Selected Works
by Claudia Zaslavsky

1917 – 2006

African and Multicultural Mathematics,
Ethnomathematics,
Mathematics Education, etc.

Chronological List

Click here for a list classified by topic with selected additional items by other authors.

    Index

    Books

  1. Africa Counts: Number and Pattern in African Culture
    Boston: Prindle, Weber & Schmidt, 1973.
    The original and still classic book on African cultural mathematics: number words, geometrical forms, applications of numbers, hand gestures, games, and more. Hardcover edition is out of print.
    Extended review by R.W. Wilder in Historia Mathematica, Vol. 2 (1975), pp. 207-210.
  2. Preparing Young Children for Math: A Book of Games
    New York: Schocken, 1979.
    For adults. Out of print.
  3. Count On Your Fingers African Style
    Illustrated by Jerry Pinkney.
    New York: Thomas Y. Crowell, 1980.
    Some varieties of African hand and finger gestures for numbers. A book for children. National Council of Christians and Jews citation. Notable Social Studies Book (National Council for Social Studies, 1980). Outstanding Science Book (National Science Teachers Association, 1980). Honor book for the 1981 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award of the American Library Association.
    Count On Your Fingers African Style (revised edition)
    Illustrated by Wangechi Mutu.
    [New York]: Black Butterfly Books (division of Writers and Readers Publishing), 1999. Distributed by Publishers Group West.
    ISBN 0-86316-250-9.
    (Web ordering information from Publishers Group West.)
  4. Tic Tac Toe: and other three-in-a-row games from ancient Egypt to the modern computer
    Illustrated by Anthony Kramer.
    New York: Thomas Y. Crowell, 1982.
    For children. Several of the games are African. Out of print.
  5. Zero: Is It Something? Is It Nothing?
    Illustrated by Jeni Bassett.
    New York: Franklin Watts, 1989.
    For children. Out of print.
  6. Multicultural Mathematics: Interdisciplinary Cooperative-Learning Activities
    Portland, Me.: J. Weston Walch, 1993.
    Activities for middle school (grades 5 and up). With teaching guide.
  7. Multicultural Math: Hands-On Math Activities from Around the World
    New York: Scholastic Professional Books, 1994.
    Series: Instructor Books.
    Activities for grades 3-6. Out of print. Click for description.
  8. Fear of Math: How to Get Over It and Get On with Your Life
    New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press, 1994.
    For adults. Many anecdotes drawn both from personal contacts and a survey of people with diverse backgrounds and experiences and various ethnicities and colors. Examples of the use and misuse of math in everyday life. And more.
  9. The Multicultural Math Classroom: Bringing in the World
    Portsmouth, N.H.: Heinemann, 1996.
    For teachers of grades 1-8. Click for publisher's catalog and book description; Spanish description.
  10. Math Games and Activities from Around the World
    Chicago: Chicago Review Press, 1998.
    (Web ordering information from the Independent Publishers Group.)
    For children ages 8 and up.
  11. Number Sense and Nonsense: Building Math Creativity and Confidence Through Number Play
    Chicago: Chicago Review Press, 2001.
    ISBN: 1-55652378-5.
    (Web ordering information from the Independent Publishers Group.)
    For children ages 8-12.
  12. More Math Games and Activities from Around the World
    Chicago: Chicago Review Press, 2003.
    (Web ordering information from the Independent Publishers Group.)
    (Telephone orders from the Independent Publishers Group: (800) 888-4741.)
    For children ages 9 and up.

    Articles

  13. Black African traditional mathematics
    Mathematics Teacher, Vol. 63 (April, 1970), pp. 345-356.
    • Reprinted in:
      The Realm of Science series.
  14. Mathematics of the Yoruba people and of their neighbors in southern Nigeria
    Two-Year College Mathematics Journal, Vol. 1 (Fall, 1970), pp. 76-99.
  15. Mathematics in the study of African culture
    Arithmetic Teacher, Vol. 20 (Nov., 1973), pp. 532-535.
  16. What is math for?
    Urban Review, Vol. 8 (Fall, 1975), pp. 232-240.
    Raises many of the questions that are under discussion today, such as equity in mathematics education, curriculum that is relevant to the students, and the role of ``New Math'' in both the United States and developing countries (e.g., Nigeria).
  17. African network patterns
    Mathematics Teaching, No. 73 (Dec., 1975), pp. 12-13.
  18. The Afro-American mathematical heritage
    Outlook, Vol. 20 (Summer, 1976), pp. 3-8.
  19. African stone game
    Teacher, Vol. 94 (Oct., 1976), pp. 110-112.
  20. African numbers
    Teacher, Vol. 94 (Nov., 1976), pp. 91-96.
  21. Math: rote vs. experience
    Notes from the Workshop Center for Open Education (School of Education, City College of CUNY), Vol. 5 (Fall, 1976), pp. 21-28.
  22. African patterns
    Mathematics Teacher, Vol. 70 (May, 1977), p. 386.
  23. It's OK to count on your fingers
    Teacher, Vol. 96, No. 6 (Feb., 1979), pp. 54-56.
    • Excerpts reprinted in:
      Education Digest (Ann Arbor, Mich.), Vol. 44, No. 8 (April, 1979), pp. 57-59.
  24. Teacher education: Mathematics in other cultures
    Historia Mathematica, Vol. 6 (May, 1979), pp. 189-194.
  25. An early start in math
    Teacher, Vol. 97, No. 3 (Nov.-Dec., 1979), pp. 123-124.
  26. Symmetry and other mathematical concepts in African life
    Pp. 82-95 in:
    Applications in School Mathematics (1979 Yearbook)
    edited by Sidney Sharron et al.
    Reston, Va.: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, 1979.
  27. Mathematics education: The fraud of `Back to Basics' and the socialist counterexample
    Science and Nature, No. 4 (1981), pp. 15-27.
  28. As important as reading: Math education
    Cuba Times, Vol. 2, No. 2 (Summer, 1981), pp. 17--22.
  29. The shape of a symbol/The symbolism of a shape
    Teacher, Vol. 98 (Feb., 1981), pp. 36-43.
  30. Networks -- New York subways, a piece of string, and African traditions
    Arithmetic Teacher, Vol. 29, No. 2 (Oct., 1981), pp. 42-47.
    • Reprinted in:
      Activities for Junior High School and Middle School Mathematics, Vol. 2.
      Compiled by Kenneth E. Easterday, F. Morgan Simpson, and Tommy Smith.
      Reston, Va.: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, 1999.
  31. Three-in-a-row games
    Instructor, Vol. 92 (April, 1983), p. 120.
  32. The Yoruba number system
    Pages 110-126 in:
    Ivan van Sertima, ed.,
    Blacks in Science: Ancient and Modern
    (= Journal of African Civilizations, vol. 5, nos. 1-2 (April, Nov., 1983)).
    New Brunswick, N.J.: Transaction Books, 1983.
    Excerpts from Africa Counts.
  33. Are the Russians ahead in Math Ed?
    New York State Mathematics Teachers' Journal, Vol. 34, No. 2 (1984), pp. 89-92.
  34. Bringing the world into the math class
    Curriculum Review, Vol. 24, No. 3 (Jan.-Feb., 1985), pp. 62-65.
  35. Learning about the Soviet Union
    Selection 14, pp. 68-73, in:
    Educating for Global Responsibility: Teacher-Designed Curricula for Peace Education, K-12,
    edited by Betty Reardon.
    New York and London: Teachers College Press, 1988.
  36. How do we spend our money?
    Selection 15, pp. 74-79, in:
    Educating for Global Responsibility: Teacher-Designed Curricula for Peace Education, K-12,
    edited by Betty Reardon.
    New York and London: Teachers College Press, 1988.
    About the military budget.
  37. People who live in round houses
    The Arithmetic Teacher, Vol. 37, No. 1 (Sept., 1989), pp. 18-21.
    Spanish description.
  38. Who invented COBOL?
    AWM Newsletter [Association for Women in Mathematics], Vol. 19, No. 1 (Jan.-Feb., 1989), pp. 3-5.
  39. Integrating mathematics with the study of cultural traditions
    Pp. 14-15 in:
    Mathematics, Education, and Society
    edited by Christine Keitel et al.
    Proceedings of the Fifth Day Special Programme at the Sixth International Congress on Mathematical Education (ICME-6), Budapest, 1988.
    Paris: UNESCO, 1989.
    Talk presented at the opening session of the Fifth Day.
  40. Will technology come first in mathematics education?
    Pp. 315-318 in:
    The Mathematics Curriculum: Towards the Year 2000
    edited by J. Malone, H. Burkhardt, and C. Keitel.
    Perth, Western Australia: Curtin University of Technology, 1989.
    Proceedings of the panel at ICME-6, Budapest, 1988.
  41. Symmetry in American folk art
    Arithmetic Teacher, Vol. 38, No. 1 (Sept., 1990), pp. 6-12.
  42. Effects of race and class on mathematics education in the United States
    Pp. 256-263 in:
    Political Dimensions of Mathematics Education: Action and Critique
    edited by Richard Noss et al.
    Proceedings of the First International Conference, London, 1990.
    London: University of London, 1990.
  43. Multicultural mathematics education for the middle grades
    Arithmetic Teacher, Vol. 38, No. 6 (Feb., 1991), pp. 8-13.
  44. World cultures in the mathematics class
    For the Learning of Mathematics, Vol. 11, No. 2 (June, 1991), pp. 8-13.
    Talk at the International Conference on History in Mathematics Education, Leicester, U.K., 1990.
  45. Women as the first mathematicians
    WME Newsletter [Newletter of Women in Mathematics Education], Vol. 14, No. 1 (Fall, 1991), p. 4.
    According to the author, this article should not be taken literally! It is intended to provoke thought about the role of women in cultural development.
  46. A multicultural approach to math education
    CONNECT, Vol. 6, No. 1 (Sept., 1992), pp. 1-2.
  47. Multicultural mathematics: One road to the goal of mathematics for all
    Chapter 4, pp. 45-55, in:
    Reaching All Students with Mathematics,
    edited by Gibert Cuevas and Mark Driscoll.
    Reston, Va.: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, 1993.
    Revised version published 2005.
  48. Generalizations and teaching strategies for mathematics
    Chapter, pp. 223-248, in:
    Planning and Organizing for Multicultural Instruction, 2nd edition,
    by Gwendolyn C. Baker.
    Menlo Park, Calif.: Addison-Wesley, 1993.
  49. Mathematics in Africa: Explicit and implicit
    by C. Zaslavsky.
    Part 1, Chapter 1.8, pp. 85-92, in Volume 1 of:
    Companion Encyclopedia of the History and Philosophy of the Mathematical Sciences
    edited by I. Grattan-Guinness.
    London, Routledge, 1994.
  50. `Africa Counts' and ethnomathematics
    For the Learning of Mathematics, Vol. 14, No. 2 (June, 1994), pp. 3-8.
    How Africa Counts came to be written. Also, thoughts about and experiences with introducing multiculturalism into the elementary and secondary mathematics curriculum.
  51. From Howard Eves to Africa Counts to multicultural mathematics education
    Pp. 171-174 in:
    In Eves' Circles (Proceedings of the Howard Eves Conference)
    edited by Joby Milo Anthony.
    MAA Notes, No. 34.
    Washington: Mathematical Association of America, 1994.
  52. Integrating mathematics with community service
    by Gwendolyn Clinkscales and Claudia Zaslavsky.
    Chapter 15, pp. 142-150, in:
    Multicultural and Gender Equity in the Mathematics Classroom: The Gift of Diversity (1997 Yearbook),
    edited by Janet Trentacosta and Margaret J. Kenney.
    National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, 1997.
  53. Bringing the world into the mathematics classroom
    Multicultural Approaches in Mathematics and Science.
    ENC Focus [Eisenhower National Clearing House], Vol. 5, No. 1 (1998), pp. 5-7.
  54. Ethnomathematics and multicultural mathematics education
    Teaching Children Mathematics, Vol. 4, No. 9 (May, 1998), pp. 502-503.
    The ``In My Opinion'' column.
  55. The Inka quipu: Positional notation on a knotted cord
    by Claudia Zaslavsky with Bianka Crespo.
    Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School, Vol. 6, No. 3 (Nov., 2000), pp. 164-166, 180-184.
  56. African networks and African-American students
    Pp. 157-166 in:
    Changing the Faces of Mathematics: Perspectives on African Americans
    edited by Marilyn Strutchens, Martin Johnson, and William F. Tate.
    Reston, Va.: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, 2000.
  57. Developing number sense: What can other cultures tell us?
    Teaching Children Mathematics, Vol. 7, No. 6 (Feb., 2001), 312-319.
  58. African customs as applied to the mathematics clasroom
    Pp. 16-17 in:
    Encyclopedia of Mathematics Education
    Edited by Louise S. Grinstein and Sally I. Lipsey.
    New York and London: RoutledgeFalmer, 2001.
  59. Mathematics anxiety
    Pp. 451-452 in:
    Encyclopedia of Mathematics Education
    Edited by Louise S. Grinstein and Sally I. Lipsey.
    New York and London: RoutledgeFalmer, 2001.
  60. Native American games and activities
    Chapter 13, pp. 151-155, in:
    Changing the Faces of Mathematics: Perspectives on Indigenous People of North America.
    Edited by Judith Elaine Hankes and Gerald R. Fast.
    Reston, VA: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, 2002.
  61. Yup'ik border patterns in the curriculum
    by Esther A. Ilutsik and Claudia Zaslavsky.
    Chapter 25, pp. 277-283, in:
    Changing the Faces of Mathematics: Perspectives on Indigenous People of North America.
    Edited by Judith Elaine Hankes and Gerald R. Fast.
    Reston, VA: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, 2002.
  62. Exploring world cultures in math class
    Educational Leadership, Vol. 60, No. 2 (Oct., 2002), pp. 66-69.
    ``When math curriculums incorporate the study of world cultures, students learn to appreciate cultural differences and critically examine their own society.''
  63. Magic squares
    Connect, Vol. 17, No. 2 (Nov./Dec., 2003), pp. 10-13.
  64. The influence of ancient Egypt on Greek and other numeration systems
    Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School, Vol. 9, No. 3 (Nov., 2003), pp. 174-178.
  65. Multicultural math: One road to the goal of mathematics for all
    Chapter 14, pp. 124-129 in:
    Rethinking Mathematics: Teaching Social Justice by the Numbers,
    edited by Eric Gutstein and Bob Peterson.
    Milwaukee, Wisc.: Rethinking Schools, Ltd., 2005.
    Revised version of "Multicultural mathematics: One road to the goal of mathematics for all" (1993).

    Book Reviews by Claudia Zaslavsky

  66. Socialist Mathematics Education
    by Frank J. Swetz.
    Burgundy Press, 1978.
    Review appeared in:
    Science and Society, Vol. 44, No. 2 (Summer, 1980), pp. 244-247.
  67. Essay review:
    Black Mathematicians and Their Works,
    edited by Virginia K. Newell et al.
    Ardmore, Pa.: Dorrance, 1980.
    A Negro History Compendium by Ethel M. Turner.
    Cheyney, Pa.: Cheyney State College, 1971.
    Review appeared in::
    Historia Mathematica, Vol. 10 (1983), pp. 105-115.
  68. A Convergence of Lives: Sofia Kovalevskaia: Scientist, Writer, Revolutionary,
    by Ann Hibner Koblitz.
    Boston: Birkhauser, 1983.
    Second, revised edition:
    New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press, 1993
    Review appeared in:
    New York State Mathematics Teachers' Journal, Vol. 36, No. 3 (1986), p. 177.
  69. Measures and Men,
    by Witold Kula.
    Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1986.
    Review appeared in:
    Science and Society, Vol. 52, No. 3 (Fall, 1988), pp. 373-375.
  70. Symmetries of Culture: Theory and Practice of Plane Pattern Analysis,
    by Dorothy K. Washburn and Donald W. Crowe.
    Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1988.
    Review appeared in:
    AWM Newletter, Vol. 20, No. 1 (Jan.-Feb., 1990), pp. 9--11.
  71. Women of Mathematics: A Bibliographic Sourcebook,
    by Louise S. Grinstein and Paul J. Campbell.
    Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1987.
    Review appeared in:
    New York State Mathematics Teachers' Journal, Vol. 40, No. 1 (1990), p. 59.
  72. Mathematics Education in Secondary Schools and Two-Year Colleges: A Sourcebook,
    edited by Paul J. Campbell and Louise S. Grinstein.
    New York: Garland, 1988.
    Review appeared in:
    New York State Mathematics Teachers' Journal, Vol. 40, No. 2 (1990), p. 132.
  73. Mathematics and Global Survival,
    by Richard H. Schwartz.
    Ginn, 1989.
    Review appeared in:
    AWM Newsletter, Vol. 20, No. 3 (May-June, 1990), pp. 14-15.
  74. Relearning Mathematics: A Different Third R--Radical Math,
    by Marilyn Frankenstein.
    Longdon: Free Association Books, 1989.
    Review appeared in:
    AWM Newsletter, Vol. 20, No. 5 (Sept.-Oct., 1990), pp. 15-16.
  75. Where Do I Put the Decimal Point? How to Conquer Math Anxiety and Increase Your Facility with Numbers,
    by Elisabeth Ruedy and Sue Nirenberg.
    Henry Holt, 1990.
    Review appeared in:
    AWM Newsletter, Vol. 21, No. 6 (Nov.-Dec., 1991), p. 10.
  76. Women and Numbers: Lives of Women Mathematicians Plus Discovery Activities,
    by Teri Perl.
    World Wide Publishing/Tetra, 1993.
    Review appeared in:
    WME Newsletter [Women in Mathematics Education], Vol. 16, No. 1 (Fall, 1993), pp. 4, 11.
  77. Common Threads: Women, Mathematics, and Work,
    by Mary Harris.
    Stoke-on-Trent, Eng.: Trentham Books, 1997.
    Review appeared in:
    AWM Newsletter, Vol. 28, No. 1 (Jan.-Feb., 1998), pp. 13-15.
  78. Geometry from Africa: Mathematical and Educational Explorations,
    by Paulus Gerdes.
    Washington: Mathematical Association of America, 1999.
    Review appeared in:
    Humanistic Mathematics Network Journal, No. 23 (Sept., 2000), pp. 55-57.
  79. Awakening of Geometrical Thought in Early Culture,
    by Paulus Gerdes.
    Minneapolis: MEP Publications, 2003. ISBN 0-930656-75X.
    Review appeared in:
    Indilinga, African Journal of Indigenous Knowledge Systems, Vol. 2 (2003), No. 1, pp. 115-116.
    Review also appeared in:
    History and Pedagogy of Mathematics Newsletter, No. 53 (July, 2003), pp. 9-10.
    Title also appears as Awakening of Geometric Thought in Early Culture.
  80. *Mathematics Across Cultures: The History of Non-Western Mathematics., edited by Helaine Selin.
    Dordrecht, Netherlands: Kluwer, 2000.
    Review appeared in:
    NASGEm Newsletter, Vol. 1, No. 2 (November, 2003), pp. 18-21.

    Activity Cards

  81. Building bridges to mathematics: Cultural connections
    by Gloria Gilmer, S. Soniat-Thompson, and Claudia Zaslavsky.

    Menlo Park, Calif.: Addison-Wesley, 1992.
    Activity cards for grades K-8.

    Audio-Video

  82. ``Africa Counts''
    with Claudia Zaslavsky and Lamin Mansary.
    Maths Miscellany, Cassette M000/F (1 audio cassette).
    Milton Keynes, Eng.: The Open University, ca. 1990.
    Originally a programme broadcast by the BBC. Cassette also contains a second programme in the same series.
  83. Fear of Math: How to Get Over It and Get On with Your Life
    Read by Kerry Cundiff.
    Catalog code RC 43230 (2 audio cassettes).
    National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, Library of Congress, 1997.
    Free distribution through cooperating libraries to eligible borrowers.

    Interview and Biography

  84. Telling kan være både enkelt og komplisert (in Norwegian)
    Interview by Stieg Mellin-Olsen.
    Tangent, Nr. 1, 2. årgang (1991), pp. 21-24.
    • English version:
      Claudia Zaslawski [sic], pp. 103-115 in:
      Mathematics Education: Women's Talk.
      By Stieg Mellin-Olsen.
      Landås, Norway: Caspar Forlag, 1995.
  85. Claudia Zaslavsky: Author
    Pp. 152-155, 251-252 in:
    She Does Math! Real Life Problems from Women on the Job.
    Edited by Marla Parker.
    Washington: Mathematical Association of America, 1995.
  86. Claudia Zaslavsky
    Pp. 347-350 in:
    Retire in New York City -- Even If You're Not Rich.
    By Janet Hays and Rita Henley Jensen.
    Chicago: Bonus Books, 2002.
    Report of an interview.

Prepared by Thomas Zaslavsky.
E-mail to the Pagemaster.