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Today in our Maths300 Mondays series, we’re sharing a snapshot of another rich classroom activity that develops pedagogical capacity, using an open-ended, problem-solving investigation. This week’s activity, Pentagon Triangles, invites students to explore how shapes can be combined and reconfigured to form new ones, starting with a dissection of a pentagon.

The task is accessible for middle primary students, using concrete materials to investigate how composite shapes are constructed. At the same time, it offers strong extension opportunities into the secondary years, including connections to pattern, generalisation and even ideas such as Fibonacci numbers and the Golden Ratio.

From a pedagogy perspective, this lesson models how teachers can:
▪ use hands-on materials to support visual and spatial reasoning
▪ encourage students to notice patterns and make connections between different mathematical concepts and strands
▪ extend learning from concrete exploration to more abstract ideas

This mini-lesson presents a brief overview of the extensive and rich investigation found in Maths300, which comes complete with teacher notes explaining the underlying mathematics.

Through our cost-effective subscription, Maths300 supports teachers in developing a powerful repertoire of pedagogical strategies, with engaging lessons that support students across primary and secondary years.

To begin exploring Maths300 in your school and to set up a free trial account, send our friendly staff an email at ✉️ maths300.aamt.edu.au

🔽 Download the Pentagon Triangles mini-lesson here: https://go.aamt.edu.au/Maths300-Pentagon-Triangles

The Moon has a lot of pull around here. 🌝

As we help track NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Artemis II lunar fly-by mission, we’ve collated answers to the most asked questions about the Moon, which were inspired by visitors to the Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex. 👇

🌕 Why is it called the Moon?
The name comes from the old English word mōna which referred to the measuring of time and also gives us the word ‘month’. Ancient Romans referred to it as Lune, which is why we have so many lunar references. The French still refer to the Moon as Lune, and in Spanish and Italian it is Luna.

🌔 Why does the Earth have a Moon?
Scientists believe the Moon formed from the debris of a collision between the early Earth and an object the size of Mars about 4.5 billion years ago. To put it in perspective, the Moon is roughly one quarter the size of Earth, and Mars is around half the size of Earth.

🌓 Why can we sometimes see the Moon during the day?
What we’re seeing is the reflection of sunlight off the surface of the Moon. Because the Moon is so big (roughly one-quarter of the size of Earth) it reflects a lot of light, which can still be seen even when the Sun is out. Stars are much further away, so their light appears dimmer and is easily ‘outshone’ by the Sun in daylight hours.

🌒 Why do some planets have more than one moon?
To have a moon, planets need to be big enough to have a strong gravitational pull. We have one moon. Mars has two, Jupiter has 95, Saturn has 274, Uranus has 28, and Neptune has 14. Because the Sun is the biggest object in our Solar System, it has the strongest pull. Planets further away tend to be able to keep more natural satellites in their system.

🌑 What is on the “dark side of the Moon”?
Because of what’s called tidal locking, one side of the Moon permanently faces Earth. The other (called the “far side of the Moon”), always faces away. Each side has roughly two weeks of daytime, followed by two weeks of night. What’s tidal locking? The Moon takes 28 days to complete one orbit around Earth. It also takes 28 days to complete one rotation on its axis. This keeps one side of the Moon always facing away.

If students can’t see themselves in the ‘who’ of mathematics, they often won’t stay for the ‘how. Today, in our series on maths and careers, we focus on identity - showing students that people who solve the problems they care about are using maths to do it.

The Resources:
🔗 AMSI Careers (CHOOSEMATHS): An extensive set of visual role models. It features Australian-specific posters and videos of people in unusual fields like fire behaviour analysis and sports data science.
https://careers.amsi.org.au/

🔗 We Use Math: An extensive library of career profiles. It moves beyond lists to show the specific maths used in diverse jobs like chemist to urban planner.
http://weusemath.org/?page_id=143818

How to use this: Use the AMSI posters for classroom displays or start a lesson with a 5-minute ‘virtual excursion’ using one of the career videos to show a real-world application of your current unit.

Do you know the right questions to ask your child when something's wrong? 💬

When kids are struggling, whether it's frightening news, world events or something closer to home, the right conversation at the right time can make all the difference.

It’s normal for children to feel worried, sad or overwhelmed. Knowing what to ask and how to listen can help them feel safe, supported and understood. 🤍

Simple things like creating a calm space to talk, listening without judgement and helping your child name their feelings can go a long way.

We’ve pulled together practical resources to support your child’s wellbeing, including what to look for, how to start the conversation, and where to go for extra support if you need it.

Explore the resources here: education.qld.gov.au/students/student-health-safety-wellbeing/student-wellbeing/information-parents

Towns are connected by one-way roads. Each road takes 1 hour. Kiara lives in D and wants to visit F, C and A in order, then return to D. What is the shortest time she could take?

This problem comes from the Junior division of the Computational and Algorithmic Thinking competition.

Solution: https://app.problemo.edu.au/token/1e2bee79f86d

We couldn't help but post this lovely problem that was included in this week's newsletter from our friend Chris Smith at Grange Academy over in Scotland.

The challenge is very accessible in that all students can understand and make a start at the problem. Justifying their answer (and the uniqueness of the answer) is the fun part!

If you'd like to get direct access to Chris's weekly fix of puzzles, lesson ideas, resources, Mathsy trivia and general geekiness (his words not ours) - please email him at [email protected] to subscribe to his newsletter.

High School Work Experience Program open to students in grades 10, 11 and 12 - Infrastructure and Natural Assets, Sunshine Coast Council

Our aim is to encourage and support young, energetic, and enthusiastic individuals to explore future career options within our Horticulture, Arboriculture, Turf and Irrigation, Nursery Operations, Infrastructure Maintenance or Administration teams. Students who apply will come on board with us for a 5-day period. They will experience first-hand basic technical skills, while also developing transferable skills such as communication, teamwork, interpersonal skills, and confidence.

Students who successfully complete the program, will receive a Certificate of Completion, and will be eligible to apply for traineeship programs and vacant positions within the Parks and Gardens branch once they graduate from high school. Any future employment opportunities will provide career progression advantages within the Parks and Gardens Branch and ensure skills and experience can be expanded.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTeRfguE8Zg

The future belongs to those who build it.
𝑾𝒆'𝒓𝒆 𝒉𝒊𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈! 🚀 🛰️

Highlighting just some of the cool opportunities in our Software & Avionics team:

𝑬𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒚/𝑱𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒐𝒓 𝒓𝒐𝒍𝒆𝒔
‣ Electrical Engineer I
‣ Electronics Engineer I
‣ Avionics Engineer I
‣ Software Services Engineer I

𝑺𝒆𝒏𝒊𝒐𝒓 𝒓𝒐𝒍𝒆𝒔
‣ Avionics Engineer II
‣ Senior Avionics Engineer
‣ Senior Flight Software Engineer
‣ Senior Electronics Engineer
‣ Head of Avionics (Satellites)

If you’re keen to work on launch vehicles, satellites, and real space missions — we’d love to hear from you.

Explore all roles here: https://www.gspace.com/career 🇦🇺

"This is essentially as close as we can get to seeing the death of a massive star."

(Image credit: Keith Miller, Caltech/IPAC - SELab)