The Theory of Everything II
*This course is intended for lower elementary students
Class Schedule
Sundays 10:00-10:50 am PST
September 20, September 27, October 4, October 11, October 18
Note: Classes are listed in PST, click below to convert time to your time zone.
Course Overview
Small Group Advanced Math
This 5-week course will be a maximum of 3 students in this amazing opportunity to work with Master Teacher, Dr. Peter Koehler.
You can find every kind of math embedded in the humble times tables, they are also a playground to develop mathematical creativity and imagination. Of course at first the times tables are about multiplication. There are all sorts of ways to multiply two numbers, but all of them get difficult with the size of the numbers, yet the times tables when built with the blocks suggest a relatively easy way to square them.
You can find in the times tables the triangle numbers and with them a blueprint for finding in general the sum of arithmetic progressions. You can find perfect numbers and prime numbers and many figurative numbers which look like geometrical shapes in 2 and 3-D and are the stepping stones to elementary number theory.
Using a 12 × 12 multiplication chart, students will create a colorful secret garden while uncovering the surprising patterns behind the Pythagorean Theorem and Pythagrorean Triples. Through this, they'll discover how multiplication connects to one of mathematics' most famous ideas. Along our walk through the secret garden of mathematics we will discover more and more advanced concepts we never would have expected could be found in the times tables.
Materials Required:
- Interlocking blocks sold as Omnifix blocks that Peter recommends. Please let us know if you have trouble accessing the materials!
NOTE: In order to register for this course, Dr. Peter Koehler and Sarah will have shared with you that your child is ready for this course after completing three or more sessions with Dr. Peter Koehler.
Student Experience
Pattern Seeker
Mathematician
Researcher
Inventor
Your Teacher: Dr. Peter Koehler
Peter Koehler holds a PhD in theoretical and elementary particle physics from Royal Holloway College, University of London; a master’s degree from Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, London; and carried out post-doc studies in the theory group at Stanford Linear Accelerator Center before becoming a math enrichment teacher at Nueva, where he has been teaching for over 20 years. At Nueva, Peter has become particularly interested in encouraging and fostering mathematical creativity in his students and was awarded a fellowship from Johns Hopkins University for excellence in teaching in 2012. He enjoys showing his students the surprising ways in which math can be used to describe aspects of the natural world. Inspired by the work of the Pythagoreans, he has developed an approach to elementary math teaching where the students use colored interlinking blocks and follow a few simple rules to visualize numbers; look for patterns, shapes, and sequences; make their own mathematical creations; and develop a sense of the more general principles of mathematics. He has found that this approach stimulates interest and enthusiasm for math, is a great motivator, and can spark mathematical creativity, originality, and a joy in the subject, and can lead to more intriguing and advanced aspects of math.
Peter has been a regular presenter at the Nueva ILC conferences and will be presenting a paper at the 11th International Conference on Mathematical Creativity and Giftedness in Hamburg, Germany, in 2019. He has taught independent enrichment programs at several Bay Area schools and the University of Santa Cruz extension. A painter in his spare time, Peter has run visual arts summer camps throughout the Bay Area for the past 25 years. He has also written plays for children.
