The last time we talked you introduced us to cipher-breaking in World War I. I always mention war if I have the opportunity, because that engages the half of the class with excess testosterone 😉 The link to war also connects the problem to the real world. Do all good...

You were going to give us an example of a good problem. Here is a good problem for students tackling percentages, and probability. The problem takes an hour or two… This is an example of some cipher-text created from a Polybius Square. The Germans used a variant of...

What should children learn in the mathematics classroom? How to think. Is that all? What do you mean; “Is that all?” That is everything! I would even be happy if we got rid of elementary school mathematics classrooms and replaced them with problem-tinkering...

What is the biggest problem teachers face? The wide spectrum of student ability.  That’s the biggest thing that separates teaching from other learning structures like mentorship, apprenticeship, home-schooling, and self-motivated dabbling. The wide spectrum of student...

It is a privilege to interview the Muse of Mathematics! Not to everybody... Some dismiss me as dull, repetitive, awkwardly obtuse and disconnected from reality, but properly introduced, I promise to entertain and enthrall. How should I introduce you properly? It...