(Courtesy/Mr. Bolognese & Dr. Dennett)
Two Columbus Academy math teachers, Dr. Dennett and Mr. Bolognese, spent part of their summers exploring how mathematics intersects with art, culture, and history—discoveries that they now bring back to their classrooms and to Math Club.
Dr. Dennett attended the Bridges Math Art Conference in Eindhoven, which is in the southern Netherlands. This four-day gathering brings together teachers and artists who explore the overlap between mathematics and art. Dennett first learned about the conference through a book on mathematical art during the pandemic, which led her to attend her first Bridges conference in Finland four years ago with the help of Academy’s Dream Big grant.
Each year, she finds herself exposed to new perspectives. One session she attended this summer connected magic squares—grids where each row, column, and diagonal add to the same total—with labyrinths. It’s an activity she hopes to bring to the math club. Another workshop involved playing math-themed Pictionary with teachers from across the globe, where teachers from different countries approached the same concepts with different methods. Dennett explained that these small differences sparked valuable conversations and gave her new ideas for how to present topics to her own students.
Dennett also took part in one of the conference’s most unique traditions: the math art fashion show. She crocheted a shawl from a tiling design and modeled it on stage. “There aren’t many places where you can talk about math and knitting or crocheting all at the same time,” she said. Standing in line with a retired teacher from England and another participant, all three realized they had visited the same Amsterdam yarn shop on their way to the conference. “To have people who were as excited about this yarn as I am and can also talk about math is a pretty unique and fun place to be in,” she said.
Dennett also serves on the conference’s planning committee, reviewing submitted papers and helping organize the fashion show. For her, the joy comes not only from mathematics but also from the shared passion: “Traveling to be with other people who are passionate about the same things as you gives a very different perspective. I always feel more connected to those places than other places I’ve gone.”
Meanwhile, Mr. Bolognese spent 12 days at the University of Cambridge in England with the Oxbridge Program, organized by WorldStrides. Unlike most conferences where afternoons are free, this program blended mornings of math workshops with afternoons and evenings of sightseeing and cultural immersion. Participants visited museums, took part in punting, and even saw rare artifacts in the Wren Library, including a page from the Gutenberg Bible, Newton’s walking stick, and a lock of his hair.
“Stepping on the same stone that Newton stepped on blows my mind,” Bolognese said. “To be in the same space as someone we still talk about 400 years later is incredible.”
His program emphasized doing math together, not just discussing it. Bolognese learned several math card tricks he plans to introduce to the Math Club. Outside the classroom, he also experienced English traditions such as pub quiz night, where he and fellow participants competed and won against others in trivia.
For Bolognese, the trip highlighted the value of broadening horizons. “I learned the value of not just focusing on one’s discipline, but immersing yourself culturally in ways that conferences usually don’t have,” he said. He encourages colleagues and students to take opportunities: “Click on that next email, and take a risk . . . It was beyond my expectations.”
Though their paths took them to different countries, both teachers returned with inspiration. Dennett brings new creative projects and global perspectives on teaching, while Bolognese brings historical insights and math activities. Their experiences abroad highlight how travel can enrich not only their own teaching but also the opportunities they create for their students.
