Q: Why did you write “Math Speak”?
Mandelbaum: It goes back many, many decades; I’ve always been involved in math and science. When my daughter started going to elementary school in the 1980s, I didn’t love the way math was being taught. It was just not the right way and I started correcting some of the things they were learning. When my sons began elementary school around 2000, I came up with a better foundation that would prepare them for all other math that would be taught. I did it with both of my sons when they were four years old. The children have a different appreciation for math because it was part of their lives. After many, many years of teaching it, I decided I wanted to share it with the world. I started writing it this April, finished it and it was published last week. I’ve already had reviews coming in.
Q: How is this helpful for young children?
Mandelbaum: It gives something to the kids that do not frighten them. Unfortunately, there are so many parents out there who are “math phobic” and it goes down to their children. My belief is that if I could some how solve that and make the parent or grandparent feel comfortable, they can do the lesson. It’s not a long lesson, but once it’s in place the child never forgets it. In the last week, I shared it with members of the Lawrence School District. We are now going to produce a Spanish version, so children that are non-English speakers can be taught the same lesson.
Q: How is this important in today’s society?
Mandelbaum: The key is that our society has become so dependant on math and all of the really great jobs that people get out of college and high school have to do with math. Our lesson will prepare the future of any students that’s wants to do this. Once they learn this, it infiltrates their academic future that can be built from this. The book is $10 on Amazon and I didn’t do this for any other reason but to have a better world. Everyone could do this, it could be a parent, older sibling, grandparent but a good age to start is in preschool. My goal is to have this on a national level and a good friend introduced me to the Secretary of Education Linda McMahon to see if there was any interest there.
Q: Why are you doing this?
Mandelbaum: Over the years, I have done things that have to do with an appreciation of numbers. Technologically, I was involved with huge innovations and numbers are important because we introduced 1980s AIDS testing. Johnson & Johnson was the first company to have AIDS testing and when your T-cells reverse there’s a chance you had the autoimmune disease HIV. I was involved in those 40 years ago and worked for a think tank in the late 1980s that the first egg detector and we were able to measure the zona pellucida lining. The zona pellucida is the egg the women produce and we’re able to measure how thin it was to recommend IVF with the largest success rates. In 1991, using a device we developed I did a macro application and introduces home run measurement into Major League Baseball.
Q: Anything else to add?
Mandelbaum: At the end of the book there is a certificate of completion to fill out with the kids’ name that presents them as a Jr. Nobel Prize winner for parents to put on their refrigerator.
