Alf Coles and Barry Orr reflect on what it looked like when Alf taught a year 7 lesson. In this article, Alf was asked by Barry (student) if he would take a lesson with the Y7 class that he had taken over from another teacher in the department in order to see what someone else might do with his lesson plans. Alf describes what some moments with…

In his famous quadrature of the parabola, Archimedes found the area of the region bounded by a parabola and a chord. His method was to fill the region with infinitely many triangles each of whose area he could calculate. In his solution, he stated, without proof, three preliminary propositions about parabolas that were known in his time, but are…

Within statistics instruction, students are often requested to sketch the curve representing a normal distribution with a given mean and standard deviation. Unfortunately, these sketches are often notoriously imprecise. Poor sketches are usually the result of missing mathematical knowledge. This paper considers relationships which exist among…

Using the power series solution of a differential equation and the computation of a parametric integral, two elementary proofs are given for the power series expansion of (arcsin x)[squared], as well as some applications of this expansion.

This article describes explorations using The Geometer's Sketchpad for algebra and calculus content.

Quilters have been practicing geometric principles for centuries. Since straight seams are easier to sew than curved ones, the grid naturally evolved as the basis for their designs. This book is a resource for experimenting with traditional patchwork quilt patterns. It provides students a hands-on understanding of geometric concepts. It contains…

This book contains 40 lessons in problem solving divided into five chapters. Chapter 1 contains several lessons in which solutions are derived through investigation of numerical patterns. Chapter 2 contains lessons in which problem-solving situations are presented in a graphical context. It also includes two lessons in which students construct…

Calculation of the percentage of work completed when the edges of jigsaw puzzles have been assembled provides interesting problems. (SD)

Several excerpts from Euclid's "Elements" are cited, and their applications to the natural, positive rational, and positive real number systems are discussed. (SD)

Geometric analysis of a cube can motivate formulae for factoring algebraic expressions involving sums and differences of cubes. (SD)

After a brief discussion of the history of mathematical astronomy, the author introduces problems concerning aspects and distances of the planets. The problems presented can be solved without use of trigonometry. (SD)

In this article, the author comments on the article "Solid geometry in the works of an iron artisan,'" Castro, 23(3). The author finds it interesting to read about the implicit mathematical knowledge of ironworkers, weavers, tailors and other practitioners as they undertake their various crafts and professions. In the article, Fernando…

Two new types of graph paper are described; focus-focus conic paper and focus-directrix paper. Both types make it easier to draw families of conics. Suggestions for further work are given as is a method for establishing a connection with other ways of looking at the conic sections. (LS)

Represented are notes that have been compiled from meetings between teachers and members of the SMSG staff, discussing kinds of pre-school activities that might be appropriate for the development of various mathematical concepts. The sequence of concepts presented are in the same order as they are developed in the SMSG kindergarten program. Some…