On Wednesday 21 April eight Grahamstown schools gathered at Rhodes University’s Steve Bantu Biko building to take part in an afternoon of mathematics activities and soccer ball skills.
On Wednesday 21 April eight Grahamstown schools gathered at Rhodes University’s Steve Bantu Biko building to take part in an afternoon of mathematics activities and soccer ball skills.
The fun day was organised by Zonia Jooste and Tom Penlington from Rumep (Rhodes University Mathematics Education Project), the Department of Education, the Grahamstown branch of the Association For Mathematics Education in South Africa (Amesa) and local Grahams-town teachers.
The purpose of the day was to make learners, especially primary school learners, aware of the Soccer World Cup and to show them that mathematics is a human activity practised by all cultures.
For many learners, mathematics is seen as a dull and unstimulating subject. This negative view is very often carried over to the secondary level of schooling.
During the afternoon the learners were actively involved in ‘doing’ some mathematics activities in a fun and interactive way.
By looking at the flags of the world, learners observed that maths is based on an observing pattern. They were able to see the different types of symmetry found in the flags of those countries participating in the Soccer World Cup, the different colour combinations of the flags and make sense of why they are used.
By looking at the measurements of a soccer field, the learners were able to work out the area and the perimeter of a soccer field and see the relevance of maths in our daily lives.
During the activity on numbers, learners used big numbers and calculators to work out construction costs and the carrying capacity of the five new stadiums.
The boys and girls also got the opportunity to go out onto the Rhodes Prospect Field where they worked in teams and learnt a few soccer skills from their teachers.
