Newsletter #13 : A Christmas Advent Calendar

[This is a back-issue of this website’s newsletter]
Well, I managed to do it.

As I mentioned in my last email, I planned to make an Advent Calendar for people to download and make. This meant (thinking of and) drawing 25 Christmassy clip-arty icons, and a big picture to hide them all behind. Since I’m more mathematically than artistically inclined, I dodn’t expect it to be easy. In fact, I nearly gave up the project after several failed attempts on the very first icon.

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Newsletter #12 : Past and Future Games

[This is a back-issue of this website’s newsletter]
Well, I received many many entries for the Big Numbers Contest – gosh, I don’t think I’ve ever before seen so many ‘9’ digits in a single week! I’m looking forward to going through the entries this weekend, and identifying the winners. I’ll post out the winners’ certificates early next week, and also mention the most impressive answers on the website.

Newsletter #11 : Timetable Worksheets

[This is a back-issue of this website’s newsletter]
Timetable Worksheets

Some time ago, my son was learning how to read a schedule, or timetable. I typed up a collection of worksheets, to give him practice. Each one has a timetable (one of a music contest, one a TV guide, and so forth) and a set of questions. My goal, in setting the questions, was to force him to read and understand the timetable, and to get practice calculating the length of intervals of time.

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Newsletter #10 : Money Counting Memory Game

[This is a back-issue of this website’s newsletter]
Money Counting Memory Game

About six weeks ago, my son suggested I make a money counting memory game. I figured that this was a great idea, so I started work on it straight away. One difficulty about making a money memory game is that there are so many different currencies used in the world! Which should I put into the game?

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Newsletter #8 : Think Of A BIG Number…

[This is a back-issue of this website’s newsletter]
Dr Mike’s Math Games for Kids will be 3 years old on August 20. To celebrate, I decided to organize a simple, informal competition. It will also be an educational experience for the kids involved, of course.

I call it the Big Numbers Contest. The goal is for kids to think of the biggest number they can, and write it in a box on the entry form. Since they can write anything at all, the winner is not going to be the one who fills the box with a bunch of tiny 9’s – instead, I’m looking forward to seeing all sorts of interesting mathematical expressions, and cracking my head to figure out how big each one is!

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