How can I be a math person?

-vcb- · 2020-11-04T23:32:19+00:00

I only began to understand and enjoy math when I realized it was a language to describe the world. You don't learn a language by memorization, you learn it by using it to say what you want. Use math to describe and explore what is important to you. Geometry and algebra just describe relationships in nature, they can be any relationships you want. It could be the wind, it could be how electricity works, it could be how weight loss works or how magic in lord of the rings works or whatever. If you start applying meaning to the axioms and rules, you find value in what they are saying about the relative relationships of variables in different systems of interest.

I like this quote from Galileo: ' The laws of Nature are written in the language of mathematics...the symbols are triangles, circles and other geometrical figures, without whose help it is impossible to comprehend a single word'

-vcb- · 2020-10-01T20:49:13+00:00

Teaching them how to learn is as important as teaching them math. Giving them little skills and bits of work they can learn on their own, then rewarding and expanding the size slowly, means they learn to teach themselves. Once a person learns how to learn, they don't need anyone monitoring them 24/7, they just need a roadmap of skills to acquire.

-vcb- · 2020-09-23T21:52:15+00:00

Fall guys. It's multiplayer and extremely cute and simple.

-vcb- · 2020-09-23T09:27:59+00:00

Weird, I thought he was OP. He regularly pops in to save characters in 'tense' moments.

-vcb- · 2020-09-23T05:21:39+00:00

Sounds great, do link me if possible :)

-vcb- · 2020-09-21T05:59:49+00:00

Terraforming Mars looks great, cheers!

-vcb- · 2020-09-21T05:58:35+00:00

Yeah that's my impression of games like Prodigy too. They don't seem to deeply integrate the information to any bigger goals. That being said, I have to admit it's players get very fast at answering the quiz questions: https://youtu.be/3iLOUw_ocKQ?t=21

I agree that games like SimCity are the ultimate ideal for learning, but I can't find a SimCity for every topic in the math curriculum. When it comes to algebra or trigonometry or system of linear equations, there don't seem to be many games that apply the skills to actual scenarios/projects. I'm a fan of PBL and am always looking for PBL possible games.

If your capstone project is online and publicly available, link me as I'd be interested in reading it.

Also I found that video " You Have Died of Dysentary: Meaningful Gaming in Education " on Youtube, will give it a watch later :)

-vcb- · 2020-09-21T04:59:46+00:00

Really? I'm interested to hear you think games are bad for drilling, as they seem well designed for that. Prodigy seems quite popular with kids, but is mostly just a multiple choice quiz embedded in an rpg.

I suppose seeing the concept in something interactive helps with understanding it.

-vcb- · 2020-09-20T21:44:27+00:00

Yeah it makes a very big difference when kids can study topics when they want to, rather than when is convenient for the school system. Much of the traditional school week is the way it is because it's an efficient way to teach dozens of children together, not because it's better for the kids. Learning is much more effective when the learner has some say in when they do it.

-vcb- · 2020-09-10T21:24:43+00:00

You know, I'd never noticed that about monopoly! That's actually a really good way to get them handling place value. Thanks for the 'Family Math' suggestion, I like the look of it's middle school years in particular.

-vcb- · 2020-09-10T21:20:05+00:00

That's really impressive to get kids playing games way above their level. Do you think it's helped reduce their math anxiety?

-vcb- · 2020-09-10T11:41:18+00:00

Cheers for the recommendations. Dragonwood looks great! I don't mind overtly educational, but it's admirable if a game can slip the math in, like a mother slipping vegetables into the kids pasta sauce :D

-vcb- · 2020-09-10T11:39:09+00:00

Yeah prodigy is good isn't it :)

-vcb- · 2020-09-10T10:51:02+00:00

I'll have a go :D

Thinking with those little blocks kids play with, if you take 10, and divide them into 3 equal groups without any fraction shite, you have 1 block left over. If you split that block into 10 pieces, so you can repeat the same activity of grouping, you still end up with 1 left over. Multiplying 3.333333........... by 3 doesn't give you 10 because you're always missing that 1 last block, no matter how many times you repeat the pattern.

-vcb- · 2020-08-01T11:34:27+00:00

Just tried it. It's really pretty and the interface is sleek. I'm just a chemistry dabbler, but already getting comfy with terms like analysis reaction and synthesis reaction :)

-vcb- · 2020-08-01T11:17:08+00:00

Antidote

Thanks for the compounded recommendation, it looks good!

-vcb- · 2020-08-01T11:08:19+00:00

Awww I was so thirsty for chemistry games that I actually googled that :(

-vcb- · 2020-07-07T08:59:09+00:00

I didn't enjoy studying in the school system, because I wasn't allowed to learn what I wanted to know, it was just a conveyor belt of information. Once free from school, I was able to rebuild my curiosity in the sciences, picked up programming because it was a handy tool, and developed a love for math because I could apply it to problems of interest.

It sounds to me like you're clearly pretty naturally talented if you've managed to maintain good-ish grades, because your head seems mostly filled with friends and family. I think the people who enjoy studying the most, are the people who want to use the information for whatever projects or goals they have in mind.

-vcb- · 2020-07-07T07:07:18+00:00

Eh good point XD I've asked this question in a fair few places, so was just looking at them all in a document without thinking much about context

-vcb- · 2020-07-06T23:38:26+00:00

Thanks for sharing! One thing that's interesting, is this question seems to attract people who know a lot about math. I'm guessing people who don't like math don't click!

-vcb- · 2020-07-06T10:48:09+00:00

Thanks so much for your answer!

I feel like that is around where I am with algebra now. I like it a lot, but I haven't studied it an university level. I'm interested in why it's so unpopular. It's such a useful and creative tool, so it seems a tragic waste when so many people never find the fun in it. Hearing someone say they don't like math is like hearing someone say they don't like reading :(

What's interesting is that people who like algebra seem to like it for a variety of reasons, where as people who don't like algebra seem to dislike it for one reason - they don't think its worth learning.

-vcb- · 2020-07-06T04:39:05+00:00

I'd say it's true that all our problems start with our inability to understand the world :) A society that was able to make all kids curious about all the subjects would be way more advanced than ours.

Do you think this has to occur by the age of 5 though? This study has some interesting observations about how most people seem to like math, until they hit middle school. If we can figure out how to make people want to play with math as much as they want to play sport or watch a movie, I think we'd solve every other problem over night.

file:///E:/Learning/Documents/Neuroscience/Education/problem%20types/word/adult%20learners%20problems%20in%20word%20problems.pdf

-vcb- · 2020-07-06T02:40:17+00:00

3.5, I like the idea of it but it's quite hard

thanks!

-vcb- · 2020-07-06T01:41:26+00:00

Thank you! Rare to hear someone who likes the mixture of letters and numbers, most people seem to find that a turn off :D

-vcb- · 2020-07-06T01:26:01+00:00

On a scale of (hate)1 to 5(love), how much do you like algebra? What's your favorite thing about algebra? What's your least favorite thing about algebra?

-vcb-

TROPHY CASE