Vermont Math Circle

01/06/2024

We are so excited to announce that, in collaboration with Mastermind Chess, we will be running a 2-week chess, math, and D&D summer camp in Brooklyn, NY this summer! Take advantage of early bird pricing now through March 15! See more info and register at https://mastermindchess.com/summer-camp

11/27/2023

My virtual math circles for kids ages 8-12 are starting up again next week, and early bird pricing expires this Thursday 11/30 - register here: https://ica.jumbula.com/virtual-math-classes !

What's a math circle?:
We use student discussion to guide the lesson rather than a lecture from a teacher, allowing students to make discoveries on their own while having fun. We start each day with a mathematical game and move into areas that are not typical parts of elementary/middle school curriculum such as combinatorics, graph theory, game theory, and more discrete math topics. We focus on the logical process, rather than trying to find a fast answer to a computation. This means that the focus is on creativity and discovery -- an approach that can help prevent or reverse math phobia! It doesn't feel like a math class, but students are learning valuable lessons in discrete mathematics while engaging in creative play.

Who are you?:
I'm a mom, math PhD, and (until recently) tenured college math professor who followed my passion for working with younger kids and created www.vermontmathcircle.com through which I run math circles, chess classes, and Dungeons & Dragons campaigns with kids of all ages! I've been teaching math to kids in private and group settings for 20+ years, and I'm thrilled to have been able to turn this into my full-time career.

Jumbula Home Page

09/04/2023

Our virtual math circles (ages 8 to 12) are so popular that we added a new section! We start tomorrow and you can register at http://tinyurl.com/virtualmathcircle (8-10 year olds at 4pm, 10-12 year olds at 5:05pm, and a new section for 9-11 year olds at 6:10pm; sections for older kids move a bit faster and assume more ease with multiplication when it comes up).

Not sure what a math circle is or if it's right for your child? Here's what you can expect in our weekly, hour long meetings:

We often warm up with games, and then move into mathematical discussion. We usually cover topics that are not typical parts of elementary school curriculum such as combinatorics, graph theory, game theory, and other discrete math topics. A math circle is more focused on student discussion to guide the lesson rather than a lecture from a teacher, so I will pose questions and guide students as needed, allowing them to make discoveries on their own. A big difference between material in a math circle vs a typical school curriculum is that we will usually pose a bigger, more open ended question that isn't looking for an immediate right answer - it's a focus on the mathematical process, and learning how to think about questions like a mathematician, while normalizing the feeling of struggling with a complex problem and learning how to break it down into more manageable pieces.

08/04/2023

There’s still time to register for our workshops for teachers and homeschooling parents: Friday 8/4 1-3pm and Tuesday 8/8 10am-12pm at Hula. Want the info but can’t commit to a workshop? Buy the book: well over 100 pages of ideas and months worth of lessons in topics including figurate numbers, Fibonacci numbers, Pascal’s triangle, graph theory, math games, and more! On sale for $50 (usually $75) because it’s new and we’re so excited! Get it now over at https://natashakomarov.podia.com/vermont-math-circle-ideas-and-lessons-for-the-k-8-math-classroom

Welcome to Vermont Math Circle! ANNOUNCEMENT: SUMMER OFFERINGS! This summer will be running 4-week versions of our usual chess clubs and virtual math circles, as well as Dungeons & Dragons Math Circles, teacher workshops, and special chess clinics for younger students. We can’t wait!Enrollment is ...

07/12/2023

We are having a blast with Dungeons and Dragons Math Circle! We had a special treat at the end of yesterday's session when local gamer and entrepreneur Eric let us play with his awesome play-doh molds for D&D miniatures. The kids even got to each take a mold home! One of the perks of being part of the Quarterstaff Games community. We still have room in both of our sections for the next session of D&DMC - starting the week of July 24! Register now at www.vermontmathcircle.com/register

06/16/2023

Bags of colorful D&D dice ready for all the kids who'll be joining us on Sunday 6/18 for the character creation workshop at , right on Church Street in Burlington! There are still a couple of spots left in our D&D Math Circle sections (Tuesdays starting 6/20 with Natasha and Thursdays starting 6/22 with Danny) - see full schedule and register today at www.vermontmathcircle.com/register, and please reach out with any questions!

Welcome to Vermont Math Circle! ANNOUNCEMENT: SUMMER OFFERINGS! This summer will be running 4-week versions of our usual chess clubs and virtual math circles, as well as Dungeons & Dragons Math Circles, teacher workshops, and special chess clinics for younger students. We can’t wait!Enrollment is ...

06/12/2023

Dungeons & Dragons Math Circles for kids aged 8-13 start in less than a week in Burlington, and there’s still time to register! No familiarity with D&D or math circles is required. Register/see full schedule at www.vermontmathcircle.com/register, or send a DM (D&D pun not intended) with any questions.

While we wait for D&DMC to begin, try your hand at this puzzle. You are trapped in a cave, and you see some runes etched into the side of a boulder, and you remember reading about such spells in a spellbook back in town: each different rune represents a different digit from 0 to 9, and results in a correct addition problem. You also remember from your studies that the first digit in each line is not 0. Figuring out what digits each rune represents activates the spell, which reveals a trap door. Can you activate the spell and escape? Tell us your solution!

05/30/2023

Hard to believe, but it is time to sign up for Dungeons and Dragons Math Circle and also for our first summer chess classes, both of which start in under 3 weeks in downtown Burlington! Register now at www.vermontmathcircle.com/register

Teacher Appreciation Week discount: Through Sunday, May 14, take 10% off any in person summer offering with discount code THANKSTEACHERS.For virtual math circles for ages 7-12, click here.

05/17/2023

Here’s a fun math game you can play with any child, to help them learn negative numbers and practice mathematical operations! You’ll need some dice, paper, and pen. Write each one of the numbers -10 to 10 once on a piece of paper (or twice if you are playing with more than 2-3 players), or save and print out the one in the 2nd photo of this post.

Roll 3 dice and combine them with mathematical operations like +,-, and x (bonus: some jumbo blank dice on which you can write the operations with a dry erase marker are helpful but not necessary) to get one of the numbers remaining on the player board you made. Cover that number up with your player token (or just cross it out with your pen). Negative numbers give 10 points, 0 gives 7 points, and positive numbers give 5 points. First to 30 points wins!

This game is easily adjustable to suit various levels. For instance, more advanced students can play with dice that have more sides (you can find 8, 10, 12, and even 20-sided dice in any board game store) or play with more than 3 dice, and add in numbers larger in magnitude on the player board. For students who are working with fractions, include division as one of the operations and throw in some fractions into the game board.

The student in this post is a 5-year-old preschooler! Anyone with an adequate attention span and enthusiasm can learn negative numbers and have fun with this game. I typically play this game with my students in grade 2 through 5, leveled up as needed.

05/01/2023

We are super excited to introduce our new Dungeons and Dragons Math Circles this summer! D&D is a role-playing game, and is based first and foremost around creative self-expression, with a DM (Dungeon Master) weaving a narrative and all participants shaping that narrative with their characters and in-game choices. We also combine a typical D&D session with math circle style discussion. This aspect arises naturally within the narrative; for example, students may work together to solve a puzzle to escape a dungeon. These are 4-week sessions, meeting 2 hours at a time. Open to all kids ages 8-13.

No familiarity with D&D or math circles is required! Participants can bring their own characters, use one of the characters the DM creates, or come to an optional character creation workshop for help with creating their own. See picture for DnDMC schedule, and check out the full summer line up of offerings at www.vermontmathcircle.com !