Dan Finkel

The main image in the top left shows a radial design created with 21st Century Pattern Blocks. It was built by arranging six regular hexagons around a central hexagon. All seven hexagons share the same composition and have 4” sides. The first image along the bottom shows a scaled-up kite which is used to create the regular hexagon (with 4” sides) shown in the second image. The kite is made of 2 gray darts, 2 teal kites, and 4 green triangles. The three images on the right show the progression of the design.

Pattern block play! #21CenturyPB #iTeachMath

This graphic novel is astonishingly original, brilliant, and a joy to read - it actually illuminated my understanding of the original Beowulf. You should get it!

What if one tiny change could make a huge impact on how students learn in your math class? Learn to use openers to energize & motivate students in grades 1-9.

Learn more about Dan Finkel's @mathforlove.bsky.social How to Use Mathematical Openers online workshop: grassrootsworkshops.com/wor...

Incredible sold-out opening weekend at Cinema Village! Counted Out is off and running in NYC—see it all week long. buff.ly/tnG21JO #CountedOutFilm #OpeningWeekend

The main image in the top left shows a radial design created with 21st Century Pattern Blocks. It was built by arranging six regular hexagons around a central hexagon. All seven hexagons share the same composition and have 4” sides. The first image along the bottom shows a scaled-up kite which is used to create the regular hexagon (with 4” sides) shown in the second image. The kite is made of 1 teal kite, 1 purple hexagon, 2 green triangles, and 3 gray darts. The three images on the right show the progression of the design.

Pattern block play! #21CenturyPB #iTeachMath

We’re rolling out the red carpet at #NCSM2025!

🍰 Hors d'oeuvres
🥂 Beverages
🤓 Math leaders geeked about HQIM

🎬️ And "Counted Out" watch party & live Q&A with film director, Vicki Abeles!

Add this event to your registration for just $5 mathedleadership.org/57th-annual-conference-registration

Counted Out - Cinema Village In our current information economy, math is everywhere. The people we date, the news we see, the influence of our votes, the candidates who win elections, the education we have access to, the jobs we…

WOW. NYC is officially COUNTED IN! Thank you for selling out tonight’s 5pm + tomorrow’s 6pm. We’ve added a special Sunday 7pm Q&A. And who knows what surprises the 7:30 tonight might bring… 😉 Get tickets now! www.cinemavillage.com/Now-Playing/...

The main image in the top left shows a radial design created with 21st Century Pattern Blocks. It was built by arranging six regular hexagons around a central hexagon. All seven hexagons share the same composition and have 4” sides. The first image along the bottom shows a scaled-up kite which is used to create the regular hexagon (with 4” sides) shown in the second image. The kite is made of 1 green triangle, 1 red trapezoid, 2 pink triangles, and 2 teal kites. The three images on the right show the progression of the design.

Pattern block play! #21CenturyPB #iTeachMath

The main image in the top left shows a radial design created with 21st Century Pattern Blocks. It was built by arranging six regular hexagons around a central hexagon. All seven hexagons share the same composition and have 4” sides. The first image along the bottom shows a scaled-up kite which is used to create the regular hexagon (with 4” sides) shown in the second image. The kite is made of 1 teal kite, 2 red trapezoids, and 3 gray darts. The three images on the right show the progression of the design.

Pattern block play! #21CenturyPB #iTeachMath

The main image in the top left shows a radial design created with 21st Century Pattern Blocks. It was built by arranging six regular hexagons around a central hexagon. All seven hexagons share the same composition and have 4” sides. The first image along the bottom shows a scaled-up kite which is used to create the regular hexagon (with 4” sides) shown in the second image. The kite is made of 1 blue rhombus, 1 gray dart, and 3 teal kites. The three images on the right show the progression of the design.

New pattern block play for October! Using scaled-up kites and hexagons to create larger designs! #21CenturyPB #iTeachMath

Counted Out, a new documentary about math, democracy, and civic life, opens Oct 3–9 at Cinema Village in NYC 🍿 for a limited run.

Don’t miss the opening weekend Q&As on Oct 3 (5pm) and Oct 4 (6pm). Reserve tickets here: www.cinemavillage.com/Now-Playing/...

#mathsky #realworldmath

This image shows pattern block designs arranged in a 4 by 4 grid, with the center four squares merged to highlight a larger design. It features 13 unique dodecagons from September, each created by arranging six rectangles and six equilateral triangles around a central hexagon.

Looking back at some of the shapes and designs from my pattern block play in September! #21CenturyPB #iTeachMath

Tomorrow is the day for my webinar. 2:30 Pacific time. 5:30 on the east coast. Hope you join.

Less is more!

A box of flash cards called Subtraction by Heart

Proofing #SubtractionbyHeart! The new cards are looking lovely :-)
We should have these out by early 2026!
#iteachmath #mtbos

I'm excited to present a free webinar on September 30. Register here: heinemann.zoom.us/webinar/regi...

Don’t miss this one-night-only event!
COUNTED OUT screens at Jacob Burns Film Center on 10/6 — a powerful doc that shows how math shapes democracy, opportunity, and our future.
🎟️https://buff.ly/tcioEb3
#CountedOut #MathForAll #CountMeIn

The image shows a twelve-sided shape created with 21st Century Pattern Blocks. It was built by arranging 6 rectangles and 6 equilateral triangles around a central regular hexagon with each side of the hexagon measuring 2*sqrt(3) inches. The design uses gray darts, teal kites, green triangles, and pink triangles.

Pattern block play! #21CenturyPB #iTeachMath

Can’t wait!

Looks phenomenal!
What grade is this?

Visual Patterns 🤝 Pattern Blocks
I am currently OBSESSED, in a (mostly) healthy way, with @fawnnguyen.substack.com visual patterns and @mathforlove.bsky.social pattern blocks for kids to learn and create patterns. Ah-may-zing. Also, I am in LOVE with Mary Vail's Thinking Desks, they are phenomenal!

The image shows a twelve-sided shape created with 21st Century Pattern Blocks. It was built by arranging 6 rectangles and 6 equilateral triangles around a central regular hexagon with each side of the hexagon measuring 2*sqrt(3) inches. The design uses teal kites and pink triangles.

Pattern block play! #21CenturyPB #iTeachMath

The image shows a twelve-sided shape created with 21st Century Pattern Blocks. It was built by arranging 6 rectangles and 6 equilateral triangles around a central regular hexagon with each side of the hexagon measuring 2*sqrt(3) inches. The design uses blue rhombuses, teal kites, gray darts, and pink triangles.

Pattern block play! #21CenturyPB #iTeachMath

Thanks! Yeah, it started as a broken calculator problem, but that structure is pretty versatile, and you can put the mcnugget problem into it :-)

I have a hunch I know where this is going: you're going to need to fill in the square with 2 by 3 rectangles or 3 by 2 rectangles. And I think once you decide the orientation of one it determines the rest too. I'd need to check that. But for now, I need to go to bed.

Interesting problem!

I either need ones on the first die to make 2, or 2s on the second die. In the first case, that's going to force die 2 to consider of odd numbers, and die 1 to contain three blank sides and three ones.

Forgot to check the total. But I'm okay - it's 21 dots totay!

There are two other possibilities: a 2 by 3 and 3 by 2 array of ones.

Each of these is going to lead to potentially more choices. Though once one die is complete, it forces the numbers on the other die.

Let's see - let's go with the first image and see the options.

Yep, the rest of this is forced.

Another solution! Still, there's more here.

Dice table where one die has all ones.

Interestingly, I could also have the second die consist entirely of ones, and get a 6 by 1 array instead.

Wait a minute... I see where this is going. This is going to force Die 1 to lose one face from every side. I'll put the 1 in on die 1, and I'll get all six 2s. And so on.

Dice table with one die blank.

Interestingly, those six spots are going to need to be arranged in a rectangular shape, since they're determined by the column and row numbers.

So I could have a 1 by 6 rectangle of ones, which could only happen if the first die was blank. That'll be my trivial solution again.