Welcome to Math Tricks!





If you are like me, you have an appreciation of mathematics, and enjoy seeing how a mathematical formula can be applied to real-world situations.  And, of course, love math tricks and fun math games!

Who is Math Tricks for?

This site is for anybody, really.  Young or old, rich or poor, it does not matter.

Even those who are not so enthusiastic about math, they are invited too!  In fact, I challenge anybody who does not like math to look over these number tricks posts and not go away with a new-found appreciation of mathematics!

For those parents out there with kids who find arithmetic boring, you are encouraged to look over the material in math tricks; you will be sure to find something that your kids will enjoy – and get them interested in math!

You are invited to register.  As a registered user, you will receive notifications of new articles and software.  We keep all of our user information private, and do not share it with third, fourth, fifth . . . n parties.

Tags: elementary math games, fun math, Math Tricks, number tricks






Dodecahedron Calendar

Happy New Year!  And with the new year, I have for you a neat little project that you can complete in a short time.  It is a 12 month dodecahedron calendar!  It is a perfect project that can be performed by students as an introduction to Platonic Solids, or by anybody who just wants a really cool calendar.  If you have very young children, I am sure they will find this a fascinating object – our two oldest boys (5 and 3) really enjoyed it, and now they can say “dodecahedron”!

Simply print the dodecahedron net below, cut it out on the black lines, fold the grey lines, and tape in the tabs such that the dodecahedron is formed.

To print the dodecahedron, click on the image to get the larger file in your browser.  You can then right-click the file to save it to your computer, or print it directly.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A bit of patience is required when assembling the calendar, but I think you will be pleased with the results if you stick with it.  Below are some pictures I took while assembling one.  I used scissors to cut the dodecahedron, and they worked well enough.  If you have an x-acto knife, I would suggest using that instead.

Here is the dodecahedron net cut out and ready to be assembled:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Taping the tabs in:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

More folding and taping:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

More folding and taping:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Slow and steady, carefully folding and taping.  Did I mention that patience is required? Almost done:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Smoothing out the faces with a chop stick:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The finished product:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our two oldest kids, stunned with the awesomeness of the dodecahedron calendar:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Again, just a bit of patience, and you will have a great calendar in the form of my favorite Platonic Solid.  I got a good result on my first attempt.  With a little practice, I am sure I can get better results in a shorted time – and so can you!

 

Tags: 2012 dodecahedron calendar, dodecahedron calendar, kalendar, math calendar, platonic solid, platonic solid calendar, Polyhedron nets, printable dodecahedron, printable dodecahedron net, Regular Polyhedra, regular polyhedron