Maths with Hattietude
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Maths with Hattietude |
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1. CLOWN IN A GOWN Sesame, Aug/Sep 2000 2. TEACHER IS JUST A CLOWN IN A GOWN The Independent, 1st Aug 2000 3. MATHS MAGIC The Daily Dome, 2nd June 2000 4. TEST OUT YOUR MATHS Your Hounslow, October 2000 5. FUN WITH MATHS Harrow Observer 6. LETTERS
by Jane Matthews from "Sesame", the newspaper for OU graduates, Aug/Sep 2000 What to wear under your gown is a familiar dilemma for OU graduates. For Sue Brown - better known as Hattie the mathematical clown - necessity became a virtue when Open Day offered her the chance to be photographed in her master's degree garb for the first time. The trouble was the University had already booked her to entertain the thousands who visited campus that day. "I was in Kenya when I got my first degree with the OU and couldn't attend my master's ceremony for family reasons. When I read in Open Eye that there would be a chance to get a degree photograph done I came determined to have my picture taken. "A part of me would have preferred a picture of the real me, but I don't look my best straight after I've taken the make-up off. And as the OU has been an important part of my journey, and was one of the first places I came to clown, I decided I could do it in costume." A teacher when she joined the OU in the 70s, Sue's studies proved a catalyst for reassessing her goals. And when a workshop showed her the liberating and energising effects of putting on a clown's make up, it was her OU maths which gave the clowning a focus. "I went to a fete and the children said 'do something'. So I told a story about balls and we argued about numbers. My clown friends can't understand how I entertain people with maths but this role brings together the things I'm good at and is a way of dealing with all of my energy. There's a joy about it." These days that joy extends beyond fetes into the classrooms where Sue started out. She not only uses her clowning in teaching numeracy, but in teaching teachers how to bring maths to life too.
Teacher is just a clown in a gown Opening Up: Sue Brown Independent, Open Eye Supplement Tuesday 1 August 2000 Sue Brown's twenty-three years with the OU have brought her two degrees, experience as a tutor, and an alternative career -as a clown. Having been forced by geography and family circumstances to miss both her graduation ceremonies, she finally got the chance to be pictured (front cover) in her masters gown at the University's recent Open Day, where she was booked to entertain the crowds. What made you start studying with the OU? I realised that if I was to get anywhere in teaching I would need a degree. I started studying while I was pregnant with my second child in 1973 and got my degree in 1976 doing a mixture of maths and education. What difference has the OU made to you? After my BA I moved onto the Advanced Diploma in Mathematics Education. The course Maths across the curriculum involved problem-solving and armchair modelling and we had to choose real-life problems. Rather unwisely I problem-solved myself: my life at home with teenagers and a feeling I was chasing the wrong goals. I ended up having a nervous breakdown. On the way out of the mess I discovered clowning through the "Holy Fools" - a group that performs in churches and at charity events and tells Christian stories. I realised that, with clown make-up on and different clothes, people were different with me and I could be different with them. Once I became a clown I needed an act, so I turned to my love of recreational maths and puzzles and found plenty of material. By then I was doing the last module of an OU MA, researching maths education, so I wrote my thesis on Maths Should Be Fun, deciding that most people didn't agree. What is your current job? My day job is as Numeracy Consultant in Hounslow, helping to implement the numeracy strategy. Having an MA helped me to get it. I have started to use the material from my clown act to help teachers develop ways of working with children in a more relaxed, fun way. Meanwhile I am using my maths clown regularly at weekends to take part in Maths 2000 events, which aim to help parents and children develop a "can do" attitude to maths. What do you like best about being a clown? The clown allows me to meet a variety of people in a relaxed atmosphere. I love performing and have to admit that some of the time I do show off with a trick or two. But I love it when an adult or child suddenly cottons on to what I'm doing and experiences the thrill of "knowing". ...and least? I travel a lot, often get lost, my clown gear is bulky and it takes a while to get into the clown. But it's all worth it when it comes together. Any plans for future study? I toy with the idea of doing a PhD but I'm happy at the moment and don't know where I'd find the time. What are your goals for the future? I'd like to give up working full-time and spend more time clowning.
Clowning around with numbers From "The Daily Dome", June 2nd 2000
"I blow bubbles, which draws the crowd in, and then I hit them with recreational maths problems. Some of them make the children think for themselves; some of them are just for showing off," she said. Such activities are a serious business for Hattie. She did a real-life MA on the thesis that maths is fun, and has been a clown for 10 years. "I came out of the MA thinking that maths is beguiling. It can be used to amuse or question," she said. "That's what I do. I raise the energy levels for maths: it’s a very useful teaching tool."
While choosing your bargain buys From: "Your Hounslow", October 2000 Shoppers of all ages in West London can now test their maths skills as they browse the bargains, thanks to the launch of a unique Millennium Maths Trail. The trail at Hounslow's Treaty Shopping Centre is
the Using the worksheet, you and your children can tour the centre, testing your maths skills by answering questions about everyday items. There's a tear off slip in the brochure, which will enable you to enter a free prize draw and receive an answer sheet showing how you have done, along with a special certificate to prove you took part. Funded by the Government's Department for Education and Employment and the Council, the trail will operate for two years. If you want to take part, visit the Tourist Information Centre on the ground floor of the Treaty Centre off High Street, Hounslow during normal shopping centre. For further information, phone 020 8583 2886.
From "The Harrow Observer" CHILDREN of Belmont Middle School, Hibbert Road, recently got the chance to claim the title of Super Mathematician, in a series of fun exercises during the school's brain-taxing Maths Week. "The key to getting children to learn effectively in traditionally difficult subjects such as maths is enjoyment," said Maths Co-ordinator Jayne Franklin. We award the brightest pupil with the Super Mathematician badge to wear for the week Keeping the emphasis on fun, Jayne enlisted the talents of The Maths Clown, a.k.a. Sue Brown, who presented pupils with quizzes, puzzles and games. |
