Paper models for polyhedra

Have you ever wanted to fold a pyramid or some of the other interesting polyhedron out of paper?

At least, take a look at the pictures! www.korthalsaltes.com provides hundreds of free printable paper models for various solids, including platonic solids, pyramids, and lots of polyhedra. Some are available as colored versions also.

Folding and gluing one or two is a great summer math project also, and will keep kids busy for a while.

Singapore math approach marches on.. to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt has just announced the launch of a new math curriculum, titled "Math in Focus", which is adapted from Singapore's most widely used program, My Pals Are Here! Maths.

Who would have thought! Not I. This series contains "carefully... paced instruction of fewer topics at each grade in greater depth to ensure mastery". That's exactly what I've wanted to see in school books and what I have tried to create with Math Mammoth.

It also has a close alignment to the NCTM Focal Points, a "concrete to pictorial to abstract" approach, and instruction centered around problem solving using multiple models.

I feel quite surprised. See Math In Focus website for more.

It appears NCTM's Focal Points are having their effect.

A retired school teacher's comments

I received this comment a few days ago concerning my Coherent Curriculum article, and I thought it's enlightening enough to post here as well (emphases mine):

I am a retired public school teacher. I taught first, third, and 1-5 self contained LD and resource classes 1-5. As I walked the halls of my school and heard the lessons being taught, I was so enraged! I knew students sitting in those classes that had learned those skills I still heard being taught and retaught. The work on display outside the classrooms showed very little improvement beyond what the same children had done in the earlier years.

We spin our wheels over and over teaching the same thing year after year and wonder why they can't do better on testing. They are bored to death. This is not just in math. It is in phonics, language skills, creative writing, basic logic skills. As a nation we teach a "swallow and spit back out" curriculum that is mandated by the state standards.

If a child is capable of going beyond, teachers are not allowed to take them higher. "It's not on the grade level standards". Likewise, if a student needs to review last year's standards, it is not allowed. We must stay on grade level standards.

Now do you see why Johnny can't read, spell, write, solve problems, of think. He never had to. He just memorized information for a test and never saw it again until the next year when he rememorized the same facts and passed with flying colors. Homeschool teachers, please don't teach the "memorize and spit back out" method. Make you children reason, explain why or why not, defend a position with research data. Don't put out robots. Public school has already handled that job very well.

Jeanette