Mathematical circles
by S. A. Genkin · first published 1996
100% recommend
Why HN recommends it
Collection of problem-solving exercises for school-age students, drawn from the Russian math circle tradition. It teaches logic and problem solving to kids and includes fun discrete math puzzles.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
What kind of book is this? It is a book produced by a remarkable cultural circumstance in the former Soviet Union which fostered the creation of groups of students, teachers, and mathematicians called "mathematical circles". The work is predicated on the idea that studying mathematics can generate the same enthusiasm as playing a team sport - without necessarily being competitive. This book is intended for both students and teachers who love mathematics and want to study its various branches beyond the limits of school curriculum.
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https://www.amazon.com/Mathematical-Circles-Dmitry-Fomin/dp/... It is a book produced by a remarkable cultural circumstance in the former Soviet Union which fostered the creation of groups of students, teachers, and mathematicians called "Mathematical…
on “Ask HN: Recommend a maths book for a teenager?” ↗This reminded me of a book that is, I think, an excellent way to teach math to kids: Mathematical Circles: Russian Experience, by Dmitri Fomin, Sergey Genkin, Ilia V. Itenberg (http://www.amazon.com/Mathematical-Circles-Russian-Experienc...)
on “Math for seven-year-olds” ↗…problems after that, there are a lot of great puzzles in Kordemsky's The Moscow Puzzles https://archive.org/details/moscowpuzzles3590000kord_m9a0, or you could take a look at Fomin, Genkin, & Itenberg's Mathematical Circles: Russian Experience which your kid could probably just about handle. There are also some great puzzles and games explained at the website of the Julia Robinson Math Festival, https://jrmf.org which can…
on “A seventh-grader student found a beautiful proof to Thales' Theorem (2002)” ↗Start with simple books to warm up those grey cells. For maths, I recommend Mathematical Circles: Full of fun discrete math problems.
on “Ask HN: How do I learn math/physics in my thirties?” ↗If I understand correctly, you're asking for books that will teach you logic, problem solving etc? If yes, check these out: - Mathematical Circles The Russian Experience (the book is in english) - How To Solve It by Polya - brilliant.org
on “Ask HN: Books that teach you logic building skills” ↗Absolutely. Key for me was to invite children's friends (and family) along, host it in our house and make it a recurring weekly thing. The books (presumably you also have these from the MSRI's 'Mathematical Circles Library') are great, but week-to-week I've found the free online NRICH resources much more directly useful: https://nrich.maths.org/about-nrich
on “At 17, Hannah Cairo solved a major math mystery” ↗