How to boost your students’ interest in math

One great way to introduce students to mathematical concepts is by providing the historical or cultural context for the topic you are teaching. Here are a few examples:

For elementary schoolers:

• Connect math to everyday life with a fun learning activity about grocery shopping.
• Perform arithmetic operations with an abacus or a soroban (Japanese abacus).
• For high schoolers:
• Encode or decode messages in languages created for movies or video games: the Hylian language from the Zelda games, the Kirby alphabet, the Klingon language from Star Trek, etc.
• Make presentations about (or have students research) people who have made contributions to mathematics, such as Fields Medal winners.
• Plan activities for Pi Day.

For all grade levels:

• Talk about the impact math has had on modern society and in civilizations throughout history.
• Lighten up your lessons with some math jokes.
• Learn about different numeral systems: Mesopotamian, Roman, Mayan, Kaktovik (used by Inuit communities in Alaska), Egyptian, etc.
• Relate visual arts to math through 3D drawing, tessellations, mosaics, mandalas, etc. You could, for example, use the Polypad application with your students or study the impossible worlds created by the engraver M.C. Escher.
• Encourage students to showcase their design skills by creating infographics: pie charts for elementary schoolers and statistical diagrams for high schoolers.
• Study the mathematics of music with lessons on frequency, harmony, intervals, fugues, arithmetic sequences, and so on. 
• Etc.

Reading is an excellent way to bust myths about math. There are many books that have the potential to ignite a love of math in your students—not only works of non-fiction, but also fiction and comic books. A good way to integrate reading into your lesson plans is by setting aside a few minutes each day to read a book about math. Check out our reading suggestions for primary school students and secondary school students.

Math involves logical thinking, which means reflection and discussion are crucial for fully grasping mathematical concepts and figuring out how to solve problems. Here are a few ways to get your students talking about math:

• Hold a mini estimation challenge and do a follow-up activity about mental math. The goal of this exercise is to estimate how many objects are in a jar. Here are some examples of items you could use:
  • Erasers
  • Marbles
  • Candy
  • Paper clips
  • Pasta
  • Buttons
  • Etc.
• Students take turns trying to estimate the total number of objects in the jar. This activity might surprise your students because it turns out that under certain conditions, the average of all the estimates can be extremely close to the actual answer.
• Have number talks—5-to-15-minute conversations about how to solve a particular math problem.
• Teach your students magic tricks that use math, such as guessing a number (like a classmate’s birth date), card tricks, and magic squares (link in French).
• Have students use math to determine the best choice out of two options, using examples from everyday life (link in French) such as specials at the grocery store, the best way to divide a group of items, the best route to take, or the best place to park your car.
• Download posters from Alloprof and put them up in your classroom to help students learn and remember the steps to solving an equation.  
• Discuss paradoxes and brain teasers and challenge students to solve them. For example, high schoolers could be introduced to the Monty Hall problem.
• Suggest that your students explore the vast world of mathematical curiosities and puzzles.
• Use sports and physical activity to teach mathematical concepts. You could do calculations with hockey scores or baseball statistics, have students take their pulse before and after physical activity, calculate the area of the school basketball court, etc.
• Do a fun reinvestment activity where students determine which item in a set does not belong and explain why. For example, in a set of four geometric shapes with three triangles and one hexagon, the hexagon is the odd one out.
• Normalize mistakes by reminding students that they are part of the learning process. A creative way to do this is by designating a common error, or  “mistake of the day,” then breaking it down and explaining how to avoid it.
• Etc.

Math (not just geometry, but also calculus, algebra, statistics, etc.) is essential to our ability to understand space. Here are some activity ideas that can help your students improve their spatial reasoning:

For elementary schoolers:

• Give students tangram puzzles to solve.
• Have students practice calculating area with our printable worksheet featuring Alloprof’s friendly mascot, Flo.
• Use cubes or pattern blocks to help students visualize how to add fractions.
• Use Minecraft: Education Edition in lessons on the surface area and volume of a cube.
• Build geometric structures using different techniques and materials such as origami (video in French), cardboard polyhedra, building blocks, pyramids, or prisms.
• Bring in or ask students to bring in toys or puzzles related to geometry and spatial reasoning to observe and discuss them. Magnetic blocks, kaleidoscopes, and Rubik’s cubes are good examples.
• Have students bring in photographs that show examples of geometry in architecture, nature, video games, etc., and create a classroom art exhibit.

For high schoolers:

• Conceptualize the area of a sphere by peeling an orange or a clementine (imperfect sphere).
• Use these examples of geometric probabilities as inspiration to create others based on real-life situations.
• Etc.

Technology is an integral part of young people’s daily lives. It can also be an excellent tool for exploring the math in the world around us. Here are some ideas to try in your classroom:
For elementary schoolers:

• Use educational computer games to teach math. The Alloprof website includes several math games. In the popular Fin Lapin 3, for example, players help a rabbit win a race by solving multiplication, division, addition, and subtraction operations. In MétéorMath, they have to defend our planet from meteorites by practicing their multiplication tables. 

For high schoolers:

• Ask students to discuss the role of algorithms in social media interactions. This algorithm game from Canada’s Centre for Digital and Media Literacy is a good jumping-off point.

For all grade levels:

• Explore the world of programming and math’s integral role in software and application development. The web platform Scratch is a good way to learn programming skills with your students.
• Make connections between math and robotics. Programmable robots are becoming a common sight in math classrooms. Here are some different options available on the market: Blue-Bot, Ozobot, Lego Mindstorms NXT, Cubelets, Dash, Bee-Bot, Botley, Edison Robot, Makey Makey, mBot, Root.
• Etc.