One Polk Central Elementary student summed up Polk County Schools’ first math festival with a revelation: they didn’t know math could be fun.
The math festival, held Nov. 25 at Polk Central Elementary, brought together third- through fifth-grade students from Polk Central and Sunny View elementary schools for hands-on activities focused on logic, problem-solving and mathematical reasoning.
Polk County High School honors math students from Calculus Honors, Probability and Statistics Honors, and Math 3 Honors classes volunteered to run activity stations. The activities, provided by Julia Robinson Math Festival, included Jumping Julia, Bridges, Apple Picking and Cup Stacking — puzzles designed to engage students with mathematical concepts in interactive ways.
Caitlin Williams, math teacher at Polk County High School, organized the festival in collaboration with Andrea Walter, AIG specialist at Polk Central, Tryon and Sunny View elementary schools.
The initiative grew out of the district’s math camp this summer, where a presenter from Julia Robinson Math Festival led stations for teachers and discussed how to run math festivals for students.
A second math festival is planned for spring at Tryon Elementary, serving students from both Tryon and Saluda elementary schools. The date has not been set.
Julia Robinson Math Festival is a national organization that promotes collaborative, creative problem-solving experiences designed to inspire students of all levels to explore mathematics.
