math club memories!

In past years I had great fun with math clubs.  I did not sponsor clubs that were intensely competitive.  Instead, I sponsored clubs at grades 4 - 8 that were exploratory.   We would explore math topics that were not commonly included in the core curriculum.

A few of my favorite resources included:

• NCTM's Student Math Notes (now called Student Explorations in Math)  These are copyright protected but available with a small membership fee.


• Cynthia Lanius' website has fun math explorations suitable for class or clubs.


• For my elementary students we worked various puzzles - like these or these!


• We worked sample contest problems - samples at Math Olympiad


• And we played favorite games like Set, 24, and Equate!  There is a SET tutorial and daily game online.  There is a 24 game online as well!


• We read Theoni Pappas' stories about Penrose, the mathematical cat!

I haven't sponsored a math club for several years.  Instead I sponsored a writing club ... which was different and fun!  If I were in an elementary school this year I would consider combining the two ideas ... math stories, math poems, and math problems!