
Math Therapy
Math Therapy explores the root causes of math trauma, and the empowering ways we can heal from it. Each week host Vanessa Vakharia, aka The Math Guru, dives into what we get right and wrong about math education, and chats with some of today’s most inspiring and visionary minds working to make math more accessible, diverse, and fun for students of all ages. Whether you think you’re a "math person" or not, you’re about to find out that math people don’t actually exist – but the scars that math class left on many of us, definitely do. And don’t worry, no calculators or actual math were involved in the making of this podcast ;)
Episodes
83 episodes
Get the politicians out of the classroom w/ David Kochberg
If you're a fan of the podcast, you've often heard Vanessa mention our producer "David" in reference to him getting mad at her for yelling into the mic or hitting the mic or generally doing things that impact the quality of this AUDIO medium.&n...
•
Season 6
•
35:07

We're not teaching content, we're teaching students w/ Kevin Dykema
Having attended and presented at the annual NCTM (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics) conference, Vanessa reached out to "famously nice guy" Kevin Dykema, the organization's President, to learn more about his journey to the top. ...
•
43:55

Math Therapy is now a book! Vanessa tells all ...
HUGE news - Math Therapy is now a book! Vanessa has taken everything she's learned in her career helping students overcome math trauma, and all the insights from the 6 seasons of this podcast, and formulated a 5-step process to bring math...
•
36:36

We are born to love math w/ Dan Finkel
Dan Finkel is an author/educator who believes that humans are wired to be curious from birth, and that play is the secret to maintaining that joy of learning throughout childhood. On today’s season 6 finale, he and Vanessa discuss how tea...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 10
•
42:44

Grit is your superpower w/ Dr. India White
Dr. India White learned grit and resilience the hard way: facing down obstacles throughout her life and deciding she wouldn’t back down. Now she coaches teachers and students on developing their own gritty superpowers, and she joins Vanes...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 9
•
41:05

How to change someone's mind w/ Chris Luzniak
What if the secret to winning a debate was actually listening to your opponent? What if you could build confidence and overcome anxiety through the practice of public speaking? And HOW does someone go from dreams of Broadway fame to teach...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 8
•
38:48

Math doesn't cause trauma, people do w/ Sean Nank
When Vanessa saw today’s guest deliver a deeply personal talk at a recent math conference, she was left with more questions than answers; all she knew for certain was she had to get him on the podcast. Sean Nank is a math educator who bel...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 7
•
39:04

Turns out some folks hate math w/ Jon Orr & Kyle Pearce
Today’s another one for the teachers, featuring Jon Orr & Kyle Pearce of the Make Math Moments empire - they have a podcast, a framework, workshops & courses & virtual summits galore, and who knows probably even a cooking show at th...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 6
•
40:37

Teachers have trauma too w/ Brittany Hege
We’re often talking about trauma from the student perspective: how it happens in the classroom, and how it follows them into adulthood. But one group is often overlooked in this discussion - teachers! Today Vanessa chats with educat...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 5
•
36:38

More clickbait in the classroom! w/ Howie Hua
Of the truly infinite things Vanessa likes to rant about, few top the list like math’s marketing problem - which is why she was elated to chat with social media mathstar Howie Hua! Today Howie shares how his own experiences with math anxi...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 4
•
26:52

The spiritual side of math w/ Francis Su
When you picture a mathematician, what comes to mind? Now … what about a “mathematical explorer”? Well, that’s what Francis Su calls himself, and when Vanessa picked up his book Mathem...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 3
•
37:49

Tell your students you trust them w/ Zak Champagne
Longtime listeners (like today’s guest, as you’ll discover…) will recall one name popping up in almost every interview last season, so Vanessa needed to find out for herself: who is Zak Champagne & why do people like him so much?! Through t...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 2
•
42:14

The difference between equity & equality w/ Dr. Pamela Seda
On the Season 6 premiere of Math Therapy, Vanessa chats with Dr. Pamela Seda, an expert in all things education and inspiration! They dive deep into hot topics like how teachers can build trust in the classroom by modelling vulnerability,...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 1
•
43:18

Season 6 Trailer
Season 6 drops March 28th - here’s a sample of who and what you’ll hear!
•
Season 6
•
4:07

Refresher: Pi Day in Prison
It's March 14th, aka 3.14 ... so Happy Pi Day! To help you get in the zone, we're re-airing an episode from last year recounting the Math Therapy team's Pi Day 2023 trip to Bellamy Creek Correctional Facility in Michigan. This stemm...
•
Season 6
•
48:48

The Awkward Return?! (S6 is coming)
The rumours are true! (The rumours that Vanessa has been spreading herself.) Season 6 of Math Therapy launches March 28th!To get you hyped while we get this batch of episodes ready for you, here are some brief thoughts she r...
•
Season 6
•
2:47

The Awkward Goodbye
Don't worry, Math Therapy isn't going anywhere ... but here's a fun bonus episode as we look back on an incredible 5th season! It was a total success in every possible way, except one: for whatever reason, Vanessa lost the ability to simp...
•
Season 5
•
9:56

Embracing your limitless mind w/ Jo Boaler
In Vanessa's masters thesis titled "Imagining a World Where Paris Hilton Loves Math", there was nobody quoted more frequently than today's guest, Stanford professor Dr. Jo Boaler. On the season 5 finale of Math Therapy, Vanessa sits down ...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 10
•
41:53

Teaching students to ... think?! w/ Peter Liljedahl
Peter Liljedahl is literally changing the math classroom. His book "Building Thinking Classrooms" has taken the educational world by storm with a simple message: instead of teaching st...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 9
•
43:32

Mistakes: Villains or Heroes?
Should mistake-making be encouraged in math class? Or should mistakes be shamed because “in the real world” you can get fired from your job from making a mistake? You can probably guess how Vanessa feels, but a fellow educator recently disagree...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 8
•
32:42

Centering student voice in math class w/ Crystal Watson
Today's guest literally entered the chat wearing a t-shirt that read "TRUTH MATTERS”, and that sure set the tone for this wide-ranging episode! Crystal M. Watson is an educator who firmly believes in centering student voices in the classr...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 7
•
43:42

Redefining "Success"
In today's episode, Vanessa explores the dangers of narrowly defining success and argues that contrary to popular belief, failure and success are actually BFF, not opposites (looking at you, Merriam-Webster!). She also shares a practical ...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 6
•
28:09

Refresher: Drag queens & math class w/ Kyne Santos
In honour of Pride Month, we're taking a mid-season 5 break to re-air one of our all-time fave episodes featuring mathematician / drag queen Kyne Santos. Drag has been in the news lately for all the wrong reasons, so we wanted to share Ky...
•
Season 5
•
33:26

How struggle leads to growth w/ Robert Kaplinsky
Think of this week's episode as a kind of reverse palate cleanser ... Vanessa and today's guest Robert Kaplinsky more than make up for the lack of swearing last week! What got them fired up? Oh, just the systemic barriers to educati...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 5
•
38:21

How trauma affects the brain w/ Liesl McConchie
Last week's episode featured a deep dive with Vanessa into math trauma: what it is and how to avoid it. Today, brain expert Liesl McConchie joins her to explain the neurological science of trauma, debunk the myth of the "math gene", and discuss...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 4
•
44:44
