In this Early Math+Early Literacy “unwebinar,” Omo Moses of MathTalk reminded participants of the importance of creating joyful mathematical experiences with children and the everyday engagement we all have with math with the above comment.

Moses was joined by several of his colleagues ― Angie Uyham, Claudia Ferrara and Javier Maisonet ― with each sharing highlights of MathTalk’s work to promote math joy and discourse in the communities it serves. In a conversation moderated by Jessica Tilli of the Philadelphia School District, the presenters shared how they are utilizing co-design to empower stakeholders to have an integral role in designing MathTrails for their own communities. Uyham engaged attendees in the co-design process as they brainstormed ideas of how they might bring math to life in their communities. Some of the ideas generated included:

• Playing “Which One Doesn’t Belong” with four desert animals on a bike path in Tucson, Arizona
• Creating shopping lists and calculating costs at the grocery store
• Designing a shape walk from the entrance of a mall to the bookstore
• Hosting a math-based scavenger hunt in a library
• Counting and numbering basketballs at a recreation center
• Sorting piles of natural objects at the beach

Ferrara shared the incredible capabilities of their app Measure! Everything!, which harnesses the power of augmented reality to allow children and families to interact in their own spaces and with MathTrails to think about the math that is everywhere and in everything. Participants were downloading the app in the moment because they were so impressed with its capability!

When asked why math talk is so important to encourage outside of school, Moses said, “Math is part of a human experience, and if you turn your kids on to it early, and they feel like this is the language that they can speak and engage with, it’s really empowering. It enables them to see and explore the world around them a little bit differently.” Ferrara agreed adding, “I think when we encourage math talk outside of school, we are working toward building that positive math identity, math confidence, math mindset, which sets kids up for success and opportunity later in life.”