Mayan Math Adventure

We explored math through the eyes of a fascinating ancient culture last week with a Mayan Math Adventure. The Mayans are credited with independently "inventing" zero, and used a base-20 number system. Some say our base-10 system is based on our ten fingers, while the Mayan system may have been based on fingers AND toes. 

First we learned about the basic symbology and practiced identifying symbols using this great web resource:

https://maya.nmai.si.edu/maya-sun/maya-math-game?game=practice-1

Then we solved and created problems using Mayan number symbols and explored place value using the Base 20 system.

The Mayans used a shell symbol to represent zero, a dot to represent one, and a line or bar to represent five. Some of us just practiced writing these numbers and doing some basic equations before writing some of our own.

Some of us worked on and created more advanced equations using the Mayan place value representation, which runs vertically instead of horizontally.

It was great to see every student delve into an ancient culture’s mathematical thinking, persevere when it got a little confusing, and come out with a new understanding of our own base 10 system and a solidified concept of place value! Turns out that just like the Mayans, we are mathematically advanced thinkers!

Stop by the Navigators blog to see how much we enjoyed this challenging work:
http://seaburyschoolnavigators.blogspot.com/2016/10/from-base-2-to-base-20-understanding.html