New audience. Old artifacts.

J JCommunity Partnerships, Field Trips, Mathematical Artifacts, Museum, Teacher Support & TrainingLeave a Comment

If you are a fan of museums, then you have seen something like this object before… probably dozens of times.  This impressive artifact is a nocturnal from La Belle and it can be used to tell time at night by the positions of the stars. As historic artifacts and symbols of exploration and discovery, navigation tools like this one spark

Take and Make – Quadrants for 8th Graders

Lauren SiegelMaking Math, Sharing Ideas, Take and Make, We think math is fun!Leave a Comment

We are always excited when makers and maker spaces make our math models!  Patrick Benfield outfitted some 8th graders with Quadrants (or Clinometers) and put this post on Instagram (click on photo below).  Be sure to scroll through and also check out Patrick’s other work.  You can find the files to make this here. View this post on Instagram Making

Austin Nature and Science Center Fall Fest Star Party

Lauren SiegelCommunity Partnerships, Events, Intern Experience, Nature & Science Center, Parks & Recreation, Ways to like math, We think math is fun!Leave a Comment

One person can make a real difference by bringing math into a family event at the Nature Center.  Emmie Chng was working solo with an enthusiastic gathering of families.  They learned how to make a plumbline, how to use a quadrant, how to make one at home and why we look to the north star to find latitude. Here’s the

Tree Measuring at the Buda Public Library

Lauren SiegelCommunity Partnerships, Events, LibraryLeave a Comment

Michelle, Paola and Kyla headed out to the Buda Public Library Spring Fling April 14 to measure a special tree.  Consensus says its 13 feet tall.  Participants learned to use a quadrant and landscape measuring tape to set up their calculation.  They also made plumb line necklaces.  Thanks to the City of Buda and youth librarian Caitlin Foley!

Bullock Field Trip: Canyon Vista Middle School

Lauren SiegelField Trips, Making Math, Museum1 Comment

We had a great time welcoming back Ms. Kathy Lennox and a new group of students from Canyon Vista Middle School. Most of our math and navigation field trip remains the same between high school and middle school students. However, some adjustments must be made due to the difference in math content taught in middle and high school. To read

Bullock Field Trip: Austin HS

Lauren SiegelField Trips, Making Math, Museum4 Comments

We had fun welcoming back Ms. Mardi Nott along with a new group of students from Austin High School. Their field trip consisted of touring the museum, including the La Belle exhibit, and spending time with MathHappens to learn about how navigation relates to mathematics. We had two groups of about 30 students, each for an hour. The students split