ECF: Engaging Whole Bodies for Mathematics with Jasmine MaEarly Career FellowshipIn-Person
Tuesday, Mar 18, 2025
9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m
Math for America
915 Broadway
New York, NY 10010
Math for America works to inspire new ideas that shape policies, programs, and practices that support excellent mathematics and science teachers in New York City’s public schools and beyond.
What are kids’ bodies doing during math class? We tend to imagine math problem-solving as something that happens in our minds, in conversation, or in writing. Consequently, much of mathematics teaching and learning has been relegated to individual student desks, small group tables, or discussions and demonstrations orchestrated on a whiteboard, while students are required to “sit still.” However, by reconnecting mathematics to our physical, perceptual selves, a whole-body approach can support learners’ sense-making and conceptual development. In this workshop we’ll explore what embodied movement and activity might mean for mathematics cognition, problem-solving, and understanding. We will briefly look at theories of learning that ground pervasive math instruction practices, as well as alternatives that might inform our practice. We will also experience examples of large-scale, whole-body activities in the topic areas of number sense, function, and geometry, and discuss ways to adapt and implement them.
This master class is open to teachers in the Early Career Fellowship and their mentors.
Jasmine Ma
Jasmine Y. Ma is an associate professor in the department of teaching and learning at NYU Steinhardt. Her research focuses on the mathematical activity and learning of individuals across various settings, emphasizing the roles of bodies, technological tools, space/place, and participation structures. Ma currently serves as the president of the International Society of the Learning Sciences and is an executive editor at Cognition and Instruction. Her recent publications include works on public common-sense assumptions about mathematics and sociocultural perspectives on learning.