Buldana Cambridge School

Maths Lab

The mathematics laboratory is a place where anybody can experiment and explore patterns and ideas. It is a place where one can find a collection of games, puzzles, and other teaching and learning material. The maths lab. provides an opportunity for the students to discover mathematics through doing. The role of a teacher in a math lab is not to teach, but to facilitate inquiry in mathematics. This could either be done by posing probing questions, offering an extra resource or asking to discuss with peers.

Here are some ways in which a math lab can help students learn mathematics:

Context and opportunity to discover through doing. Through activities students learn to do through concrete activities thus laying down a firm foundation for more abstract thinking.
Offers more scope for individual participation. It encourages students to become independent learners and allows them to learn at their own pace.
It widens the experiential base and lays groundwork for later learning of new areas of mathematics and helps to make appropriate connections between the known and unknown in mathematics.
Rules and constraints play an important role in mathematical problems. By fearlessly engaging with puzzles and games they have an opportunity to alter the rules and constraints. Thus becoming aware of the role of rules and constraints in mathematics.
Math lab helps develop meta-cognitive abilities. As the student can rethink and rework the problem and solution several times without any interference from time constraints.
It builds up inherent interest and confidence in the student towards learning and doing mathematics.
Lastly it adds variety in all school mathematics learning