Celtic Knots

At the last MAT 641 class at GVSU, I was introduced to the geometric art of Celtic Knots. I have always had an interest in art and especially math related art. The systematic approach to creating Celtic Knots is very in line with my personality. I am a very linear thinking and process oriented art is right up my ally. I spend some time the next few days after class sharpening my knot art skills and was ready to bring it into my classroom.

In my school we are blessed to have a "Flex" block period that meets twice a week for a half hour. The time is so students can receive the enrichment they need in different subjects. They are grouped up based on achievement level. I am fortunate enough to have the students who are highly successful in math. We are able to do some activities that are not in the curriculum and show them math outside of just structured curriculum. So this past Thursday I introduced them to Celtic Knots. The initial response was "I don't get this," or "this isn't fun," but after continued demonstration and I completed a few on the board they deemed "cool" their interest level increased. After a few minutes, a few students came with smiles on their face and showed me their completed knots. Their passion for math art increased just as mine had when I was introduced to Celtic Knots. Before I knew it the class was silent and everyone had their heads down and where working away. 

The greatest moment happened after we talked about adding different walls to manipulate the knots and see what happens. Students tried simple 4x4 knots with one wall. Then the great moment happened. I overheard a student speak to his neighbor, "I don't know what is going to happen but I am going to try it." We stopped the whole class right here and we had a conversation that this is what math should be like. School has become a chore for adolescences and not an inquisitive exploration of gaining knowledge.  I was excited and passionate about their level of interest by the end of the hour. It was great to see them take the Celtic Knot and run with it and try it on their own. 

In the future I want to wrap my head around some of the math that is involved with Celtic Knots. I have done a little research and spent some time pouring over the articles. I would also like to bring it down to the level where a middle school student can comprehend what is going on and it's application to other real world items.