In this super fun hour, students between the ages of 11 - 16 yrs will draw their way to refining their fine motor skills while also learning how to connect and practice core math concepts within a creative project.

Students get more excited about math when they realize that it is so much more than equations and that math has fascinating applications in materials science, data science, and fields where people build and develop really cool things!

This weekly club will invite students to explore math topics such as those that might be used in 3D animation, engineering and design, information technology and many other applied fields of mathematics. 

Every week, students will be introduced to a new, real world application of math that will help them understand the WHY behind their math lessons. For example, in the topics of engineering design, the creation of paper prototypes helps learners understand why fractions are important when planning scale models and modular builds. 

Each class will be include:
1) A relevant math topic for this age group
2) Examples of artists, designers or famous works of art that use this math in real life
3) A hands-on project or exercise to help students learn a new "math art" technique
4) A list of resources for students who would like to continue learning about the topic (videos, websites, slideshows, etc).

This list gives a sample of some of the many topics that are explored in this club:

TOPOGRAPHY:  Topographical artists use different materials to create an impression of a physical landscape. The world's largest wooden structure, the Metropol Parasol in Spain, is a beautiful example. In school, students begin learning coordinate geometry around age 11 or 12, and these lessons continue through high school and university and are the core building blocks for topographical design. Math art techniques of contour drawings are excellent ways for students to practice thinking about and building their skills for topographical thinking and creation. A class devoted to topographical art would include slides of the amazing Metropol Parasol, as well as its connection to the math lessons encountered between ages 11 and 15. 

DESIGN CONSTRAINTS: Modern engineers and designers recognize that resources are not infinite, and neither is time and money.  Learning to design with a set of constraints helps students use problem solving skills to think strategically. Astronauts who live and work on the International Space Station are met with design constraints every day since they have strictly limited resources and must produce minimal waste. A fun club activity to explore this topic is to have students create linear cityscapes that express building shape and light reflection, but are made with only vertical lines. This exercise requires designing with constraints and helps students see the challenges that real engineers face today. In school, students in the 11-15 year age range explore problems of percent and probability which are directly related to design constraints.

WIMMELBILDERBUCH: is a busy picture or painting, teeming with information, and frequently a "hidden" object.  The best example of a real life wimmelbilderbuch is the "Where's Waldo" series. Creating a wimmelbilderbuch is an exercise in thinking about degrees of randomness and has interesting relation to information architecture and the concepts of hiding (encrypting) a signal within a lot of noise. To create a complex wimmelbilderbuch, students will have to use fractional reasoning, as well as probability learned between the ages of 11-15 to effectively hide their character in a sea of complex (but structurally organized) elements. 
 
GRAPH PAPER FUN: Engineering graph paper is the perfect medium for exploring the intersection of math and art. This type of class would discover how quilt square designs relate to data structure, and even create some "vintage" digital pixel art and learn about pixel artists like Paul Robertson.  Between 6th grade and 10th grade, students learn about measurement of objects from perimeter to area to volume, and with objects of irregular shape.  Pixel design on graph paper is a great way for learners to creatively explore these shapes while also developing real skills that get used in current game and animation design.