Site swap mathematics

This summer I opted not to open with a video but to launch directly into site swap notation. 


This term I began on an RL rather than LR labelling as I tend to launch first from my right hand. I had arrived early and had the 3 and 51 diagrams on the board at class start. I asked the students to predict the next letters and colored circles. I showed that the numbers were the count of spaces. I then showed that switching a blue and green circle changes the order from RGB to RBG. I actually put in two swaps to show the RGB order could be restored.

Shrue used a two ball dapadap to get into a three ball juggle


Nicole also used dapadap to get into a three ball juggle

From there I drew parallels to the way mathematics is taught: in the abstract. I noted that we had been doing mathematics all term long. And yet we had solved only a couple equations. There are other faces to mathematics, other approaches to quantitative literacy that I would argue are no less valid than the memorization of pre-byzantine rules and tricks to solve quadratic and other equations. 

Based on low return rates for online surveys, I ran my own term end surveys in this class. 

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