21st Century Mathematics - free summer program for teachers

[Brianna Donaldson]

Dear BATMath,

I wanted to let you know about a free online program for teachers on 21st century mathematics being offered this summer by Justin Lanier. According to the program description:

"Almost all of the math that we teach to our students is hundreds if not thousands of years old. Even so, new math is being figured out every day. The goal of this learning experience is to encounter some recent math discoveries, learn about and meet some of the people who made them, and get some insight into the process of mathematical research. Doing this can shape our own understanding of math and impact how we share math with our students in our classrooms. It can also be a lot of fun!"

See below for more information about the program and how to register.

Best,

Brianna Donaldson

Director of Special Projects

American Institute of Mathematics

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21st Century Mathematics - 2025

https://justinlanier.org/21st-century-mathematics-2025/

Who: A group of elementary, middle, and high school teachers who teach math (maybe you!) and led by Justin Lanier. Others involved in math education are also welcome to participate. We have participants from all around the world.

When: The four weeks from July 7 to August 1, 2025. Many of the “live” events will happen daily on weekdays on Zoom from 5-6pm Eastern time. (Click here to convert this time into your local time zone.) Additional Zoom session will be sprinkled at other times to allow greater participation across schedules and time zones. Sessions with presentations will be recorded and you’ll be able to access these recordings on-demand. The “live” sessions are a valuable component of the program, but a lot of participant activity actually happens asynchronously and flexibly.

What: This is a chance to learn about some recent math breakthroughs and to connect that math to your classroom practice by reading, problem solving, reflecting, and discussing. There’s lots to try: reading selections from a cool book, working on problems together, interacting with other teachers on Zoom and through a message board, and meeting some mathematicians who have made these breakthroughs and are continuing to build upon them. The main flow of the program all happens online, but some participants meet in person to work and chat locally. Participation is flexible and customizable.

The breakthroughs we’ll learn about this year are answers to some simple questions about shapes and numbers: “What is the most efficient way to enclose two volumes in space?” and “Which Fibonacci numbers are perfect powers?”

Why: To grow as mathematicians, both for our own enjoyment and enrichment, as well as for the benefit of our students. And many other reasons, too! For details regarding teacher licensure credit hours or CEUs, as well as stipend possibilities, see the detailed “Why” section in the long description.

How much: It’s free to participate! I encourage participants to make an optional small donation to one of several great math education causes; this is a way to “pay forward” an enriching math experience and also a way to be a bit more invested in your participation in the program.

Sign up: Registration is now open and will continue through the start of the program in July! Please register using this form.