Why is 2 important?  It’s the only even prime number! Spend some time learning about special numbers in this math mini spark.

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #37: What’s so special about that number?

2. Explore this article and find out about 4 types of special numbers. Write the name of each type and some examples on your recording page.

3. Look over this example.

Answer these questions

• How many of the numbers from 1 to 30 can you express as the difference of two perfect squares?
• What is special about the difference between squares of consecutive numbers? Why?
• What about the difference between the squares of two numbers which differ by 2? By 3? By 4…?
• When is the difference between two square numbers odd?
  And when is it even?
• What do you notice about the numbers you CANNOT express as the difference of two perfect squares?
• Reminder for your teacher-The answers to these questions can be found in the math mini park folder.

4.  Set your time for 8 minutes and explore the Almanac of Interesting Numbers at Mathigon.  In what ways could teachers and students use this site? What ways is it useful? What suggestions do you have? Record your responses on your recording sheet.

5. Share your math mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.

Minimum wage is the minimum hourly wage an employer can pay an employee. This number is determined by the government, and it is illegal for employers to pay their non-exempt workers anything below the minimum wage. This is very important, because it makes sure that employees do not fall into poverty.

My boys and I recently had a conversation about minimum wage and it got me thinking about my first job.  It was the late 1980’s and I was 13 years old.  I worked at Bishop’s Buffet rolling silverware in napkins and I made a whopping $2.15 an hour!

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #36: Minimum Wage
2. Go to this site and click around on the map to see some of the current minimum wages in the United States. Record several observations on your recording page.
3. Look at this site and make a table of Nebraska’s minimum wage from 1968 to present.
4. Using the same site from #3, compare the minimum wage for several states. Make a table and then transfer it to a graph. Use this online graphing tool or another graphing tool of your choice.
5. Read about Nebraska’s minimum wage at this site. What kinds of jobs offer minimum wage?  Is $12.00 an hour sufficient?
6. Ask a parent, grandparent, or other adult what their first job was and how much they made per hour.
7. Share your math mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.

Taken from NASA.gov:  One of the reasons that ancient peoples could not predict total solar eclipses was because they did not appreciate the mathematics involved in forecasting. Also, many of the parameters needed to accurately predict eclipses had not been astronomically measured until the first century CE.

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #35: The Math Behind the Solar Eclipse
2. Go to this site to read about eclipses. Then click the arrows to go through the quick facts. Record several details.
3.  Watch this video, The Coincidental Geometry of a Total Solar Eclipse, to learn more about the math involved. Take notes while watching.

4. Read and take notes about total solar eclipses at National Geographic Kids. 

5.  *Advanced: Take the NASA Challenge X Marks the Spot Linear Equations. Print out the activity sheets to get started.

6. *Advanced: Take the NASA Challenge Exploring Angular Diameter.

7. Share your math mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.

Where is your favorite place to eat pizza?  My Top 3 are Sortinos, Mama’s Pizza, and Papa Johns.  Of course whenever we eat pizza as a family, we have to make up some math problems!  Explore some “pizza math”!

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #34: Pizza Math

2. Watch the video, Pizza Pi, and add details on your recording page.

3. Now watch this video, The Twitter Pizza Equation Explained ,and add details to your recording page showing the math behind the pizza sizes.

4. Omni has a great site with information on pizza math and an pizza size calculator. On the left side there are a few articles about pizza. Record the title of each article and 3 details from each one on your note taking sheet.

5. Now try out the calculator. You can use the measurements from one of the videos or create your own and see what the comparisons are. Record what you find.

6. OPTIONAL: Calculate the area, circumference, and price per square inch of the next pizza you order.  Make a display of the math/calculations.

7. Share your math mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.

March Madness is an exciting time for basketball fans, where 68 college teams compete in a single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion. But did you know that math plays a crucial role in understanding and predicting the outcomes of these games?

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #33: Math Madness
2.  Read about March Madness at at DOGO news. Add some information to your recording sheet from the article.
3. Watch this video about the perfect bracket.  You will need a coin or this online coin flipper.  On your recording page, record your flips totals, and the math that he introduces. Then answer to this question:  What are the chances of choosing the winner of every game in the entire tournament?
4. Print out this activity from Yummy Math Activity: Does Seeding Matter? Read the page and do the math. Reminder for your teacher-the answer key to this activity can be found in the math mini spark folder.
5. Share your math mini spark recording page and Does Seeding Matter activity with your teacher/EY coordinator.

A narcissistic number is a number that is the sum of its own digits each raised to the power of the number of digits. It is also known as a pluperfect digital invariant (PPDI), an Armstrong number (after Michael F. Armstrong) or a plus perfect number. 

Narcissistic Numbers aren’t actually that confusing if you know how to do a couple things.  Check out this math mini spark so that you can learn more about these peculiar numbers!

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #32: Narcissistic Numbers
2. Watch this video by Numberphile. Take notes on your recording page.

3. Look at the list of Narcissistic Numbers on Wolfram Alpha. Record several of them.

4. Pick a Narcissistic Number to “work out” on your recording sheet to prove it works.  See example below.

5. Share your math mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.

Whether you’re a football fan or not, it’s interesting to look at the history of the Super Bowl.  This math mni spark has you predicting, collecting, and displaying some data related to the Super Bowl.

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #31: Super Bowl Math

2. Make some predictions.  Without looking online for the answers, predict how much a 30 second ad cost to run during the Super Bowl in the following years:  1962, 1972, 1982, 1992, 2002, 2012, 2022.  Record these predictions on your recording page.  Next to your predictions, use this site to record the actual cost for those years.

3. Why is the Super Bowl in roman numerals? Read this article to find out. Record what you learned.

4. This article talks about the geometry, angles, and statistics associated with the Super Bowl. Write a summary of each paragraph on your recording sheet.

5. Your choice Use the data and graph type you would like to show Super Bowl Data

Pictograph idea Pick 5 NFL teams and write those on the x-axis of your graph.  Using this site, record how many Super Bowls each team played in.  Use a helmet, a football, or some other picture to display the data.  Make sure to include a key for your graph (i.e. 1 football = 1 Super Bowl).

Scatter plot idea  Use the data on this site.  Use the x-axis to represent the year and the y-axis to represent the cost of a 30 second ad.  There are several tools you can use to make your graph including Numbers (app on the iPad), Create A Graph website, Scatter Plot Tool, and others.  Share your completed graph with the EY Coordinator at your building.

6. Share your math mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.

I found this very complex mathematical formula that allows one to figure out the day of the week any date falls on.  Don’t let the formula intimidate you!  I did this with some 3rd graders today and with a few explanations, they were able to figure it out.  So can you!

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #30: What day of the week is it?
2. Watch this tutorial to learn the process.

3. Figure out the day of the week you were born on using your birthdate and year. Add your math steps to your recording page.

4. Figure out the day of the week for another date in history (Pearl Harbor, Declaration of Independence, etc.) and record your math on your recording page

5. Check this Math is fun page to see if you did the math correctly. Check your work.

6. Scroll down to the bottom of the post to read about the Zeller’s Algorithm in JavaScript code that is used to find out the day of the week. Write down some patterns that you notice in the code.

7. Share your math mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.

Check out another method to find an exact day with this math mini spark #90.

A fractal is a never-ending pattern. Fractals are infinitely complex patterns that are self-similar across different scales. They are created by repeating a simple process over and over in an ongoing feedback loop.

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #29: Fractal Fun

2. Watch this video to build your background knowledge about fractals. Record several details on your recording page.

3. Draw Sierpinski’s Triangle by watching this tutorial

4. Check out the connection between Sierpinski’s Triangle and Pascal’s Triangle by watching this video. Record notes on your recording sheet.

5. Watch this video about Fractals and write about what you learned on your recording sheet.

6. Share your math mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow! Explore this math mini spark to learn more about the snowflakes. 

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #28: Let it Snow!
2. Watch this Khan video that shows you how to draw a Koch snowflake fractal. Explain this process and draw a sketch of this on your recording page.
3. Read this article about snowflakes. Summarize each paragraph on your recording page.
4. Follow the step by step instructions and make a few of your own 6 pointed snowflakes. Take a picture and add to your recording page.
5. Share your math mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.