Mathematical Art: DIY Fibonacci Spiral and My Big News

 

I have BIG NEWS!! My life is changing. After leaving teaching high school math sixteen years ago to get married and focus on family, I am going back to the classroom full time in the fall. Then on top of that news I have been helping out four days a week in the school's directed learning center since someone left at the end of April. My life has been a bit different, and you can tell by the number of posts I have been doing. This will mean some changes to Crafty Moms Share, but I am not sure the extent yet. I will change my focus to more math-based posts but am hoping to still review some books, especially math focused ones and young adult ones so I can connect with my students. I will also be doing more origami, so be ready for review of origami products. 

Origami Polyhedra

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I love teaching geometry. It is funny because I took geometry in summer school to get ahead in math. Eighth or ninth grade is when my math brain kicked in and I wasn't in the honors program. So, the summer after ninth grade I took geometry in summer school to get into the honors program. My own exposure to geometry wasn't great because of the rushed aspect of summer school, but when I started to teach geometry, I fell in love. Geometry is a visual math. There are so many things that lend to projects in geometry and origami is a fun way of exploring shapes and can be a fun enrichment to any geometry class. I have shared different products and lessons over the years involving origami and math. Today I get to share a book that teaches the ultimate geometry lessons with origami--the polyhedra!! The book is The Complete Book of Origami Polyhedra by Tomoko Fuse. 

Hanging with My Gnomies for Valentine's Day -- Paper & Felt Gnome Tutorials with Geometry Lesson

 

Have you noticed how gnomes seem to be so popular these days? They seem to be the in thing for the past couple of years, and they have moved into different seasons. It used to be gnomes were for Christmas and maybe the fall and of course the garden. Now they seem to jump into every holiday! I was thinking about gnomes for Valentine's Day. And I was thinking about how paper gnomes would lend to geometry. Then I was thinking back to our Waldorf School days and remembered a felt gnome tutorial. I went and created different kinds of gnomes for you! The first one I made is the one on the right.

Fun & Useful Math Books for Different Ages

 

Disclosure: I was sent these books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Today we get to talk about one of my favorite subjects! MATH!! As a former high school math teacher, I always love talking math. My life has been a bit busier because I have been volunteering and subbing at the high school end of Hazel's school. My volunteer work is helping kids with their math and sometimes even being in the classroom as an extra adult to help. I love it! It feels good to be back in the classroom and especially without all the grading and politics! Today I am going to share four books that involve math, and they range for ages 7 through adult. We will start with the origami book. Origami is a fun activity to bring into the math classroom and there are so many math applications involved. The book There's Math in My Origami! 35 Fun Projects for Hands-On Math Learning by Fumiaki Shingu, shows how math can be taught in the origami projects. It is recommended for ages 7+.

The Volume -- Picture book introducing art along with science & math concepts like dots, lines, Big Bang Theory & more!

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Today I get to share a book that introduces topics like art, books, as well as geometry, infinity, the big bang and more. Needless to say this book is perfect for introducing different concepts to kids. It is a picture book but has a good amount of words in it and on a page so I'm guessing it is for grades 1-3. There is no age recommendation given by the publishers. The book is The Volume by Luis Camnitzer. 

NEW this week--Middle grade books Plus a GIVEAWAY!

 

Disclosure: I was sent copies of these books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Yesterday I shared two new this week picture books and today I have two new this week middle grade novels to share. Middle grade novels have a recommendation for ages 7 to 12. One of the books is a mystery having to do with sports and the other is a multicultural book about family, friends, and math. Plus there is a giveaway for one of them. We are going to start with Danny Chung Sums It Up by Maisie Chan and illustrated by Natelle Quek. This book is recommended for ages 8-12.

Navigation History and How-To for Middle Grades

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Do you have a good sense of direction or are you one of those people who always gets lost? I tend to have a pretty good sense of direction. When I do get lost I can usually call my husband and he will pull out a map and find where I am and how to get where I want to be or use my GPS. Steve loves maps. When we were first married he would drive me crazy. I would print out directions when we were going somewhere but instead of reading me the directions he would try to tell me the directions from the map. Unfortunately he is not as quick as needed in the map reading when I'm driving. Because of Steve's love of maps, Hazel became interested in maps at a young age. Of course there are places that are not mapped out like the forest. What happens when you get lost there? Today's book is a book to give the reader skills to not get lost or at least know how to find one's way and what tools one might need when exploring. The book is How to Go Anywhere (and Not Get Lost) by Hans Aschim and illustrated by Andres Lozano.

Fun Summer Learning Resources

 

Disclosure: I was sent copies of these books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Last February we found an amazing school to switch Hazel to. They have a spring break in March that lasts for two weeks. Hazel was supposed to start right after the break, but the pandemic hit and our state closed down. Her school started after that break with remote learning for last year. This year however they went in person with the daily choice of a student going remote. Although it has been a strange year, it has been an amazing year. Hazel has so much more confidence. She is standing up straighter and just overall happier. Finding the right school makes so much difference and we didn't really realize it until this year. Today is her last day of school and summer begins! Now since she has been learning in person she is not one of the kids that has lost so much during the pandemic. However I know there are many kids who have. I see the posts and articles with the concerns of what kids lost this year, will they be behind, etc. I also know there are people who are looking for ways to help catch them up this summer. My advice is to find fun ways to help them catch up and learn something new. Today I am going to share some books that will do just this. The first book is Top Secret: Spies, Codes, Capers, Gadgets, and Classified Cases Revealed by Crispin Boyer and Suzanne Zimbler. 

Review of Six Thousand Doughnuts

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book for this review. I am working with The Children's Book Review and Dooney Press and will receive a small compensation for this review. All opinions are my own.

Today I am participating in a Virtual Book Tour for Six Thousand Doughnuts by Thomas Tosi. The book is being released next week, June 4, 2021. It is a middle grade novel with some illustrations throughout it. It is recommended for ages 8-12.

Books looking at the world in different ways

 

Disclosure: I was sent copies of these books in exchange for honest reviews. All opinions are my own.

Earth Day is Thursday. I have been sharing books each week to use as resources for it and today the books I share work for Earth Day but two of them work with a twist. All three books are picture books recommended for preschool and early elementary (ages 3-8). We will start with the book that is perfect for Earth Day. It is Once Upon Another Time by Charles Ghigna and Matt Forrest Esenwine and illustrated by Andrés F. Landazábal. 

Math, Art, Crafting and More in a Box!

 

Disclosure: I was sent one of these kits in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Today I am going to share with you a fun building kit. It involves some crafting, math, art and more and I always love when you can make learning fun. Mind-Blowing Paper Puzzles by Haruki Nakamura does just that. 

New Books about Race, Stereotypes and Black Lives!

 

Disclosure: I was sent digital copies of these books in exchange for honest reviews. All opinions are my own.

Have you been enjoying your holidays? I have not been writing since I have been taking time to be with my family. This holiday season has been special for us because we are realizing it is probably the last one with my father being somewhat mentally present. His Alzheimer's is getting bad and we know the end is coming whether he will be alive and not aware or die this year we are beginning to prepare ourselves. This week I am getting ready for Hazel's birthday. We decided to have a small gathering of girls from her school and doing our best to keep them socially distant and with masks. But before the year ends I wanted to review these four books. Two of these books have not been released yet and the other two are new in the past couple of months. It seems fitting to end 2020 with books about race, stereotypes and Black lives. 

New Picture Books

 

Disclosure: I was sent copies of these books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Continuing on our theme from yesterday with the four gift rule and one of them being something to read, I am sharing a round-up of new picture books that are perfect to make your younger readers happy!! The books range from alphabet books to biographies and more! The first one is The ABCs of Christmas by Jo Parker and illustrated by Flora Waycott. 

Fun Books that Teach

 

Disclosure: I was sent copies of these books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Have you heard of the four gift rule? It says parents should give their kids only four gifts: something they want, something they need, something to wear and something to read. With the holidays quickly approaching I want to share some fun books this week in time for you to make purchases for gifts. If your child is like mine you will be buying books for both something they want and something to read. My family has been complaining because the only things on Hazel's wish list for the most part are books. (Hard to believe when you think about all the books I get to review but they are not all of the series she loves.) Anyway, today I am going to share with books that teach something to the reader.  These books are for ages 8 - 18. Most are for ages 8-12 but there is one for high schoolers. We will start with Brain Candy 2 by Kelly Hargrave.

Changing the Equation -- Meet 3 of the Mathematicians from this book #blacklivesmatter

Disclosure: I was sent a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Today we are continuing with our Black Lives Matter Series. In doing my research for Mary Eliza Mahoney I stumbled across Changing the Equation: 50+ US Black Women in STEM by Tonya Bolden. I was able to get a digital review copy of it. And WOW!! It is full of names some you probably heard of and others that you have not. These women are doctors, nurses, engineers, computer programmers/coders, mathematicians, scientists and so much more. I knew I had to share this book with you as quickly as I could. I wanted to make it even more meaningful to be part of our Black Lives Matter Series so I am going to review the book and share about three of the amazing women in the book and of course I picked the mathematicians. After all they are my sisters from my past life. 

Discovery Math Activities Round-Up

I saw a meme on Facebook that says: "Think you're bored? When Sir Isaac Newton invented calculus it was during the plague. Do you have any idea how bored you have to be to invent calculus?" Now the truth is Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, a German mathematician, published the same discoveries around the exact same time as Isaac Newton. Each mathematician claimed the other stole his ideas, but it is believed that both actually discovered the same thing separately around the same time. (For more about Isaac Newton click here and I share a little more about both men here.) 

Chapter Books for Ages 7 - Young Adult

Disclosure: I was sent copies of these books in exchange for honest reviews. All opinions are my own.

How are you surviving this self-isolation/quarantine? How are your kids surviving? One thing that Hazel and I have been enjoying is reading. I decided it is time to finally share the stack of chapter books (or at least most of them) that I have on my review shelf. I'm hoping you might find something for your kids to read while stuck at home! We will go somewhat by age. The first book is for the younger chapter book reader. The suggested ages are 7-10 but I would say this series is good for 6-8. We reviewed the other two books in the Fairy Mom and Me Series previously.

2 New Picture Books Perfect for Women's History Month

Disclosure: I was sent copies of these books in exchange for honest reviews. All opinions are my own.

How are you surviving this crazy new social distancing? School buildings here are closed until at least May 4 and now lessons are on-line for all students. It is a strange time. I have several friends who are nurses at hospitals and both have told me about the lack of face masks. Although I believe the supplies are slowly coming I decided to do my part and make some face masks. Now we all know that homemade face masks will not stop COVID-19 like the N-95 face masks that the hospitals desperately need, but they will help protect some and certainly can be used in other parts of the hospitals. I pulled out the fabric scraps from past quilts and ones my mother gave me. I did some research. I found this article and its links to be very helpful. I combined a few tutorials and had one of my nurse friends try them on so I knew which was best. I used two layers of good quality quilting cotton fabrics and a layer of either a good t-shirt or flannel. 

Picture Book Round-Up

I need to do some clearing off of my shelf of books to review, so today I am going to share seventeen picture books. These books are for toddlers through kindergarten. These books range in subjects!

Review of Dreaming in Code: Ada Byron Lovelace, Computer Pioneer -- #WomensHistoryMonth

Disclosure: Candlewick Press sent me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. 

Now as a former math teacher I love seeing books about mathematicians in different cultures and especially about female ones. I think it is so important for kids to see that all sorts of people can do and have been successful in math besides just the white European men that so much of our math and its theorems are named after. Today's book is about Ada Byron Lovelace. I have had the pleasure of sharing with you several books about Ada Byron Lovelace, but this is the first one that is geared toward the older kid. It is recommended for grade seven and above. The book is Dreaming in Code: Ada Byron Lovelace, Computer Pioneer by Emily Arnold McCully.