Welcome!
This is a practical site for teachers. Here, you will find curricular puzzles that simultaneously engage your gifted and struggling students. That will help with classroom management!
Start with this video from an elementary school classroom…
In February, 2025, I moved to Eastern Canada to become the Director of Nova Scotia Math Circles at Dalhousie University. What a beautiful place!
Thank you to our corporate sponsor, Eastlink, for making this dream position possible.
A talented group of young people is working for Nova Scotia Math Circles: Aaron Yip, Ahn Tran, Bram Ogus, Cian Comighod, Danella Calina, Daniel Teixeira, Hassan Mahmood, Jeremiah Hockaday, Leila Mohammadi Valehzaghard, Linh Dinh, Marzieh Palizdar, Rory Whalen-Edwards, Sahil Talwar, and Timothy Power. What joyous mathematics we will be spreading! š
MathPickle provides me with a justification for not doing my Maths homework while still learning about Maths.
I stumbled upon your site, MathPickle.com, this morning and two hours later Iām still there. Ā Just wanted to drop you a brief note to say thank you for all the great resources, ideas, and inspiring videos! Ā I canāt wait to use some these materials this Fall with my elementary mathematics methods students as well as try the unsolved problems with my two children.
The Infinite Pickle should be in every math teacherās back pocket.
The Infinite Pickle does what Martin Gardner did, but widening the door to include much younger learners.
A puzzle collection of infinite delight!
The Infinite Pickle: Puzzles for Kids, Educators, Parents and Puzzlers
Download in English. Ā Download auf Deutsch. Ā äøč¼ē¹é«äøęē
The book can be found on all major online distributors including Amazon and Barnes & Noble. If you purchase it, please review it.
I just wanted to thank you for having our guest speaker last night.Ā I came home so excited! Ā I have always hated math, thought I wasnāt good or smart at it and that I didnāt āget itā. Ā I cried my way through 12 years of math when I was younger. Ā Something clicked last night, as if something in my brain was awakened. Ā I not only believe that math can be fun and that I have it in me to excel, but I now believe that I will be capable to teach it to my future students. So thank you very much!
PS. Please share my appreciation with Gord!
It is impossible to be a great math teacher without teaching great mathematics.
A quality math education celebrates problem-solving and tenacity-building more than arithmetic.
A PuzzleTimeĀ favourite from last week: Add the fewest number of toothpicks so that Willie only has one way to lie down.
Ben Sparks and Brady Haran team up to solve a delicious puzzle.
Mathologer highlights some beautiful mathematics.
Simon Anthony solves a highly symmetric sudoku with some special rules.
Teaching is an experimental science.
MathPickle is not alone in celebrating quality mathematics education. Here are an assortment of videos from other people who have it right. Enjoy!
James Tanton and the Global Math Project has created an exceptional framework for teaching bases that is essential in every elementary school classroom. It’s called exploding dots.
Ā The Julia Robinson Mathematics Festival and its founder Nancy Blachman refine the pedagogy of problems and promote a non-competitive alternative to competitions. They have a strong commitment to the Spanish community.
Kelsey Houston-Edwards Chalk Talk provides high school students with the best introduction to cutting edge cryptography.
Dan Finkel’s Math for Love is a website full of engaging mathematics. He rethemes many puzzles appropriate for elementary school students and creates his own beautiful problems. Prime climb is his board game.
Brady Haran’sĀ Numberphile is one of the top math channels. Most of the videos are not appropriate for the elementary school classroom, but there are many exceptions like this video on the dollar game by Dr. Holly Krieger.
Mathologer produces beautiful videos for his youtube channel. Most target middle and high school students, but this video deserves watching by elementary school teachers as well.
Grant Sanderson’s phenomenal videos on his 3blue1brown youtube channel are stunningly beautiful. They are best for high school and beyond.
Please use MathPickle in your classrooms. If you have improvements to make, please contact me. I'll give you credit and kudos š For a free poster of MathPickle's ideas on elementary math education go here.
Gordon Hamilton
(MMath, PhD)
