I have two sons and this is pretty interesting. There is one thing that could also be hugely useful in my opinion. It is the historic context of mathematics. Lots of very intelligent people (and geniuses) and tens of years (some times hundreds) are needed to develop mathematics. But in a class of "math" you are only given a procedure to follow and it is explained as if it were self evident. Something that took years to be developed is written in a blackboard in 2 min. And that it is, now do this exercises and next friday you´ll have a test. (of course passionate teachers do better than this)
One of the best books I´ve read in scientific divulgation is Fermat´s last theorem by Simon Singh . It tells the story of the assault to the theorem beautifully. You follow different mathematicians through history and see how they advance and how they fail, how it affects their lives, their careers and also human history.
Although the mathematic concepts involved at the end of the book are pretty advanced (the book is not heavy in mathematic formulas) you feel able to understand them and I feel that one of the reasons is due to the beautiful context every thing is set on.(the other of course is the great writing job Simon Singh does). I still remember some of the developments involved, and more than 7 years have passed since I read the book.
It sparked in me a deeper interest in mathematics, I used to like them, but it was not the kind of curiosity I have now.
Of course you can not "learn" with this book, but it is a great tool to put everything in a context, and learn how it advances.
I really think that teaching some kind of history of mathematics (greeks, Egyptians, arabs, etc..what they discovered, how, where they got stuck and why) + mathematic concepts (no exercises needed in this class) could be a great way to spark the interest of students, and see mathematics in a human and achievable way.
edit: some typos, and some excess of "mathematics" to be cleared.
One of the best books I´ve read in scientific divulgation is Fermat´s last theorem by Simon Singh . It tells the story of the assault to the theorem beautifully. You follow different mathematicians through history and see how they advance and how they fail, how it affects their lives, their careers and also human history.
Although the mathematic concepts involved at the end of the book are pretty advanced (the book is not heavy in mathematic formulas) you feel able to understand them and I feel that one of the reasons is due to the beautiful context every thing is set on.(the other of course is the great writing job Simon Singh does). I still remember some of the developments involved, and more than 7 years have passed since I read the book.
It sparked in me a deeper interest in mathematics, I used to like them, but it was not the kind of curiosity I have now.
Of course you can not "learn" with this book, but it is a great tool to put everything in a context, and learn how it advances. I really think that teaching some kind of history of mathematics (greeks, Egyptians, arabs, etc..what they discovered, how, where they got stuck and why) + mathematic concepts (no exercises needed in this class) could be a great way to spark the interest of students, and see mathematics in a human and achievable way.
edit: some typos, and some excess of "mathematics" to be cleared.