Math Themed Calendars

 

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

With the new year approaching I have to share something I am excited to add to my classroom. I am sharing two math-themed calendars or what I will call math themed. I have two page-a-day calendars that will work in my classroom. One is Origami Page-A-Day 2024 Calendar by Margaret Van Sicklen and Workman Calendars, and it will be perfect in my geometry class as well to enterain the kids who visit my room for origami paper. The other one is Original Sudoku Page-A-Day 2024 Calendar by Workman Calendars and Nikoli Publishing, and it is perfect for adding some problem solving and logic skills to kids. 

Bringing Origami to Geometry Class -- Product Reviews

 

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

One thing I love to do is bring origami into my classroom. Whether using the old patty paper methods to discover theorems and such or doing origami and perhaps an origami project to demonstrate using geometric terms or just to have cool geometric shapes around the room, I love adding origami. I actually have a box of origami paper in my room-- a boot box covered with Asian wrapping paper. Students come in all the time to have a piece or two just to create something for a relaxed moment. Today I am sharing a book full of geometry and geometric shapes all created by origami and two different packs of origami paper (which all will be added to my classroom supply). I have a shelf full of origami books and kits as well. The book is The Art & Science of Geometric Origami by Jun Maekawa. The packs of paper are Origami Paper 300 Sheets Vibrant Colors 4" (10 cm) and Origami Paper in a Box Japanese Washi Patterns. 

Back to School...Classroom Decor, Things I Learned and Free Resources

 

It was very different teaching last year versus when I left teaching 17 years ago. So much has changed from technology to expectations. When I taught previously every high school used Geometers' Sketchpad and now there are free and easier to use programs like GeoGebra. Graphing calculators were a huge deal and it was hard to get students to buy them. We actually often had a class set or at least a few for the ones who could not afford them. Now if they do not have the calculators, they can use online programs like Desmos. Although I did not permit Desmos during tests since it was too hard to monitor what they were really doing on their devices with online searches and such. I discovered I liked Desmos better for some things because of the ease to use it. However, I still teach kids to use their graphing calculators because they are able to use them in standardized testing like the SAT and ACT. 

Sierpinski Gasket -- Math Art -- Fractals

 

Today I am going to share some fun math art looking at a famous fractal--the Sierpinski Gasket or the Sierpinski Triangle. It is a perfect fractal to have kids create and goes well with geometry lessons. A fun way to introduce it and create it is the Chaos Game. Here is a video showing the Chaos Game with a triangle, square, and pentagon. With the triangle the Sierpinski Triangle will appear with enough iterations of the game. The rule as explained in the video is to begin with a random point. Then randomly choose a vertex. Connect your point to the vertex and find the midpoint. (Erase the line.) The midpoint is your new starting point. Repeat. This is a game you could easily play in a class as well. Don't watch the video first though. 

Origami for Geometry Class with Marbled Patterns Origami Paper

  

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

As I mentioned I am returning to the high school math classroom in the fall! One of my goals is to bring more hands-on activities as well as projects to the class. One of the classes I am pretty sure I will be teaching is geometry. I am so excited to be back in the geometry classroom. I am hoping to use origami in the classroom and definitely want to have an origami project in the geometry class. This year's teacher did this, so I am working off her idea and adding my own spin. Today I am going to share two origami tutorials all using a beautiful pack of Origami Paper 500 Sheets Marbled Patterns 6-inch paper. This particular pack of paper is being released in July 2022, but there is a similar pack of 200 sheets already available. 

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. 

Origami Art with Origami Paper 1000 Sheets Color Bursts with Origami Butterfly Tutorial

 

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

I have shared I have been on an origami kick since I subbed at Hazel's school for the geometry teacher. I have had a piece of origami artwork I have been waiting to share. For some reason I thought the paper I used wasn't released yet, but it was, so I am finally getting to share it with you. I will also share the tutorial to make the butterflies on it. 

Origami Spectacular! -- Fun origami kit review

 

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

Friday and Monday I was substituting at Hazel's school in one of the high school math and science rooms. The geometry class has an origami project due this week, so we were having some fun with origami. I came home ready to play with origami at home so I pulled out Origami Spectacular! Kit: Our Biggest and Best Origami Collection Ever! by Michael G. LaFosse and Richard L. Alexander. 

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+.

Learning about Pandas -- Book review, fun facts, & Craft Round-Up

 

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

This week we have been focusing on the ocean, but today we are going to move out of the water and into the trees with a look at pandas! Today we will be sharing a National Geographic Kids book, fun facts from the book, and a panda craft round-up. The book is Go Wild! Pandas by Margie Markarian. It is recommended for ages 4 to 8.

Cottontail Rabbits -- Who's In the Backyard? Series

I haven't done a Who's In The Backyard? Post in awhile. I had planned on doing my rabbits weeks ago but was having internet issues as well as a busy life. So here it finally is!! In our backyard we have cottontails. They are probably Eastern Cottontails, but there is a slight chance they could be New England Cottontails. So my focus is going to be on both species and the differences. 

Origami Fun -- a Crafty Weekends Review & Link Party

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

Here is my long over due craft review. I now have a new computer but was able to get my photos back!! In the spring my math club group asked for a lesson involving origami. I pulled out some lessons that talk about geometry while making origami stars. I however forgot to take photos of the girls' projects. So I came home and made some more. 

We used six different packages of origami paper and then I made some other projects with Rainbow Patterns. 

Fun Facts about Chinese New Year!

The lunar new year (better known as the Chinese New Year) begins next week, February 5, 2019. This year will be the Year of the Earth Pig. (Stay tuned for some facts about pigs, the year of the pig and a pig craft round-up coming soon.) I thought it would be fun to look at some fun facts about this holiday. In China and many cultures this holiday is the big holiday like Thanksgiving or Christmas is in America. It amazes me how I learn something new about this holiday every year as I prepare post. So read below to learn a bit about the holiday and some fun facts about it.

A Look at Japan for Asian / Pacific Island Heritage Month

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

May is Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. Multicultural Kid Blogs is hosting a blog hop today for this heritage month and I decided to focus mostly on Japan. I have a bunch of fun books to share with you to help focus on Japan and its culture. It is a mixture of coloring books, origami kits, a novel and an Asian cookbook. The first book I am going to share is another book in the Friendship Dolls Series from Candlewick Press. I reviewed the other two previously. Today's book is Dolls of Hope by Shirley Parenteau. 

Math Lessons for Different Ages

Disclosure: I was sent these books to review free of charge in exchange for an honest review. All opinions in this post are my own. I did not receive any other compensation for this review.

I promised to share some of the resources for homeschooling. Today I am going to focus a bit on math. Some of these resources are for younger children than Hazel, but there is a lot you can still do with them. Before we get into the books, we are still looking for participants in our USA state postcard exchange. Let me know if you want to join in this fun and educational activity!

Sharing Saturday 17-20

It is time for Sharing Saturday!! This is a link party to share all of your child-oriented crafts, crafts made for kids, activities and lessons as well as your parenting and/or teaching posts.

On Sunday night we also host Crafty Weekends for all your crafts (done by any age), patterns, and craft product reviews! It is the perfect place to share your creative side!! And for all of your cultural posts come share them at the monthly Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop.

Thank you to everyone who shared with us at our last party! It was a very small party but full of great ideas!  Our features are just a sampling of them so if you haven't checked them all out, you should! This week we have one group of features.  

Sharing Saturday 16-46

Wow, it is already November!! This fall is flying by. It is time for Sharing Saturday!! This is a link party to share all of your child-oriented crafts, crafts made for kids, activities and lessons as well as your parenting and/or teaching posts. On Sunday night we also host Crafty Weekends for all your crafts (done by any age), patterns, and craft product reviews! It is the perfect place to share your creative side!! And for all of your cultural posts come share them at the monthly Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop. 

Thank you to everyone who shared with us last week! I always love seeing what everyone has been up to and your creative ideas!! Our features are just a sampling of them so if you haven't checked them all out, you should! This week we have two groups of features: Parenting & Lessons and Fall Features.

Color Your Own Origami -- A Relaxing Friday Review on World Origami Day 2016

Disclosure: Tuttle Publishing gave me copies of these books free of charge for this review. All opinions in my review are my own and I did not receive any other compensation. As in all my reviews I am providing links for your ease, but receive no compensation. 

Did you know today is World Origami Day? I just found out this week. Various websites have information about it. The one I got this poster from is in America and celebrates if from October 24 through November 11, but most say it is November 11.

Sharing Saturday 16-36

Reminder: This link party is for child-oriented crafts and activities and parenting/teaching posts!! 

It is time for Sharing Saturday!! This is a link party to share all of your child-oriented crafts,crafts made for kids, activities and lessons as well as your parenting and/or teaching posts. On Sunday night we also host Crafty Weekends for all your crafts (done by any age), patterns, and craft product reviews! It is the perfect place to share your creative side!! And for all of your cultural posts come share them at the monthly Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop (a new one starts on Sunday). 

Thank you to everyone who shared with us last week! I always love seeing what everyone has been up to and your creative ideas!! Our features are just a sampling of them so if you haven't checked them all out, you should! This week we have two groupings of features: Educational and  Activities & More.