Fairfield Math Club
Monthly Newsletter
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Greetings!
This summer we are offering a vocabulary course that involves skill
building and a math problem solving
course.
Summer 2008 Classes
Summer 2008 Session
Dates: May 21 - June 28
Session fee $80
(includes Math & Vocabulary courses)
Registration required for the entire course
Classes held at
Fairfield Main Library, 1080 Old Post Road, Fairfield,
CT 06824,
Phone (203) 256-3155 (http://www.fairfieldpubliclibrary.org)
Fairfield Woods Library, 1147 Fairfield Woods Road, Fairfield,
CT 06825,
Phone (203) 255-7307 (http://www.fairfieldpubliclibrary.org/branch.htm) See detailed information below.
Buy the books ASAP before class starts and e-mail the name of the participants (indicating grade completing) to mbhattac@yahoo.com by May 15.
Registration on May 17 at Fairfield Main Library (see room below). No late registration.
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News From MAA Focus
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The Newsmagazine of the Mathematical Association of America
By Aakash Bhattacharya
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What do we ultimately want for our students? If your student were to gain only one thing from your class, what would you want it to be? Would it be the ability to maximize a function on a closed interval using the derivative; to find all real roots of a polynomial using synthetic division; to solve a linear programming problem graphically; to prove a result using mathematical induction? I would hope that most of us consider these to be skills which are important and useful in some cases, but play a relatively minor role in the experience we call mathematics. If, as mathematicians, we are capable of leaving our students with only one educational experience it should be the enjoyment of problem solving. Unlike any specific mathematical concept or skill, this will be appilcable to nearly every aspect of their lives, especially if they are not mathematics majors. After all, a world populated by talented derivative-takers probably wouldnt do as well as a world populated by efficient problem-solvers.
Ultimately the hope is to get students to see that problem solving is not unique to any particular area of their education. While the specific skills they learn in each class may be different, they should not view their education as a sequence of disjointed skill-sets. The problem-solving goals they have in mathematics class are the same as those found in a sociology class. Throughout their education students should be asked to connect ideas and concepts in various classes. As often as possible the problem-solving ideas and skills should be linked to other courses...
From Problem-Solving Across Curriculum by Michael Coco, MAA Focus, April 2008, page 10.
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Looking Ahead
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Summer 2008 Session Courses
Vocabulary for Grades 2-7 (completing)
Red Hot Root
Words, by Dianne Draze, published by Prufrock Press www.prufrock.com
Book 1 for grades 2-4 ISBN 978-1-59363-037-9
Book 2 for grades 5-7 ISBN 978-1-59363-129-1
Mathematical Problem Solving for Grades 2-7 (completing)
Books by Ed Zaccaro published by Hickory
Grove Press www.challengemath.com
For grades 2-4: Primary Grade Challenge Math, (PGCM) ISBN 978-0967991535
For
grades 5-7: Challenge Math, (CM) ISBN 978-0967991559
Schedule (for grades 2-7, completing)
Sat May 17, Fairfield Main Library, Rotary Room, 2-2:30 Vocabulary, 2:30-4 Math
Sat May 24, Fairfield Main Library, Rotary Room, 2-2:30 Vocabulary, 2:30-4 Math
Wed May 28, Fairfield Main Library, Memorial Room, 7-8:30 Math
Sat May 31, Fairfield Main Library, Rotary Room, 2-2:30 Vocabulary, 2:30-4 Math
Sat June 7, Fairfield Woods Library, Caroline Platt Walsh Room, 2-2:30 Vocabulary, 2:30-4 Math
Sat June 14, Fairfield Woods Library, Caroline Platt Walsh Room, 2-2:30 Vocabulary, 2:30-4 Math
Wed June 18, Fairfield Main Library, Memorial Room, 7-8:30 Math
Sat June 21, Fairfield Main Library, Rotary Room, 2-2:30 Vocabulary, 2:30-4 Math
Wed June 25, Fairfield Main Library, Memorial Room, 7-8:30 Math
Sat June 28, Fairfield Main Library, Rotary Room, 2-2:30 Vocabulary, 2:30-4 Math Those completing grades 8 or 9 should take online classes at www.artofproblemsolving.com. Depending on their level we recommend
Introduction and/or Intermediate Algebra
Introduction and/or Intermediate Counting & Probability
They should also practice from the Art of Problem Solving Volume 1 book.
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Aakash & Mousumi Bhattacharya
E-mail: mbhattac@yahoo.com
Web: http://gifted.wordpress.com/fairfield-math-club
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