, Making Math, Parks & Recreation, Schools

Wieland Elementary’s family night was a great opportunity to meet some kids and families and share some of our favorite optical illusions, and amusements.  Tommi Linn brought hinged mirror books, markers and paper for free design.  The Hexagon puzzle was a real joy for our littlest visitors.  We let parents know about the Math Room open 9-3 on Saturdays and

Remote Intership- Gears by Cole Parsons

Melissa WilkinsonCommunity, Intern Experience, Making Math, Remote internship, Schools, We think math is fun!, Written by Cole Parsons

MathHappens has been growing, and we now have locations in four states!  We have partners, employees, and interns working in Texas, Minnesota, New Mexico, and Washington, but we still love being able to offer our remote internship experience to students in any state! This past fall and winter, I had the pleasure of working with Cole Parsons, an engineering student

The Surrounding Game

Christopher DanielsonIntern Experience, Making Math, We think math is fun!

Two diagrams. On the left, a blue circle is surrounded by six yellow circles, with gaps between the points of tangency. On the right, a blue square is surrounded by yellow squares, which are then surrounded by a ring of blue squares.

MathHappens intern Asa Grumdahl is interested in Heesch numbers.  Unfortunately, a formal presentation of Heesch numbers and questions surrounding them is too complicated as a starting place to engage the general public. The question then was “How might we engage novices in this sophisticated bit of mathematics?” Step one was to name this activity we were designing. “The Surrounding Game”

Austin Museum Day 2024!

Lauren SiegelCommunity, Events, History Connections, Intern Experience, Math Rooms, Museum

Museum Day in Austin, Texas happens on the 2nd to the last Sunday in September.  Weather is still warm and beautiful, but kids are back in school and families are ready to spend a day laughing and learning together.  This year over 35 museums opened their doors offering free admission, special activities and a wonderful day out for the Austin

Spring 2024 Remote Internship Recap

Melissa WilkinsonIntern Experience, Making Math, Remote internship, Schools, We think math is fun!Leave a Comment

Last month we concluded another successful group of MathHappens Remote internships. We had 4 students participating from UCLA, NC State, Texas Woman’s University, and Queen’s University in Toronto. At our headquarters in Austin we rely on interns to help with our mission and everyday tasks.  Interns design and make new models, attend local events, and spend time assembling models to

2024 Spring Remote Internship: Emma Starkman’s Grade 5 Math Toolkit Model

Melissa WilkinsonIntern Experience, Making Math, Remote internship, Teacher Support & Training, Written by Emma StarkmanLeave a Comment

MathHappens offers remote internship experiences to students who do not live near our offices in Austin.  Interns are sent a kit in the mail and the goal is for them to learn digital fabrication of math models (usually using a laser cutter or 3D printer), design and make a model, and host an outreach event showcasing their model(s).  Emma Starkman,