BHNmath
NEWSLETTER | ISSUE 10 | APRIL 11, 2022
Written by Adam Gesjorskyj
A VERY BELATED "HAPPY NEW YEAR!"
I can’t believe that I’m only now sitting down to write the first BHNmath newsletter of 2022! Although the past few months have been demanding, to say the least, I’m happy to report that they’ve also been full of opportunities for learning, collaborating and creating. As I’m sure you know, a fully de-streamed Grade 9 program will soon be implemented across the province. It’s been a pleasure meeting with teachers of a variety of subjects to discuss strategies for navigating this change and to make connections to the work we’ve been doing in the Mathematics, Grade 9 (MTH1W) course. I’m most certainly looking forward to continuing these conversations in the coming months and throughout the 2022-2023 school year. Also, although there’s barely anything there at the moment, the Mathematics of Data Management (MDM4U) section of the BHNmath site is now active! You can currently find a handful of new interactive applets related to probability simulations there (see below for some examples). I’ll continue to add to this course’s resource content upon request. Lastly, I recently had the opportunity to participate in a highly engaging day at Conestoga College’s Brantford campus (thanks, Carmine!). The visit was not only a ton of fun, but also a source of inspiration. The wheels are turning for a section of the BHNmath website dedicated to the mathematics needed for success in the skilled trades. Stay tuned!

FIRE UP THE PRESSES!
The frequent printing and photocopying of the Check Your Understanding documents is undoubtedly expensive, inconvenient and environmentally unfriendly. Therefore, we’re planning to create reusable class sets of the BHNmath MTH1W CYU documents for repeated use in future classes. Some features of these books will include the following:
- Full-colour illustrations and photos
- Professional binding
- Protective hard covers
The content of these books will be sequenced according to the “Unit By Question” plan. Although the CYU documents were originally formatted to minimize the number of pages printed, the book’s pages will display the content with increased spacing, thereby making it appear more welcoming and less overwhelming to students (but not so much as to encourage writing in the book).
It’ll be at least a month before the collection is ready for printing, as I have yet to create documents for the final unit (What’s the story?). I also plan to revisit all of the CYU documents in light of the MoE’s newly released MTH1W teacher supports and make any necessary updates. Once completed, I’ll be sure to make a digital version of the entire book available on the BHNmath site. I’ll also replace each individual CYU document with its updated version (in both PDF and Microsoft Word formats). Needless to say, if you’d prefer to use these documents in their current state, be sure to download/save them within the next month!
I’d once again like to extend my gratitude to everyone who has pointed out errors in the CYU documents this year! If you notice any more, please let me know. I’m always open to suggestions on how to make these materials better. Please don’t hesitate to contact me anytime with questions, concerns or ideas!
"NEW CAR, CAVIAR, FOUR STAR, DAYDREAM"
Several resources related to financial literacy have recently been added to the MTH1W course. You can find them in the “What’s the cost?” section of the course or use the direct links below.
MORE PYTHON RESOURCES
Some new reference resources for working with Python are now available. Since the topics covered don’t directly correspond to any particular MTH1W lesson and are completely optional for the course, I’ve placed them in a new section of the MTH1W teacher page, called Extras. Here are the direct links:
Recently Added Resources
Here are five other resources recently created for BHNmath (excluding Question and Answer Centre resources):
Course: Mathematics of Data Management (MDM4U1)
Topic: Experimental Probability
Type: Interactive Applet
Target: Students and Teachers
Location: Introduction to Probability
Notes: An applet to investigate the tossing of a fair coin. Several similar applets for simulating probability experiments can be found here.
Course: Mathematics of Data Management (MDM4U1)
Topic: Experimental Probability
Type: Interactive Applet
Target: Students and Teachers
Location: Introduction to Probability
Notes: An applet to investigate the sums rolled with three 6-sided dice. Several similar applets for simulating probability experiments can be found here.
Course: Mathematics of Data Management (MDM4U1)
Topic: Experimental Probability
Type: Interactive Applet
Target: Students and Teachers
Location: Introduction to Probability
Notes: Requested by a teacher. An applet to investigate the sums rolled with two 8-sided dice. Several similar applets for simulating probability experiments can be found here.
Course: Mathematics, Grade 9 (MTH1W1)
Topic: Proportional Relationships and Conversions
Type: Check Your Understanding
Target: Students
Location: How much is that?
Notes: Practice problems for the Proportional Relationships and Conversions lesson in PDF format. An editable Microsoft Word version is also available here.
Course: Mathematics, Grade 9 (MTH1W1)
Topic: Coding
Type: Check Your Understanding
Target: Students
Location: How much is that?
Notes: Practice problems for the Coding – Part 4 lesson in PDF format. An editable Microsoft Word version is also available here.
WHAT'S NEXT FOR BHNmath?
- Completing and updating the Check Your Understanding resources for all MTH1W lessons (according to the order outlined in the Scope and Sequence) and designing/printing the CYU book.
- Supporting the move to a de-streamed model in other subjects.
- Creating resources and providing support on request.

Take care and keep in touch!
– Adam