Marita loves watercolor, and paints to make herself feel better. One day, using an ancient watercolor set she found, she painted a small dinosaur — and it came to life! Painting more and more, Marita became lost in a beautiful world made entirely of watercolor, until she couldn't find her way home again. Marita will need to discover the watercolor world's hidden rules and solve algebraic problems in order to find her way out. Join us for this colorful adventure to help Marita return to the real world!
Note: There are no prerequisites for this circle.
Josh loved airplanes, and after years of tinkering, built one of his own. However, an hour into his first flight, he was forced to make an emergency landing in an unknown forest! There he was taken in by a group of children, who brought him to their camp. They took out piles of weird dice they had carved out of wood, and invited him to play the many games of chance they had made up together.
Will you help Josh use his probability knowledge to learn the strategies of these games, and maybe make up some of his own, so that he can earn the respect of the forest children?
Note: There are no prerequisites for this circle.
*This circle may be co-led by a GMC Leader-in-Training, supported by an experienced GMC leader.
Chico was a brave little chick, but he never imagined the adventure that was waiting for him. One day, separated from his friend Barry during a hunt for hidden treasure, Chico found himself alone in a land of tall cliffs and twisting paths. To find his way home, he will need to use everything he knows about angles, directions, and distances. But he can’t do it alone — will you jump into this world of geometric challenges and help Chico find the way out?
Note: There are no prerequisites for this circle.
*This circle may be co-led by a GMC Leader-in-Training, supported by an experienced GMC leader.
Troublez is a curious monkey who loves pizza more than anything. One day, he was eating one of the best pizzas ever, when his last slice was stolen! Following the trail of crumbs and delicious goopy cheese, he ran into a group of animals who were sitting in pairs, rolling weird dice that he had never seen before. He jumped into a game with a friendly capybara, so intrigued that he forgot about his pizza!
Will you help Troublez develop his probability skills, and find a way to fit in with these game-playing animals? In this circle we'll help him understand these dice, learn strategy, and make up some dice games of his own. And maybe find his missing pizza slice, too!
Note: There are no prerequisites for this circle.
Unravel the enigmas of dice: number cubes, yes, and more — tetrahedra, octahedra, dodecahedra, icosahedra too! What other shapes can you imagine? And how should the sides be marked? No matter how they're shaped or labeled, we will start by looking at how they fare against each other and how they can be combined. Join us for an enjoyable journey examining how dice work: probability, odds, combinatorics and more. You’ll never see dice games the same way again.
Note - Circle Prerequisites:
(1) Familiar with fractions
(2) Does not have extensive knowledge of permutations and combinations
This circle will focus on grids, and the many mysteries that spring from them. By filling these objects with numbers, lines, and more, we'll begin to unlock secrets of parity, symmetry, and careful proof-making. This can take us to places combinatorial, algebraic, or otherwise captivating — not to mention what might happen if we change the shape of our grid entirely!
Note: There are no prerequisites for this circle.
*This circle may be co-led by a GMC Leader-in-Training, supported by an experienced GMC leader.
There are all sorts of shapes we can build by putting blocks together, but how can we be sure we have enough material to make our designs? How many blocks does a triangle take — or a hexagon — or a pyramid? Join us as we springboard from these questions into mathematical depths that underpin calculus, combinatorics, and more.
Note - Circle Prerequisites:
(1) Fluent understanding of multiplication
(2) Not familiar with topics like triangle numbers and "n choose k"
This fast-paced group will explore a multi-dimensional sectioning question. Using geometry, combinatorics, and algebra, we will uncover patterns, models, and formulae.
Note - Circle Prerequisites:
(1) Comfort with combinations and permutations
(2) Has seen figurate numbers (triangular, tetrahedral, etc.)
Why do some sets of dice make better odds than others? How can we know which rolls are likely to get us what we want? In this circle, we will delve into the statistics of dice in roll playing games. No prior knowledge of table top roll playing games is needed, though we will be using them as a framework for our exploration.
Note - Circle Prerequisites:
(1) Can multiply fractions
(2) Has not studied probability in depth
*This circle may be co-led by a GMC Leader-in-Training, supported by an experienced GMC leader.
This special one-session circle is a chance to experience the engaging and collaborative nature of math circles and discover whether it’s the right fit for your child.
Participants will be grouped according to age and math level to ensure a positive and meaningful experience.
Note: This circle is exclusively for those who have not yet participated in math circles run by The Global Math Circle.
Let's dive into dice! Specifically, we'll develop a theory of irregular dice, whether strangely shaped or labeled with irregular numbers, and look at how those dice can be combined. Join us as we roll through the depths of probability and combinatorics! Dice games will never look the same again.
Note: There are no prerequisites for this circle.
This circle is now open for waitlist. If we receive enough interest, we may be able to open a second section.
Barry, the Capybara, was rescued by our friends from the Magic School, and now he has decided to explore a very special and mysterious place called T Island. But as soon as Barry arrived, he lost his friend Chico the Chick. To find him, Barry will need to solve cryptography puzzles and some wild graph challenges. He will have to ask for help from the mermaids and even from the dragons as he begins his quest to find his lost friend.
Note: There are no prerequisites for this circle.
This circle will investigate the behavior of lasers as they bounce off or get stuck in the walls of an enclosure. We will ask many questions such as: can we predict if the beam will end? How far will it travel? How precisely can we track the path of this laser? We will explore through pictures and numbers, strategy and discussion to hopefully find intriguing patterns.
Note - Circle Prerequisites:
(1) Comfort with multiplication and division
(2) Hasn't studied number theory extensively
This circle is now open for waitlist. If we receive enough interest, we may be able to open a second section.
This circle will invite students to explore “what-if” versions of geometry — what if distance worked differently, or familiar shapes followed new rules? By gently altering these basics, we will uncover how entirely new mathematical worlds can emerge.
Note: There are no prerequisites for this circle.
Barry is a very curious capybara. He and his best friend, Chico the Chick, love looking at the stars. One day, Barry began wondering how he could build a rocket to travel into space and see the stars up close. After a lot of studying, he actually figured out how to get there!
But there was one small problem… He forgot to plan how to get back to Earth. Now Barry and Chico are lost in space, and they need to use all of their algebra skills to find a way home. Can you help them return?
Note: There are no prerequisites for this circle.
Dylan, a 7 year-old boy, has developed a confounding new habit — every time he lays his hands on some food, he tries to break it into as many equal parts as possible. So, for example, he first breaks a bar of chocolate into two equal pieces. Next, he tries to see if he can break the two pieces into smaller equal pieces, and so on. Sometimes, it is easy to do this. At other times, it feels incredibly hard. He asks his friends for help, and together they try and discover how deep and wide this rabbit hole of tiny numbers goes!
Note - Circle Prerequisite: Does not have extensive experience with fractions
There is more to the square than meets the eye. We think that calculating its area is a relatively simple thing, but with some specific parameters, it becomes a challenge that can lead us to playing with different ways of looking at counting numbers, proofs, and maybe even the imaginary! What can we learn about this regular shape when we break free from the grid and give it the attention it deserves?
Note - Circle Prerequisites:
(1) Knowledge of square numbers
(2) Has not explored modular arithmetic in depth
