What I Learned at #BloggyCon13

By Jon OaksSep 15, 2013
This weekend I attended my first blogging conference ever: Bloggy Conference 2013. My intent for attending was as follows: I wanted to get tips for becoming a better blogger myself. I am considering having my students write blogs themselves (similar to this idea), as I truly believe that if my students write about what they are learning, then they are more likely to retain the information long-term. I have a few students this semester who are homeschooling their kids at home and have asked me for suggestions for teaching their children mathematics and I heard there were some home school…
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Resources for Teaching Integers

By Jon OaksSep 08, 2013
I was recently contacted about whether or not I had any resources for teaching about Integers.  Of course, my answer was a resounding, "yes!"  But I was actually a little embarrassed when I had to admit to the person that I had never taken the time to organize them all into one easy-to-find place on the Internet.  So, that's what this post is all about.  I hope that you enjoy the resources that I've collected for teaching integers. Card Games Zero Sum Card Game - This is a card game in which students need to collect cards in order to reach…
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The Mathematics of Weight Loss

By Jon OaksSep 01, 2013
The picture below was taken in college when I was around my heaviest weight ever of 314 lbs.  I've always been a big person and I there is a lot that goes into why this is the case as well.  Was it the way I was raised?  Was it genetics?  Was it just me eating myself into a hole?  Well, this is not the place where I'm going to talk about that. What I will say, though, is that this is the most recent picture of me a little over 70 lbs lighter than I was at my highest weight.…
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Upcoming Conferences for 2013

By Jon OaksApr 19, 2013
I've been getting a lot of questions lately from people about what conferences and events I'll be attending soon. Here is a list of them for 2013 and I'll try to update it if I know I will be attending any other events: Michigan MAA Annual Meeting Friday, May 3 - Saturday, May 4 Sault Ste. Marie, MI TedXGrandRapids Thursday, May 9 Grand Rapids, MI Calculus In Action Saturday, May 18 Warren, MI register at: bit.ly/cia2013 WebAssign User's Group 2013 Thursday, June 27 - Friday, June 28 Raleigh, NC MCTM Conference Wednesday, July 31 - Thursday, August 1 Traverse City, MI…
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I’m Not a Lazy Teacher!

By Jon OaksApr 07, 2013
I recently read a blog post by a student named Justin Strudler that has me really fired up!  In his post he explains that he thinks most students would rather be sick than go to school because they hate it so much; he then implies that many people discredit this attitude as laziness on the students’ part and calls for change in the educational system. I’m not opposed to change at all, but I want to set the record straight on several things: 1.  I have not once cancelled a class because I was ill.  I will go into class…
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Free PDF Conversion Online

By Jon OaksApr 06, 2013
Recently, I learned about a relatively new website that allows for free PDF Conversion Online, www.pdfconverter.com. You can convert any file to a PDF or you can convert PDF to Word, PDF to Excel, or PDF to PowerPoint. As a math instructor, I have learned to take everything with a grain of salt when it comes to converting a PDF full of equations to a Word Document. However, knowing these tools are all available to me online for free is a big relief in situations when I am working on a computer at my college that doesn’t allow me to…
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New Factor Pair Spoons Game

By Jon OaksMar 08, 2013
The Factor Pair Spoons Game is a new game that was inspired by participants in the Professional Development Series that I'm conducting every month this semester at my college.  Last month's topic was 'Playing Games to Learn Math' and I asked the participants to come up with a game for a topic that they felt was a difficult topic for students.  This game is a variation on what they came up with.  The spoons game was one of their suggestions, but they ended up turning it into more of a rummy-style game because they thought that the spoons might become too chaotic…
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New Logarithm Mania Game

By Jon OaksMar 07, 2013
Logarithm Mania is a new game for students to practice solving logarithmic equations when the base, the argument, or the value is missing.  I have always struggled with teaching this concept because although the basic equations included in this game are easy to solve, if they are not mastered, then solving more complex logarithmic equations becomes extremely difficult (you know, the ones where we ask students to do factoring and apply the properties of logarithms).  I hope that someone finds this game useful.  As always, any feedback would be greatly appreciated! Logarithm Mania Game
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