A brief history of the development of our present day Gregorian calendar is given. Methods are then given, based on congruences, to determine such things as the week-day for any given date and the date for Easter in any year. (LS)

The most economical means of extracting salt from a salt mine is posed as a simulation problem for middle school students. (CP)

An investigative activity dealing with where to pitch a tent at a campsite is described. (MNS)

Students read a fact situation, identify the constitutional issue, find and analyze the portion of the Constitution that treats the issue, and consider the analysis to be an hypothesis that will be supported or will fail when examined in light of reference material, such as Supreme Court case summaries. (RM)

An interview with Martin Gardner, author of the mathematics games columns in Scientific American, is presented. Topics range from problem solving to using calculators. (MNS)

Presents many problems involving scheduling after-school activities and tournaments that bring the topic of Euler paths to a level of understanding for elementary students. (MKR)

One elementary school program approaches technology activities involving design and construction that enables students to premodel designs using a commercial instructional package produced by LEGO. (JOW)

Describes a combinatorics problem involving pizza toppings. Includes three activity sheets. (Author/NB)

Presents responses to the Fair Share Problem. (Author/YDS)

Provides information on the problems with the Hubble Space Telescope and how the National Aeronautics and Space Administration is trying to fix it. Includes a student quiz and possible student outcomes. (JOW)

Describes how to use the "Nate the Great" book series by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat to help elementary school students learn the Big6 problem-solving process. As the plot develops, teachers can help students draw parallels between the actions of the young detective and the six steps of the process. (LRW)

Revisits and discusses the polar bear problem that was published in the March 1997 issue. The problem concerns a riddle: If you walk one mile south, one mile east, and one mile north, and end up in the same spot as you started, what kind of bear would you see? (ASK)

In a 7-week project, teams of elementary students designed and made a coal cart. The project demonstrated that practical design and technology problems are best broken into manageable subtasks. Doing so enhances understanding of conceptual and procedural knowledge. It also showed how children can be moved toward more expert levels of performance.…