3 ways to celebrate Pi day

For those of you who weren't aware, Pi Day is just three day away. I thought I'd give you a three ideas for how you could celebrate this lovely date (3/14)...

(1) make a Pi (apple or cherry are always yummy)
(2) you could always sing this slightly cheesy pi day song
(3) find a circular object and verify that pi really is the ratio of the circumference to the diameter

Of course I'll probably be wearing one of my cheesy pi t-shirts. Gosh it can be fun to be a math teacher.

Carrying Prayers

Birdhouses 1
Originally uploaded by ccarlstead

For some reason this week I started to think about one of my favorite little things about Istanbul: its birdhouses. Now when I say that I don’t quite mean what you’re thinking. Don’t get me wrong, they are houses for birds to nest in, but you can forget about any image you have in your head. The birdhouses I’m thinking of are old (old enough so that the only ones I can find starting to fall apart). They are typically built high up into the wall of a mosque complex and are created to look like a true miniature house, only with round openings for the birds. I’ve been told that these were a part of earlier mosques because the believed that the birds would carry their prayers up in the sky closer to God. One thing for sure, the birds got some palatial spaces out of the belief. So excuse me if I’m wandering around with my eyes to the sky, I’m just looking for birdhouses, and I’ll never find them if I stay focused on the ground.

It's fun to be a math teacher

Once you get past the idea that lots of kids hate your class because they are afraid of math. Wednesday was World Math Day, and our department decided to be geeky enough to celebrate. There was an online competition held worldwide where students could compete against kids in other countries in minute long speed arithmetic (adding, subtracting, dividing and multiplying only) challenges. It was great fun to see my kids excited about doing math problems. Its amazing how the aspect of a bit of competition can motivate and excite some kids. Sometimes its fun to be a math teacher.

I had to laugh

Many of my students call me Ms C, as my full last name is a bit of a mouthful for students that are not native English speakers (as well as for some native English speakers). I had to laugh though when I received a paper and the student had written my name as Ms. See, I guess that is what it sounds like, but it strikes me that he was missing the point a bit.

How much does it take?

My snowy backyard
Originally uploaded by ccarlstead

How much snow does it take to turn my world into a white winter wonderland? Not quite as much as it takes to close school, but we’ve managed to get enough to do both in the past two days. About 11 inches by last night, which I guess shouldn’t surprise me since it snowed pretty much non-stop Saturday and Sunday. As I gaze out of my window this morning I find its still snowing. Needless to say we have quite a bit of this white powdery stuff on the ground. I’d forgotten just how beautiful snow can make even the most familiar of landscapes. I feel as if I’ve been transported to another location. One where lines are softened, dark colors based on contrast and the biggest necessity is to fulfill my desire to go out and play in the snow. Winter has definitely come to Istanbul, and this warm weather girl is trying to embrace it (it’s much easier when you get a snow holiday and an unplanned break).

Quote of the Week

We know truth, not only by the reason, but also by the heart.

Blaise Pascal

Keeping in touch

I ran across this project (thanks Photojojo!) which is how two friends are keeping in touch from 3191 miles apart. They each post a picture taken each evening, they're put side by side and are a neat testament to the everyday aspects of life.