Read more
This edited volume examines how historical mathematical experiments can enrich mathematics education for children aged 9 to 12. It presents nine chapters across three domains: numbers and calculation, magnitude and measurement, and space and geometry. Each chapter follows a consistent structure, beginning with historical context and followed by classroom activities conducted in French schools. Analyses include pupils’ work and didactic insights into how history of mathematics supports conceptual understanding. The book offers bibliographies for further reading and is ideal for mathematics educators, teacher trainers, researchers in mathematics education, historians of mathematics, and mathematicians interested in educational practice.
List of contents
Introduction.- Part I Numbers and Calculations: 1 A Journey in Mayan Numeration: Alice Morales and Jean-Baptiste Meilhan.- 2 From the Token Abacus to Written Calculation: Nathalie Daval and Dominique Tournès.- 3 The Mechanisation of Calculation: Frédérique Plantevin.- 4 Number Ratios: Another Approach to Fractions: Sylviane R. Schwer.- Part II Magnitudes and Measures: 5 Doubling the Square with Plato: Renaud Chorlay.- 6 1793, The Revolution of Time: Frédéric de Ligt.- 7 What if we Measured the Schoolyard? Surveying Experiences: Marc Troudet.- Part III Space and Geometry: 8 The Geometry of the Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci: Marc Moyon.- 9 Protect Yourself With Mathematics: The Geometry of Fortifications: Frédéric Métin.
About the author
Marc Moyon
is a historian of mathematics at the University of Limoges (France) with a particular interest in medieval mathematics, with a focus on Arabic-Latin translations. He is visiting scholar in the University of Aveiro (Portugal). He is also interested by the history of mathematics teaching (19th and 20th c.). For many years, he has been deeply involved in national and international efforts to promote the introduction of a historical perspective in mathematics education and teacher training.
Dominique Tournès
is professor of mathematics and history of mathematics at the University of Reunion Island (France), in the Computer Science and Mathematics Laboratory. As a historian of mathematics, his research focuses on the calculation methods and instruments that preceded the computer in the period 1750-1950. For many years, he has been involved in using history to improve the training of mathematics teachers.
Snezana Lawrence
is a mathematical historian and educationalist. She was the Chair of History and Pedagogy of Mathematics (2020-24), and is the Series Editor (History) of the CRC Press/Routledge for Recreational Mathematics. She is an independent scholar living in Cambridgeshire, UK. Snezana has been involved in various national and international initiatives to promote the use of history of mathematics in mathematics education.
Summary
This edited volume examines how historical mathematical experiments can enrich mathematics education for children aged 9 to 12. It presents nine chapters across three domains: numbers and calculation, magnitude and measurement, and space and geometry. Each chapter follows a consistent structure, beginning with historical context and followed by classroom activities conducted in French schools. Analyses include pupils’ work and didactic insights into how history of mathematics supports conceptual understanding. The book offers bibliographies for further reading and is ideal for mathematics educators, teacher trainers, researchers in mathematics education, historians of mathematics, and mathematicians interested in educational practice.
