can do Maths with Aboriginal “You dancing.” teacher, supervisors were relaxed and easy to get along “Staff, students, with.” was surprised and interested in the cultural and maths stuff we “I did.” Students from St Peter Claver College were interviewed some sixteen months after the camp as a follow up and stated: showed me that maths had something to do with real life. I was in year 9 then and doing algebra “It actually which I see how this had anything to do with real life. But some things that we did on the camp helped couldn’t showed how maths can go with a – story.” Another student commented that as a result of the camp, their maths results had improved: used to get Cs in maths and now I get “I B+s.” camp or excursion is a great way to get students and teachers motivated learning about Maths and Culture. Some teachers expressed that the activities on the day were a start for further exploring the mathematical concepts that were touched on. With this in mind the students who were involved and their teachers could model the activities with the rest of the staff and their class. This would be an ideal time to invite local Aboriginal community members and into the school. Consultation for events like this is essential. Throughout the planning process, , Community representatives, Academics, teachers and staff from the various schools all had input into the planning of activities. Schools must also ensure they know each of their Indigenous students, their families and backgrounds. It has been identified by both clusters that any connection to and learning based around Culture is always embraced. Conclusion Both clusters recognised through active participation in the camp and students’ engagement excursion. The diversity of activities provided both a different perspective of mathematics and a context for learning that promoted mathematics and Aboriginal culture. References Matthews, C. & Morris, C.2011 In Indigenous Education: Numeracy, and Indigenous : Not the same old thing. Pathways to Success, Research Conference. Sullivan, P.2011 ACER Press, Camberwell, Victoria. Teaching : Using research-informed strategies, Stanton, R. 1994 paper Location: A cross cultural mathematics theme in Aboriginal teacher education, presented to Australian Bridging Mathematics Network Conference, University of Sydney, July. Matthews, C. (2008). Stories and symbols: Maths as storytelling. Retrieved August, 2009, from http://www.aeuvic.asn.au/professional/files/PV_Mathews_6_3.pdf
“You can do Maths with Aboriginal dancing.” “Staff, students, teacher, supervisors were relaxed and easy to get along with.” “I was surprised and interested in the cultural and maths stuff we did.” Students from St Peter Claver College were interviewed some sixteen months after the camp as a follow up and stated: “It actually showed me that maths had something to do with real life. I was in year 9 then and doing algebra which I couldn’t see how this had anything to do with real life. But some things that we did on the camp helped – showed how maths can go with a story.” Another student commented that as a result of the camp, their maths results had improved: “I used to get Cs in maths and now I get B+s.” camp or excursion is a great way to get students and teachers motivated learning about Maths and Culture. Some teachers expressed that the activities on the day were a start for further exploring the mathematical concepts that were touched on. With this in mind the students who were involved and their teachers could model the activities with the rest of the staff and their class. This would be an ideal time to invite local Aboriginal community members and into the school. Consultation for events like this is essential. Throughout the planning process, , Community representatives, Academics, teachers and staff from the various schools all had input into the planning of activities. Schools must also ensure they know each of their Indigenous students, their families and backgrounds. It has been identified by both clusters that any connection to and learning based around Culture is always embraced. Conclusion Both clusters recognised students’ engagement through active participation in the camp and excursion. The diversity of activities provided both a different perspective of mathematics and a context for learning that promoted mathematics and Aboriginal culture. References Matthews, C. & Morris, C.2011 Numeracy, and Indigenous : Not the same old thing. In Indigenous Education: Pathways to Success, Research Conference. Sullivan, P.2011 Teaching : Using research-informed strategies, ACER Press, Camberwell, Victoria. Stanton, R. 1994 Location: A cross cultural mathematics theme in Aboriginal teacher education, paper presented to Australian Bridging Mathematics Network Conference, University of Sydney, July. Matthews, C. (2008). Stories and symbols: Maths as storytelling. Retrieved August, 2009, from http://www.aeuvic.asn.au/professional/files/PV_Mathews_6_3.pdf