Here is a selection of our favorite books and materials with information on how to find them. Because many items are still available on the internet even if they are out of print or no longer made, you will see a variety of older materials.
Scroll down or choose a category:
– Games and Puzzles
– Algebra Tiles
– Textbooks and teaching materials
– Books about mathematics and education
– Recreational math and origami
– Software
– Other Sources
Games and Puzzles – There are so many wonderful puzzles and games available that it would be impractical to list them all here. For a list of the games and puzzles we use, click here. To buy your own, these are some of the best sources:
ThinkFun – https://www.thinkfun.com/products – ThinkFun, formally Binary Arts, is the most prolific maker of puzzles and logic games. Although only a small selection is usually available in stores, many more can be found online.
ZomeTool – https://www.zometool.com/ – These kits allow you to construct complex 3D shapes with ball connectors and colored plastic rods.
Geofix – https://www.didax.com/geofix – Geofix, formally Geoshapes, is a kit with flat polygons of different shapes and colors that snap together to form 3D or 2D models.
New and used puzzles can be found on Amazon, eBay, and many other sites. Some puzzles and games may be sold in your local alternative toy store.
Buying Algebra Tiles for Flip-Chip Algebra – To buy plastic tiles, you can get individual kits or classroom sets. The price for individual kits is low, but shipping charges can be high, so it may work better to buy these for groups:
- Individual Kits– These are kits containing small plastic tiles. The kits have enough tiles for one (or possibly two) students.
- Classroom Kits– These are the same kits of plastic tiles, but they are boxed in sets of 30 suitable for an entire class of students.
To learn about how chips are designed, click here.
To learn how to make your own larger set of chips from matte board, click here.
To see how the chips are used to learn algebra, click here.
Books (In print or readily available used) – Used books are inexpensive and readily available on the internet, so older books listed here are worth looking for. Some websites to check are thriftbooks.com, abebooks.com, discoverbooks.com, ebay.com, and amazon.com.
Textbooks and teaching materials:
Jacobs, Harold R. Mathematics: A Human Endeavor. W. H. Freeman, 1994 – This is my favorite math textbook; it gives a survey of many fun and useful math subjects. We have used it in classes ranging from elementary school to college level. Extraordinary.
Jacobs, Harold R. Elementary Algebra. W. H. Freeman, 1979 – An excellent algebra textbook that uses manipulatives and alternative methods. Very innovative, and very complete.
Jacobs, Harold R. Geometry, W. H. Freeman, 1979 – A fascinating treatment of the standard Geometry curriculum for secondary classes.
Cundy, H. M., and A.P. Rollett. Mathematical Models. Tarquin Publications, 1981 – The most complete collection of models that are fun to make and/or illustrate important concepts. Intended for teachers, but useful for knowledgeable parents or advanced students from middle school and above. A lifetime of things to make and learn from. Fabulous!
Wirtz, Robert W., et al. Discovery in Elementary School Mathematics. Encyclopedia Britannica Press, 1963 – The most useful and imaginative classroom resource for teaching arithmetic and algebra to all ages. The worksheets are made to be duplicated, and each topic is presented at a variety of levels and in many different ways. Suitable for use with kindergartners or college students. Irreplaceable!
Seymour, Dale G., and Richard Gidley. Eureka. Creative Publications, 1972 – The quintessential 60’s-70’s enrichment collection of short, special problems. Illustrated with cartoons and random graphics. Unique and hard to describe.
Seymour, Dale, and Reuben Schadler. Creative Constructions. Creative Publications, 1974 – An imaginative workbook that presents compass and straightedge constructions combining mathematical technique and artistic imagination.
Seymour, Dale et al. Line Designs. Creative Publications, 1974 – A workbook for all ages that includes drawings made with a ruler only, but the patterns create the illusion of beautiful curves.
Devlin, Keith. The Math Instinct: Why You’re a Mathematical Genius (Along with Lobsters, Birds, Cats, and Dogs) . Thunder’s Mouth Press, 2005 – A fascinating review of current research for everyday people. The book relates how human babies and many animals have a built-in number sense that includes the ability to distinguish one, two, and three as well as the ability to do simple arithmetic.
Books about mathematics and education – The books below are about math and how it can be used and taught.
Coles, Gerald. The Learning Mystique: A Critical Look at “Learning Disabilities“. Pantheon, 1987 – A rare criticism of the idea of “Learning Disabilities”. Scientific and well-researched, but willing to confront poor scientific and educational research. Extremely relevant to today’s world where prescription drug use is widespread.
Herndon, James. The Way It Spozed to Be. Simon and Schuster, 1968 – An account of a radical white educator’s experience teaching in an inner-city school in the 1960’s. A reminder of the lessons of those times. Fascinating.
Herndon, James. How to Survive in your Native Land. Simon and Schuster, 1971 – A radical educator’s experience in secondary school teaching, full of insights and ideas.
Paulos, John Allen. Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences. Hill and Wang, 1988 – A classic expose of how little most people understand mathematics, along with some helpful discussion of the concepts of mathematics. Somewhat rude and unsympathetic, but very valuable nevertheless
Tufte, Edward R. The Visual Display of Quantitative Information. Graphics Press, 1983, 2002 – A masterpiece of style showing how information can be displayed in many wonderful ways with charts, graphs and tables. Tufte is the acknowledged expert in this field and a wonderful writer as well. A fascinating book with a dry title.
Tufte, Edward R. Envisioning Information. Graphics Press, 1990 – Beautiful examples and discussion of how to display complex data in ways that surpass the usual flat methods.
Tufte, Edward R. Visual Explanations. Graphics Press, 1997 – Another beautiful book showcasing examples and methods of explaining concepts.
Tufte, Edward R. Beautiful Evidence. Graphics Press, 2006 – A gorgeous book collecting and analyzing how scientific evidence should be presented.
Aaboe, Asger. Episodes from the Early History of Mathematics. The mathematical Association of America, 1975 – An older gem that takes the reader on a tour of the fascinating mathematics known in ancient civilizations.
Davis, Phillip J., and Reuben Hersh. The Mathematical Experience. Houghton Mifflin, 1981 – An engaging discussion of the development of mathematics. What is mathematics? What is it that mathematicians do?
Recreational Math and Origami – There are a large number of great books on these subjects. Here is a small selection:
Gardner, Martin. (Many titles). Gardner wrote many fun books compiling recreational math activities and problems. He was the editor of a popular column in Scientific American for many years. Some titles are Hexaflexagons and Other Mathematical Diversions and My Best Mathematical and Logic Puzzles.
Fuse, Tomoko. Unit Origami: Multidimensional Transformations. Japan Publications, 1990 – A large compilation of ingenious models with clear diagrams.
Kasahara, Kunihiko. Origami Omnibus. A massive collection of simple and advanced models, mathematical and illustrative. The text is intended to be educational and explains some of the theory behind the folds. Includes useful teaching models as well.
Gurkewitz, Rona, and Bennett Arnstein. 3D Geometric Origami: Modular Polyhedra. Dover, 1995 – A good book for beginners that presents easy models with complete instructions.
Meenakshi, Mukerji. Exquisite Modular Origami. 2011 – Complex and unusual models.
Fuse, Tomoko. Origami Boxes. Japan Publications, 1989 – Boxes in square, hexagonal, and octagonal shapes with ornate covers.
Gurkewitz, Rona, et al. Modular Origami Polyhedra. Dover Publications, 1999 – A great collection of cubes and other 3D shapes with nice diagrams..
Fuse, Tomoko. Unit Polyhedron Origami. Japan Publications, 2006 – Beginning and advanced models.
Software – There are many programs to teach math, but most do not really use the intelligence and graphics capability of a computer. The programs below are unusual because they can teach you in ways that are difficult with a textbook or a worksheet.
Zoombini programs: broderbund.com/zoombinis – A classic from early PC’s now available for smartphone and other platforms – The best math game we have ever seen. Players have to learn the logical rules by conducting experiments with various scenarios. Even tiny children can soon be making logic diagrams and solving difficult problems.
Monument Valley: monumentvalleygame.com/mv1 – Two games presenting a fascinating journey through a universe that has Escher-like rules of movement and geometry that are different from our world. Hard to describe. Suitable for young children.
Conceptis Puzzles: conceptispuzzles.com – The best collection of word, number, and pixel art games that are really logic games. Very involving and good exercise for your brain. Available on the web and for mobile devices. Suitable for all ages.
Other Sources –
eBay.com – A good source for new and used games and puzzles.
Thriftbooks.com, Alibris.com, Abebooks.com – These websites carry a lot of inexpensive used books.
EducationalInsights.com – Source for games and other materials.