Teaching kids

“Your coffee is terrible,” said Vera, “but there is nothing we can do. You are just hopeless.”

She was slowly sipping from her cup.

“You know, Vera. I am going to start weekly mathematical meetings for kids. I am going to teach them math.”

Vera went silent for a few seconds. Then she said: “So not only your kids?”

“No, my friends’ kids too.”

“Don’t be foolish! Nobody will trust you with their own kids. You are too incompetent. You are a foolish geek, not a teacher.”

“And your grandchildren are welcome too.”

“My grandchildren!? Not in a million years. You teaching? A guy who cannot tell onion from garlic?”

“I can, Vera.”

“What?”

“I can tell onion from garlic.”

“No, you can’t. And I saw you teach. Drawing rectangles and circles! That’s ridiculous!”

“They are children, Vera. What am I supposed to be explaining to them?”

“Well, you should first teach yourself the difference between onion and garlic. Besides, I saw you were comparing kids to rectangles and triangles! I couldn’t believe my eyes, young boy!”

Anyway, after rather sporadic math activities with my first- and second-born, I decided to have Math Circle meetings for a group of kids every Wednesday. And I was eagerly awaiting the first Wednesday. But it also made me a little nervous.