More than 30 pupils from St Eunan’s National School in Laghey joined other children for a morning of Izak9 maths workshop activities, celebrating Maths Week, the all-island festival of maths and numeracy.
Developed by mathematician Franz Schlindwein, Izak9 uses cubes populated with combinations of colours, numbers and shapes providing unlimited access to the skills of the maths curriculum.
Children work together in small groups where the learning is open, visual, shared, rich and curious.
Maths Week Ireland is the annual all-island festival dedicated to raising awareness and appreciation of maths and numeracy among young people, parents and the wider population.
Over 400,000 people, including students and the general public, will take part in events this week, across the island, focused on driving home the benefits of maths and all the opportunities it brings for individuals, society and the economy.
Co-ordinated by Calmast, Waterford Institute of Technology’s STEM Engagement Centre, Maths Week is funded through the SFI Discover Programme, the Department of Education and Skills, the Department for the Economy Northern Ireland and tech firm Xilinx. It is run with more than 50 partner organisations including universities, institutes of technology, libraries, schools, training colleges, visitor centres and employers.
Research carried out for Maths Week Ireland 2019 shows that a majority of parents believe their child’s attitude to maths is more positive than their own when they were the same age, while 86% of people believe maths is important in creating future career opportunities for their children.