The Training and Development Agency for Schools in the UK has started using Sudoku as a recruitment tool for math teachers. There will be a five day “roadshow” travelling around England that features a three meter Sudoku puzzle. People who solve the Sudoku will be given information on becoming a math teacher and their names will be entered into a drawing to occur that afternoon, with the winner getting 500 pounds. Now, I don’t know my currency conversions really well, but I think that’s more than the grandprize for the Sudoku Smackdown.
Tags: education,puzzles,sudoku,ukPuzzles in children’s education
An brief article on the WTOP in Washington website called “Shaping Minds with Puzzles” seems like it would be a great starting point for teachers looking to use puzzles in their classrooms.
It starts by referencing an article that discusses the education value of jigsaw puzzles, but the article discusses a wide range of puzzles. There’s some brief puzzle history (quick when was the first crossword published?) including a mention for the Elliott Avendon Museum. The article even points towards resources for getting kids involved in creating puzzles.
The main problem is that the article is unfortunately free of links, though many of the sites it discusses can be found easily enough through google.
Tags: education,puzzles
