Mathematical Curiosities Photo by Teosaurio Sometimes you encounter that math student who is simply intrigued by strange numbers. Here are some famous (and not so famous) sets of numbers that have curious properties. The Fibonacci Series The Fibonacci series starts with zero and one. The Fibonacci series has many interesting appearances in nature and is related to our next curiosity: the golden ratio. The Golden Ratio Known as phi or φ, the golden ratio is approximately 1.618. A golden rectangle is a rectangle whose sides have a ratio of φ. Note that if you divide a Fibonacci number by its predecessor, you always hover around the golden ratio. Images that make use of the golden ratio are considered to be pleasing to the human eye. Perfect Numbers A perfect number’s factors sum to the number itself: These get large pretty quickly! Pythagorean Triples A Pythagorean Triple consist of three whole numbers that satisfy the equation a2 + b2 = c2, also known as the Pythagorean theorem. Here are the first three triples:
Money, Money, Money! When I taught Kindergarten and 1st grade, I LOVED teaching money! I loved it because kids love money {don't we all?} and there are tons of fun games and activities! Well when looking for online money activities and games there are also TONS! Below are some of my favorites to use with your students! Matching Coins you to learn coin recognition and counting patterns. Matching Money- a matching game that allows you a timed or an untimed game. Money Desk- has three different levels of difficulty and three different characters to choose from. The US Mint has several different fun games for kids: Bank It! CA$H Out- includes three levels of difficulty and on screen hints Money Printable Games from Fuel the Brain Sparklebox Money Printables here including Money Fans and Amounts to $1 Matching Cards.