I read what you wrote so far and I want to encourage you to write. This is one of the things that I do require for this class. I am asking that you respond to every class and am requesting your utmost attention so you can write beautiful summaries which others will read and enjoy.
Last time we focus on the number zero, the empty set and the beautiful idea of magic squares.
This lesson we will focus on:
1. Activities with Mike (Birthday)
2. Finding What Day of the week you were born?
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- Take the last two digit of the year you were born, call it A
- Divide A by 4 and discard the remainder, call it B
- Pick the day of the month you were born, call it C
- Find the month key value using the code, but subtract 1 for January or February of a leap year, call it D
(For our purposes a leap year is a year that is evenly divisible by 4, 1984 for example but not 1983)
| J | F | M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O | N | D |
| 1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 6 |
6. Find A+B+C+D
7. Divide by 7 and take the remainder. The answer gives you the day you were born:
(0 Saturday, 1 Sunday, 2 Monday etc..)
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15 comments:
As an English and French major, I am naturally drawn to words rather than numbers. I find that language is much easier to apply directly to life and this subject tends to be a bit more valuable to me for that reason.
It was really nice to have something relevant incorporated into class today. Until today, I really had no idea what day of the week I was born. That's a really nice thing; to be shown something about my life through numbers and patterns, without any dependence on language. This class is really showing me a side of math that I didn't realize existed, perhaps due to my own subconscious rejection of numbers. I'm glad that exercises like the Birthday one done in class today can show me this other side of math that I am more comfortable with and more interested in discovering.
Thanks Hannah to respond so quickly. I hope others will be inspired by this.
I (Dani) am writing it to everyone I felt it was a meaningful lesson today. On the surface we focus on the exercise of WDOTWYWBorn but within it where hidden treasures to be discovered and I am looking forward to read what you write.
When you ask the five people or more to find the Day of the week they were born use the same method of "feeling numbers" that we did in class. If you cannot do it let us know.
Twice in the exercise you divide a number. One time by 4 to discard the remainder and the other time by 7 and get just the remainder. This kind of exercise can be a wonderful opportunity to practice something I call "feeling for numbers". R(15,7) = 1 but R(14,7)=0 and R(30,7)=2. What is R(50,7)? Read it several times and you will realize the R means "Remainder) and so R(50,7)===???
In the same way Q(15,7)=2 and Q(14,7)=2 and Q(30,7)=4... so what do you think Q(50,7) is? One you get the pattern you will know. I am very eager to read what you write in your summaries.
A difference I have seen so far between me and what seems to be the majority of the class is that many of my classmates seem to either be not so good at math or are easily frustrated by the subject.
However math has always come fairly easy to me throughout my life and I never had to really try to hard to be good at it. However I never did that great because I was never enthralled with learning calculus etc. because of how it was taught and the repetition.
As much I have not liked math though, I have always been fascinated by it. Today in class helped confirm that belief. I have always loved puzzles, patterns, and logic in general but have never found a way to go about learning more about them at school. I have rekindled my excitement talking about the "friends" and other patterns. Hopefully this class will be the bridge to new learning.
Today's class went so quickly! I was totally wrapped up in everything that we discussed. It was fascinating to see a practical use of what is perhaps an obscure mathematical formula. Looking back, how else could you determine what day you were born on? Historical records, maybe, but this simple math trick eliminated the need.
It was also intruiging to see how you cleverly gave us a practical and interesting math "toy" to teach about "feeling numbers" as you say. By presenting it in what appears to be an inconsequential math game with interesting practical results, you seemed to make the class forget the problems we had with math as well as our discomfort, all in the process of letting us play with our new toy.
Very clever! Methinks that perhaps more people would have a proclivity for mathematics "The Beautiful Queen" if it was taught in such a manner elsewhere.
Thank you, Mr. Novak.
Today's class was an eye-opening one for me.
It has been a very, very, very long time since I have had to do math in a classroom setting. I immediately (and unexpectantly) felt overwhelmed at even the thought of doing math and let my partner Chuck take the lead in doing the equation. I found it difficult to even think straight.
However, once I cleared my head I saw that the instructions were very straightforward and that I was very capable of doing the equations. Once I was able to do this I was amazed at what we could figure out without having to look at a calendar. I simply needed to clear my head and remember to trust myself in order to enjoy the activity. This of course is easier said than done.
When Dani asked us what we thought the class was about, I was interested to hear what other people had to say. My own thoughts were that the class would hopefully help me to trust myself more-quite ironic because I did not raise my hand to say this and rather Dani said essentially the same thing! At first this felt like a slap in the face-one that I gave myself. (I have since been able to find a lot of humor in the situation!) I have enjoyed listening intently to what people say-this has been my way of engagement-but I also hope to be able to open up more about my own thoughts and opinions. I am usually not as quiet in class, but the format of the class has been so different than ones I am used to. I realize that the free-form feeling of the class has somewhat scared me, in that I cannot simply reiterate words that I have read the night before in the chapter but have to trust my own values and opinions, ones that I may not be able to cite from a book or from a newspaper. This class is so much more than simply a math class! Though the class may take some adjusting to, I already see many of its benefits. This class has made me think more about the best ways in which I learn and also that I also should give myself more credit. I thank Dani and the class for their very interesting perspectives and ideas.
Despite already knowing what day I was born, it was fascinating for me to break down and attempt to understand this set formula which can calculate that very thing for everyone whose ever lived. The element of the equation which I would have enjoyed exploring further and intend to do so on my own behalf would be the formula and significance of the numbers assigned to each month. This appeared the pinnacle element of the exercise but we did not explore precisely the significance of each number assignment and how these might have been established. My favorite aspect of class however was putting into words a skill I have been using for quite some time now but had never been able to assign a title or linguistic concept. 'Feeling out' a sum or quotient has been my preferred method for completing mathematical formulas as long as I can remember. Once you have establish similar patterns of numbers with your memory, it certainly makes solving even what appears the most intimidating equations, easier. What I've often struggled with in mathematics is an inability to apply basic logic to set formula or established rules and todays instruction shed light on that very issue. I've always felt a bit deliquent in abandoning the lengthy methods of long division in favor of my own intuition and now understand that that doesn't need to be the case. In fact I think this relates back to me entry regarding the Akashic records. In utilizing my common sense relating to the world of math and relying on a wealth of other knowledge available to me from the environment and universe, I am able to intuite an answer or the beginnings of one without going through the entire process of soliving it 'correctly'. The answers are out there just waiting for us to sense their prescence.
I thought Wednesdays class was pretty cool. After finding out my birthday, i figured that you could probably see and use math in really anything you look at. Like tamar, i havent sat in a math class for a couple years, and its nice to ease my way back into it. As most of the class, I really do not like formal math, and seeing numbers and math used for other things...meaningful things, is definitely better for me. When Dani asked what we thought this class was about, i said life. I think this class will really make me look at life differently and appreciate it more.
I also had a really good time with Wednesday's class. I found that even though I didn't understand how the equation for the Birthday exercise worked, I could recognize how mathematical it was. I like this class so much more than I have ever liked a math class because I am able to think in this totally different way, and I also can fidn ways to put math into words, which makes it easier for me to understand. I was amazed to come to the conclusion that I was born on a Friday, which I probably would never have known without this exercise. I also really liked discussing with everyone what we thought the class was about, because I realized that not everybody hates math the way I do, and this is just another perspective for them to find out about math. At the same time, I also felt that there were a lot of people like me, who don't like math that much, and learning how to like math with those people is an adventure I look forward to. I'm sure I'll grow to love math over the course of this semester with Dani's help.
I really enjoyed the way that you taught us the multiplication tables. My brother is just entering the first grade and he really excells at math but he doesn't enjoy it, so I think that I am going to try and show him the blocks you made.
There was also a comment in class that I wrote down in my journal, "You believe in atoms but you can't see them..." Even though I'm an analytical thinker I can appreciate what that quote means. There are some things in this world that are intangible that you just have to believe or have faith in. Again, it's like trying to explain the number 12. It's an intangible idea that we believe in. Numbers in general can only be represented using objects, yet we still believe and use them. This thought really opens up a lot of possibilities to me.
I agree with Hannah - probably most because I too am an English major. When I left class on Wednesday, I looked at the board and saw all those numbers, which would have normally made me feel nauseous, but instead I felt a little proud of myself.
For some reason, I really enjoyed the birthday activity. I think it boosted my self-confidence, and made me realize that it's not that I'm BAD at math necessarily, I just didn't like it... or the way it was taught to me in the past.
I was so relieved that we found a way to make it fun and interesting, and apply it to our own everyday lives. I know it sounds weird, but I was actually excited to go home and find out what day my brother was born for him. I felt like I was 10 years old.
I know when Dani first said that Math is everywhere, I was like, right... but I think I'm starting to realize that it is - it's just a different math than what we've all had pushed on us our whole lives.
The great thing about Wednesday's class was that I found something out about myself. I learned to trust my internal instincts. I never knew before what day of the week I was born on, but for some reason I had a feeling that it was a Wednesday. I don't know what it was, but all of the sudden, after Dani asked us what day of the week we were born, I had this overwhelming vibe that I had been born on a Wednesday. Sure enough, once I completed the equation (after some help from my wonderful partners to recall the steps of long division) it was proven that I was indeed born on a Wednesday. I thought that was pretty cool, considering I had never known, and now I know for sure (I called my mom to confirm and tell her about the lesson). I really love how we are exploring math as how it relates to us personally in this class. In former math classes, I did not feel connected to the content because it had no relevance to me and my life. This class is so amazing because it is opening my eyes to the person I am. This past summer I became much more in tune with myself as a person and this class is helping me to become more aware and discover parts of me I did not realized existed.
I agree with Kelly on the topic of learning to trust your instincts. In the sense of number friends and pairs. I found that as I look at the equation that I am trying to solve my brain some how knows how to do it, once I have an open mind. Take the birthday equation for example: I completed the birthday equation in class, but was not sure if it I had the correct answer, so after class I called my mother to confirm...and it was true, I was born on Saturday. By pairing the numbers during the functions it was just so much easier for my brain to understand the problem that needed to be solved. This new confidence/interest that I've been able to have in the class is something that makes me really look forward to our lessons and class time.
I thought the birthday exercise in Wendesday's class was really interesting! As silly as this sounds, I haven't done division by hand in a while. I checked my work, and it turns out I didn't make any mistakes after all. I liked that Dani showed us another way to think about division...by breaking numbers up into parts and counting them. I like that he uses "hooks" to capture the class' attention, (with the birthday activitiy), and then helps the class understand things in a variety of different ways. This appeals to different learning styles, which I think is fantastic. I am going to be a music teacher, so that mindset really applies to me in my future career.
the 'find your birthday' assignment was interesting, but I don't understand how it works. Why do the months get assigned such seemingly arbitrary numbers at the end (in the key)? my month is november so that translated into 4. what does that part mean? there must be a formula for how dates and days of week correspond, i'd like to learn more about that. for example, jan 1 was a sunday in 06, a monday in 07, and will be a sunday this new year. i'd be interested to know a mathematical way to figure out about new years in say, a century or something. does anyone know why different months have different numbers of days? why is our calendar so strange?
As for atoms, (and how we believe them without seeing them), I think it's interesting to think about how one can chose to believe in something or not believe. like atoms or god or palm readers (or, to go along with the theme of the course, one can believe in their own power) believing in something has so much bearing on your life that for some the believing is meaningful in and of itself and it makes proving or disproving the thing (... it makes the "truth"...) irrelevant.
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