Math author and long-time homeschooling mother of 5. Through my blog and my books, I want to awaken parents’ and children’s minds to the wonder of mathematics.

Illinois, USA
Joined January 2012
The full quote, from my book Let's Play Math: And here is the most important piece of advice I can offer. Your slogan must be the one used by the Chinese teachers Liping Ma interviewed: “Know how, and also know why.” Always ask why the rules you learn in math work. Don’t stop asking until you find someone who can explain it in a way that makes sense to you. When you struggle with a concept and conquer it, it will make you free. You don’t have to be afraid of it anymore. —Denise Gaskins #mtbos #homeschooling #homeeducation #letsplaymath #iteachmath [Photo © myronstandret/Depositphotos.]
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“Sense-making is the first mathematical practice for a reason. If we don’t do this one, the rest of them don’t matter. If we’re not doing this, our children are not going to learn mathematics. Make sense-making the focus of every single thing you do in your math classroom.” —Annie Fetter buff.ly/KHzIznG #mtbos #homeschooling #homeeducation #letsplaymath #iteachmath (Background photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash.)
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Rescuing Cool Math for Older Kids -- two puzzles for upper-elementary to middle school, and two for middle-to-high school. Have fun playing math with your older kids! #mtbos #homeschooling #letsplaymath #iteachmath denisegaskins.com/2026/05/27…
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Are You Smarter than a 3rd-6th Grader? denisegaskins.com/2026/05/06…
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FAQ: Remembering What We Learn It’s easy for humans to convince ourselves we understand something when someone else explains it. It seems to make sense, but it doesn't stick in our minds. #mtbos #homeschooling #letsplaymath # denisegaskins.com/2026/04/01…
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Playful Math 184: Carnival of Living Math -- bringing our children face-to-face with the big ideas of mathematics. #mtbos #homeschooling #letsplaymath #iteachmath #mathjournal #mathgame denisegaskins.com/2026/03/25…
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