DENVER — Go ahead and ask any student what their least favorite subject in school is and I bet you’ll hear, ‘Math’, over and over again.
It’s not that Math is boring, it’s actually pretty fascinating. It’s just most students have a difficult time understanding it.
“Learning Math doesn’t have to be this drudgery or just this preparation for a test,” explained Anthony Persico. “It can be something that’s fun, enjoyable and challenging!”
Persico is the head educator at ‘MashUp Math‘, a digital classroom based out of Denver. He moved ‘MashUp Math‘ to Colorado within the last year given Denver’s growth in the technology field.
“I ultimately chose Colorado because it has a really strong and up-and-coming tech scene,” Persico said.
With a Masters Degree in Special Education, Persico started his career teaching High School Math in New York and Virginia. He quickly realized the traditional way of teaching had its constraints.
“Most teachers are kind of creatively handcuffed by the demands of standardized exams and pacing guides and curriculum,” Persico said.
Persico wanted to teach Math differently and have more time than what’s allocated in a traditional classroom.
“I think Math education needs more creativity,” he put it bluntly.
In order to make Math more creative, Persico designed a platform and place where he could hash out his ideas. That platform? MashUp Math.
“We create video content and share our free resources and insights for Math Teachers, because math education is constantly evolving,” Persico explained.
The content Persico is creating consists of top-notch lessons, produced in a visually compelling way. He figured if you want to get kids interested in Math, you not only have to educate them – but you also have to entertain them.
“We present something that’s pretty colorful and unique. Especially for students with a visual learning preference,” Persico said.
A new lesson is added to MashUp‘s YouTube page each week. Already, the digital classroom’s video library has more than 110 lessons available. The best part? They’re all FREE!
“Because it’s a video lesson, students can speed up [the video] if they want, or they can slow it down and go back. That’s where it gives students more control,” Persico said.
Analytics from MashUp‘s YouTube page show Persico’s lessons are viewed worldwide, but have heavy viewership in America and other English-speaking countries. The lessons are geared towards students from 3rd to 12th grades.
“We interact with people from all different walks of life,” he added.
Teachers, students and parents can request particular lessons based on their Math interests.
MashUp Math is incredibly active on Twitter and YouTube.
To learn more about MashUp Math and how it plans to grow more in Denver, watch Kevin Torres’ ‘Unique 2 Colorado‘ Report on Channel 2 News Monday at 4pm.
[Editor’s note: Kevin was an awful Math student. He still is.]