Faculty Blog

Faculty Blog

Here you will find blog posts by the Discovering the Art of Mathematics authors: Julian Fleron, Phil Hotchkiss, Volker Ecke, & Christine von Renesse.

Pennies and Paperclips - Student proof 3

Pennies & Paperclip Proofs

Pennies and Paperclips is a beautiful game whose winning strategies students determine inductively and then work to prove. Proof of the winning strategy for Penny is remarkable for its clarity and simplicity. Proof of the winning strategy for Clip seems to be as straightforward but really offers important lessons in what constitutes proof.

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Pythagorean Theorem - Student proof 6

Pythagorean Theorem Proofs

Initial instructions to create 4 congruent right triangles of their choice set students on a path to re-discover the beautiful "proof without words" attributed to Bhaskara.

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Inquiry-Based Classroom

Our Inquiry-Based Classroom

What does inquiry-based learning mean to us? How do we teach? Let's walk into Volker Ecke's classroom and listen to his thoughts.

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trapezoid growth pattern

Creating an Algebra Book using our Topic Index

In 2012 the Discovering the Art of Mathematics team started reaching out to the two-year colleges. At the NEMATYC conference in 2013 we learned that many faculty are interested in support around algebra related courses.

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Prof. Christine von Renesse in a mathematical conversation with a student

Reflecting to Improve Teaching

The following video clip was filmed in a Calculus 2 class for math majors. While transcribing the video I noticed that my story of what happened in my interaction with Loghan was different from the actual exchange that you see in the video.

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Prof. Julian Fleron conversing with students in his Mathematical Explorations classroom

Classroom Vignette

A Look Into Our Classroom

What does a day in our Mathematics for Liberal Arts Classroom look like? It's still five minutes before class starts when I walk into the room. Of the two dozen students already in the classroom, most are already doing mathematics.

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