How To Create Math Fun With Palindromes In 2019!

     Most of us know that a palindrome is a word or phrase that is spelled and read the same both forwards and backwards. Kids love to share simple palindromes such as mom, dad, wow, Otto, Anna. Older students have often discovered longer words such as racecar, kayak, level. Keep talking and you'll find phrases such as, "Madam, I'm Adam." And, if you've run out of other examples, pull out the mind-blowing, "A man, a plan, a canal: Panama" on your kids!

     Teachers often make a math connection with palindromes. Numbers that are read the same forward and backward count as palindromes. Go as simply as you wish - even a number such as 55 is technically a palindrome.

     Palindrome fans and lovers of symmetry are always delighted when a day, a week, or even a month contains a forward-backward date. For this year, 2019, September contains several palindromic dates. Even though Palindrome Week 2019 will occur in the next school year, now is a great time to introduce or review the concept and set kids up with some fun activities to mark the occasion. Maybe you could text or email your students next year and remind them to celebrate!

     Keeping in mind that these dates are in the American style, using "19" as the year, here are the palindromic dates for 2019:


Let me know how you prepare and celebrate Palindrome Week, 2019!