News

Hello Math Educators! 

MTC4SJ is launching for the 25-26 season! If you are a returning member or new to our circle we welcome you to join us! 

Our first session is The Geometry of Green Spaces on Tuesday, September 23rd. Register here.

Description: What does mathematics have to say about your favorite park or trail? We will explore the geometry of "green spaces" in your own towns and cities - how do we quantify if there is "enough" and who has access? We will use mapping tools and hopefully give you a lesson for your Geometry class!

Grade Level and Topic: 7-12 Geometry

Sessions are online on Tuesdays, once a month, from 6:30 - 8:00pm. MTC4SJ sessions are a great way to connect with fellow educators and to learn about and discuss how to incorporate social justice topics into your math class.

Fall 2025 Schedule:

• The Geometry of Green Spaces, September 23rd

• From Infection Rates to Policy Debates:Mathematics in the Vaccine Conversation, October 21st

• World Health Distribution, November 18th

If you attend 4 sessions during 25-26 you’ll receive a gift from MTC4SJ!

Here’s what to expect from a typical session:

• Welcome and Opening circle

• Intro to a social justice topic and mathematical context

• Collaborative problem solving

• Discussion - classroom considerations, implementation and others’ experiences

• Building community!

Interested in joining the mailing list? Fill out the form here 

Visit our website for resources, past workshops, and ideas! Share this with a friend!

Survey:

You may have interest in completing the survey from the U.S. National Academies’ Board on International Scientific Organizations (BISO). BISO seeks K – 12 education experts to share their experience in modernizing K-12 mathematics curriculum and/or teaching AI, data science, and computational thinking in primary and secondary education.

 

Here is the link:

 

https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/8393839/Survey-to-Assess-International-Practices-in-K-12-Mathematics-Education-and-the-Role-of-Computational-Thinking-Data-Science-and-AI

 

The submission deadline of September 30.

 

Student Competition:

This year’s international Mathstory competition is now open.

The competition invites all undergraduate students, from any discipline, and school students in their final two years of pre-university education (senior secondary school, or high school), anywhere in the world, to create a short (3-4 min) digital story that connects a mathematical idea to the real world. It invites students to be creative, develop their curiosity and have fun with mathematics. Creating a story that is relevant to the real world helps develop their ability to communicate mathematical ideas in engaging ways, fosters storytelling and digital literacy, and gives them a chance to showcase their work internationally and be part of a global community.

Please share this opportunity with your students and networks. All details about the competition can be found on the website: https://mathstory.org

The deadline for submissions this year is Sunday, November 23^rd, 2025.

 

 

NASA TechRise Student Challenge

We're reaching back out to let you know that the NASA TechRise Student Challenge 2025-2026 is open and accepting entries until November 3. We hope you can share the 2025-26 challenge with your community (see outreach resources HERE) and encourage them to get involved in this exciting opportunity to engage in hands-on learning.

This year’s challenge invites sixth through 12th-grade student teams (of all skill levels) to submit experiment ideas-under the guidance of an educator-to fly on a Virgin Galactic suborbital-spaceship or World View Enterprises high-altitude balloon. Sixty winning teams will receive $1500 to build their experiment, a spot to test it on the NASA-sponsored flight, and technical support from our awesome TechRise advisors. No experience is necessary to participate. The challenge is filled with exciting opportunities for educators and students to learn about the flight vehicles, engage in hands-on learning, and participate in a very special student/classroom virtual field trip featuring Rob Ferl-the first NASA-funded researcher to fly with their payload on a suborbital rocket. 
CHALLENGE WEBSITE: https://www.futureengineers.org/nasatechrise

KEY DATES:

● Contest Opens: September 4, 2025

● Information Sessions: Available at the State, County, District or Organization Level Upon Request

● Student Virtual Field Trip: September 25, 2025

● Entries due by: November 3, 2025, 11:59 PM PT

● Winners Announced & Experiment Build Begins: January 20, 2026

● Experiment Build Period: January 20 – May 15, 2026

● Experiment Showcase: May 15, 2026

● Experiments Shipped: May 16, 2026

● Experiments Launch: Summer 2026

WHO CAN ENTER: The NASA TechRise Student Challenge is for SCHOOLS in U.S. states and territories. U.S. public, private, or charter

schools that serve sixth to 12th grade students can assemble a team (or multiple teams) and enter. The minimum number of students per

team is four, and there is no maximum per team. Proposals must be submitted by a team lead that is a teacher or employee of the

school. Homeschools are not eligible to participate unless they are affiliated with a public, private, or charter school that complies with

the insurance requirements as stated in the RULES.

The registration deadline for AVMR 1 still open and closing soon. (AVMR 1 that starts in October only) 

Click here for Math Recovery Course Registration 

The Connecticut State Department of Education released the new Algebra I Model Curriculum, now available on GoOpenCT, the state's digital library for open educational resources. Developed in partnership with Connecticut educators and students, this model curriculum is designed to support high-quality mathematics instruction statewide. It emphasizes problem solving, mathematical reasoning, real-world applications, effective use of technology, and multiple representations, all aligned to elevate the Algebra I learning experience. The digitized format in GoOpenCT enhances accessibility and makes it easier to integrate with other Connecticut model curricula. To support the release of the CSDE Algebra I Model Curriculum, the CSDE will offer virtual office hours for educators and leaders on the following dates: 

• June 17, 2025, from 3:00 pm to 3:30 pm 

• June 23, 2025, from 11:00 am to 11:30 am

It’s that time of year to encourage students to participate in the Commissioner’s Summer Math Challenge!  Involvement in the Commissioner’s Summer Math Challenge will support and enhance your ongoing efforts to help every student access grade level content. This year’s theme is Level UP Your World with Numbers! Printable summer math materials can be found on the Commissioner’s Summer Math Challenge website at https://portal.ct.gov/SDE/Math/Summer-Math-Challenge. 

FREE!!!  Fluency Matters: Reimagining Mathematical Learning – Professional Development for Math Educators

The Connecticut State Department of Education invites elementary math teachers and coaches to participate in an interactive, research-driven workshop on mathematical fluency and flexibility. Led by renowned educator Cathy Fosnot and her colleagues, this professional development opportunity will transform how educators approach mathematical learning.

Two sessions will be offered:

June 24, 2025 – CT State Quinebaug Valley (Willimantic, CT)

June 25, 2025 – CT State Naugatuck Valley (Waterbury, CT)

Check out the flyer here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_rB3jWckn2NL4MfUAngWH90s9LXDBh8I/view?usp=sharing 

Please join us for: Counted Out: Algorithms and Biases on Tuesday, March 11th, at 6:30 PM via Zoom. This session will dive into algorithmic biases present in our systems and explore how we, as educators, can integrate these discussions into our math classrooms.

This session follows up on some of the themes from the Counted Out film screening this past Wednesday.  If you didn’t attend the screening—no worries! The session is accessible to everyone.

You can register for the session using this link.

Join us on March 5, 2025 at CCSU for the local Premiere of "Counted Out" hosted by a coalition of education leadership groups in Connecticut with guest speaker Dr. Jo Boaler!  Please see the attached flyer for additional information and registration link.

Please see the attached flyer for information about the Pathways to STEM event, scheduled for February 6, 2025 at the Connecticut Science Center. There is no additional cost, including parking, for this event!

The Lt. Governor’s Computing Challenge officially launched on Monday, November 18, 2024. The kickoff to this year’s event included a livestream with over 55 classrooms participating. If you missed the event, you can view the livestream webinar recording here. Check out the press release and the attached flyer that includes additional information. 

 

Next week, December 9^th begins CS Ed Week. The Lt. Governor’s Computing Challenge is a great way to celebrate the week and expose students to computer science. All educators and students, regardless of computer science experience can participate. Check out the LGCC website for all the details and resources to support submissions.