Thinking mathematically
by Mason, John · first published 1982
100% recommend
This book unfolds the processes which lie at the heart of mathematics. It demonstrates how to encourage, develop, and foster the processes which seem to come naturally to mathematicians. In this way, a deep seated awareness of the nature of mathematical thinking can grow.
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Get the book "Thinking Mathematically" (http://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Mathematically-J-Mason/dp/020... non affiliate link) which exposes the process of how mathematicians think, using simple problems. You can then adapt the process to…
on “Ask HN: How can I discover math?” ↗…effectively. That usually pays dividends over time and ought to give you a significant advantage. Two good books on this: How to Solve It http://www.amazon.com/How-Solve-It-Mathematical-Princeton/dp... Thinking Mathematically http://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Mathematically-J-Mason/dp/020... And if you want to get better at sitting maths-based exams, here's my own book, Exam Mastery: How to excel in maths-heavy exams : http://www.amazon.com/Exam-Mastery-excel-maths-heavy-ebook/d...…
on “Why there is no Hitchhiker’s Guide to Mathematics for Programmers” ↗…spaced-repetition exercises for shoring up the calculation side of things, and giving the student some easy wins for confidence building (we typically use Saxon's material as a warmup before Beast Academy) 3. Thinking Mathematically (the one by J. Mason and L. Burton) has a unique and useful mental process for attacking hard problems when you're not handed a nice formula to plug things into. Once a week, we work through a hard problem…
on “Five-Year-Olds Can Learn Calculus (2014)” ↗Came here to recommend Thinking Mathematically (text only) by J. Mason. If only every high school maths teacher had this book, the world would be a better place
on “Ask HN: Math books that made you significantly better at math?” ↗