Week 2 - Activity Reflection

 This week’s Vi Hart videos brought back some memories for me. I used to watch and use her videos regularly when I taught Grade 7 math, and we did several art-based math activities inspired by her work in class. I am not sure why I never carried this approach as intentionally into my older classes. Watching her now, especially before reading Kepler, reminded me how powerful playful making and exploration can be in helping mathematical ideas come alive.

In the videos, Vi Hart takes something as unexpected as rocket candy and turns it into geometric shapes, explores hexaflexagons, and plays with symmetry in a way that feels accessible and makes me want to try as well. Before reading Kepler, I also cut open fruit to look for symmetry (side note - dragon fruit does not appear to show any symmetry internally) and I also built a couple of shapes including a  dodecahedron and an icosahedron. I have to admit that geometry, especially when it involves three-dimensional objects, has always been a stretch area for me in mathematics. Building the models helped me far more than reading a description ever could, and it made Kepler’s observations about shape, structure, and beauty much more tangible. I found myself wishing I had been able to find an actual piece of honeycomb for that section of the reading as well as that would have been helpful for me.

One of the reasons I think that 3-d shapes are an area I struggle with become clearer a few years ago. I read a tweet by John Green (see below) where he described discovering that he has aphantasia, a condition where a person cannot form mental images. He expressed surprise that other people can actually see images in their minds. Reading that was a moment of recognition for me. I also do not see clear pictures in my mind’s eye. When shapes, structures, or even directions are described verbally or in writing, I am not visualizing them internally. I need to rely on external representations, either models or maps/diagrams. This made the hands-on work this week especially meaningful for me. Building models, manipulating materials, and physically exploring symmetry helped me understand Kepler’s ideas in ways that text alone could not. (See the picture for the different levels that people can visualize in their minds eye - I fall around a 4.)

One thing I often tell my students is that I like how in England they use the word “maths” to describe math. There are many kinds of mathematics, and it is okay to like some parts more than others. In my Grade 8 class, I see this clearly when we work with isometric dot paper and three-dimensional drawings. I struggle to even demonstrate how to use the paper, yet some students shine, often those who struggle in more symbolic areas like algebra. For them, the visual and artistic aspects of mathematics become a strength rather than a barrier.

Connecting all of this back to this week’s guiding question, I am reminded that multisensory mathematics is not only about supporting students with identified sensory impairments. It is about recognizing the wide diversity in how people perceive, process, and make sense of mathematical ideas. Designing learning experiences that include building, touching, seeing, hearing, and moving does not simplify the mathematics. Instead, it opens multiple pathways into understanding, allowing more learners to access ideas that might otherwise remain abstract or out of reach.