12/28/16

Gabriel Stylianides
University of Oxford

Thessaloniki, Greece, December 17, 2016

Blonde Hair Problem

After having many years to see each other, two friends who really loved math, Hypatia and
Pythagoras, meet again. They have the following conversation:
Pythagoras: Are you married? Do you have any children? How many? How old are they?
Hypatia: Yes, I am married! I have three children and the product of their ages is 36.
Pythagoras: (After doing some thinking.) I cannot figure out their ages. I dont have
enough clues.
Hypatia: Right! What if I told you that the sum of their ages is the same as the number of
your address?
Pythagoras: (After doing some thinking again.) I still cant figure out their ages. I need
another hint.
Hypatia: Well done! I also tell you that the oldest has blonde hair.
Pythagoras: Aha! Now I can, without any doubt, figure out the ages of your three children.

What are the ages of Hypatias children (their ages can only be natural numbers)?
Extension: What would be other numbers that could substitute 36 so that:
(a) Pythagoras is unable to figure out the ages after the first two hints, and
(b) Pythagoras is able to figure out the ages after the third hint.
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Pythagoras and Hypatia

Pythagoras of Samos
569 BC - 475 BC

Hypatia of Alexandria
370 AD - 415 AD

The discussion described in the Blonde Hair Problem

must have taken place in Heaven 3

1. Read your responses and compare what you wrote

at the beginning of your work on the BHP (pre-
reflection) and at the end (post-reflection)
2. Take turns to share with the other members of
your new small group important insights/ideas you
got from your engagement with the BHP
3. Select a few important insights/ideas to share with
the whole group

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Belief 1: problems that cannot be solved quickly are

unsolvable or beyond students capabilities
Belief 2: there should be clearly identifiable
mathematical referents in a problem (numbers or
formulas) and these should be sufficient for its solution
Belief 3: problem solving cannot be an enjoyable
activity

If you want to learn more about the BHP

Stylianides, A. J., & Stylianides, G. J. (2015). The Blond Hair problem. Mathematics
Teaching, 247, 20-24.

Stylianides, A. J., & Stylianides, G. J. (2014). Impacting positively on students

mathematical problem solving beliefs: An instructional intervention of short
duration. Journal of Mathematical Behavior, 33, 8-29.

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Video from a 3rd grade classroom:

A Pupils Novel Idea About the Parity of 6

Deborah Balls classroom

Mid-January (ten days into number theory unit).
Diverse classroom, many English language learners
Goals of the teacher for the year: taking mathematics
seriously, attending carefully to other students ideas,
justifying claims, and working together on the
mathematics

Guiding questions for watching the video

1. What was the mathematical issue discussed in the

video? Explain Sheas idea.
2. Like for any classroom video, we cannot say much
about the students who didnt talk in the whole group.
Focusing on the students who talked, answer the
following questions:
a) Did these students seem to be motivated? Provide
evidence (e.g. by referencing specific lines in the
transcript).
b) What do think prompted/supported or inhibited
students motivation?
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