Geometry and Art

Anneke Bart, Bryan Clair
June 23-27, 2008
Online

Registration Fee: $125 by May 5, $250 after

This online workshop will examine topics in geometry and the use of art as a motivating tool. The focus of the workshop will be how to develop in-class exploration, how to use inquiry-based learning in the classroom, and how to create an interdisciplinary course for freshmen. Materials are online in the form of a Wikibook, and this resource includes theory, classroom explorations, exercises, and projects.

Participants will work through explorations and discuss how they can be useful in helping students understand geometry. The objective will be to provide participants with the resources, teaching materials, and knowledge for teaching an inquiry-based course that incorporates interdisciplinary elements. The method of using interactive worksheets, projects, and, field trips to help students reach a deeper understanding of mathematics and its applications to other disciplines is transferable to other courses in mathematics.Ways of adapting this approach to other courses will be discussed.

Participants completing the workshop will:

obtain teaching materials for a course in geometry that uses inquiry-based learning in the classroom
learn how to develop their own explorations and teaching materials for geometry
become familiar with Wikimedia as a tool for creating online materials
become a part of a network of other professors using interactive methods and an interdisciplinary approach to mathematics

The workshop will meet live online for three hours each day, broken into two one-and-a-half-hour sessions. Prior to attending the workshop, the participants will be expected to familiarize themselves with the EscherWiki. During the workshop, specific geometry explorations will be examined and discussed. Participants will work through these explorations and discuss how they can be useful in helping students comprehend concepts from geometry. By the end of the week, groups of participants will develop and present explorations or other materials of their own interest related to geometry. An electronic network will be set up for the participants that will provide a discussion forum.

For more informaiton, visit the Geometry and Art workshop website.

Questions about PREP? Contact Olga Dixon at 202-319-8498 or odixon@maa.org.