Math from a Christian Perspective

A reader recently shared with me an article on teaching math titled “A Generous Education in Mathematics” (by Alice Horrocks). I found the article refreshing, as it echoed many of my own sentiments.

Written by a Ph.D. in math who has taught at the university level and is now homeschooling her children, the article encourages parents to see math as much more than memorization and skills. It shows how teaching math in a way more connected with history and life–which I would add is the natural outcome of embracing a biblical perspective toward math–leads toward the type of math education we ought to be providing.

After discussing what constitutes true education in math, the article explores what math is (including a paragraph about how “math is a description of the order God has put into His creation”) and some practical ways to truly educate children in math. I particularly liked the article’s comparison of math to music. Much as you would not want to just teach children musical scales, you would not want to just teach children to memorize times tables. Math, like music, should be more than drills.

You can read the article in Volume 1, Issue 3 of Magnanimity: A Charlotte Mason and Classical Education Newsletter. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

(To Mrs. P, thank you again for sending me this link.)

This week, I thought it might be helpful to take just a moment to reflect on teaching math OUTSIDE of the textbook. Since math describes the consistencies God placed and sustains all around us, we find it useful in all sorts of situations–including ones that don’t instantly make us think of math.

For example, this past July 4, our family went to see the fireworks. As I was watching the fireworks, I wondered how they timed the fireworks so perfectly. It hit me: they must use math! Sure enough, a quick Internet search later confirmed my suspicions. (If you’d like to learn more, see www.ohiorc.org/pm/math/richproblemmath.aspx?pmrid=16 for a somewhat technical description.)

On the way home from the firework display, we plugged in the GPS unit. How did the unit know where we were? Once again, it was using math! Here are two easy-to-understand resources I found that offer an overview of the math behind GPS units.

http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/gadgets/travel/gps1.htm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zRlbboMvb0

My point is simply that if we take the time to explore how something works (the mechanics behind a device), we’ll likely find yet another example of math in action. Being inquisitive about everyday life will turn up lots of wonderful opportunities to show your children that math is a tool to describe consistencies in God’s creation.

First of all, thank you to everyone who provided feedback on the cover! It was VERY helpful. The graphic designer was able to make a few changes based on the concerns raised, making what I believe will be both a catchy and meaningful cover (I love the final design). Now it’s time to make some updates to the inside material and get it off to the printer : )

Secondly, I’d like to let you all know about a free video series that’s available on Google Videos: For All Practical Purposes. This series of 26 half-hour episodes does an excellent job presenting math’s practical uses in a fun and meaningful way. I was blessed by watching them several years ago when I was first beginning my  research, but I didn’t realize they were still available online until a website reader e-mailed me this past week with the news. (Thank you, Angela!)

A far cry from a boring classroom presentation, these videos make math both interesting and exciting through real-life examples and footage. I loved how the series made complex concepts simple, enabling the viewer to learn without even realizing it. One or two of the videos have very brief sections that discuss evolution from a non-biblical perspective, but on the whole the videos stayed clear of the topic of origins and focused on math’s practical uses. Since these videos were produced in the 1980s, a few videos feature rather archaic computers; however, the principles the videos present about math in action have not really changed.

This series is great for high-school students (or younger with assistance). One idea would be to watch a video a week as a supplement to your middle school or high school math course as a way of showing math’s usefulness in real-life situations–a usefulness that’s only possible because our consistent, faithful God holds all things together! The company that made this series has also produced a full sized high-school/college textbook by the same title. I was able to purchase one through AbeBooks (http://www.abebooks.com) for $3.99, including shipping.

Could you take a moment to take a look at this new proposed book cover for Beyond Numbers? I would greatly value your opinion.

Here’s the current cover.

And here’s the redesign we’re considering (note that the watermark in the background is just temporary).

I’d really love to hear your thoughts about the proposed new cover. What does it make you think of/what does it say to you? What do you/don’t you like about it?

Note: If the covers are not showing up, please click here to view them.

Cornerstone Curriculum, publishers of the Making Math Meaningful curriculum series, is offering a rough draft of the first several hundred pages of their geometry course for free online. Based on a quick look at the course, it seemed to present geometry as a useful tool. I have looked at some of the author’s other resources and know he strives to help students really understand the concepts he presents and not merely memorize formulas.

Here’s a quote from one of the opening pages:

Geometry is all about measuring lines, angles, surfaces, solids, velocities and their interrelationships. In this study, you will act as a consultant, designer-planner, and builder. The projects will range from designing a tree fort in your back yard to planning the construction of a sidewalk and home on the hilly streets of San Francisco to charting the path of the earth around the sun. In the process you will learn the principles as well as the vast usage of geometry in everyday life. Geometry is used by graphic animators, artists, photographers, interior designers, engineers, architects, builders, construction teams, surveyors and doctors just to name a few.

The draft copy online does not contain answers to the problems, nor is it an entire course, but you could certainly use some of the application ideas or concept presentations from the free download. If you do, I’d love to hear how you liked it–as I’m sure would the author.