Poetry Corner
Who Belongs in Math?
Yo sé y yo conozco matemáticas
I know and I know math
Yo sé matemáticas
I know math
How to do math
How to read math
How to write math
I know math terms and words and phrases
I know what you mean by differentiation and estimation and derivation and deviation
Yo no sé todas las matemáticas
I don’t know ALL the math
I don’t specialize in topology or string theory
I don’t spend my time developing new proofs of Pythagorean’s Theorem
Some high school students did that.
Nosotros sabemos las matemáticas
We know math.
Like
All of us, together
Different parts
We explore math and discover new math
We show math
We do math
We know math both in school and outside of it
But that isn’t the only way of knowing
Yo conozco matemáticas
I know math
How to see math
What math can do
How math feels when I am successful at it
How it feels when I am failing at it
How it feels when failure turns to learning it
I believe I can do math
I believe I can learn math
I can learn topology and string theory because I learned number theory and numerical analysis.
I know math because I know math
I know how society positions me and others that know math
Separate, above, apart from others that don’t know math
Pero, conocemos las matemáticas
But, we know math
We know informal math, flexible math, math in puzzles and word searches and video games
We know math in budgeting and shopping and prioritizing
We know math and live math and live with math
Yo enseño matemáticas
I teach math
Because for me, math is comfortable and warm and exciting and a place for experimentation
I teach math so that students know math and know math.
My work and passion is supporting teachers to teach math like this.
Concimiento is more than knowing
It is seeing and feeling.
It is classroom culture and hallway convos
It is collaboration
When we know math and know math
Students, families, and communities, can know math and know math, too.
Inspired by
Gutiérrez, R., Myers, M., & Kokka, K. (2023). The stories we tell: Why unpacking narratives of mathematics is important for teacher conocimiento. The Journal of Mathematical Behavior, 70, Article 101025. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmathb.2022.101025
What it always was…
This is what it always was
This is how it’s always been
Sometimes it feels like love
Sometimes it feels like sin
Not sin
Sine
That curve always rewinds
Returns at the same time
And can even be amplified
You can translate left and right
And be speaking in so many tongues
See math is a language
Born of many sums
This revelation
Recognized the world over
Sparking invention
Intention
Creation and imagination
These patterns we trace and chase
Permit us to make haste
Toward clarity and unity
This is what it always was
This is how it’s always been
This math can feel like love
We need to bring all others in
No
We need to reimagine our power here
We continue to stand as a gateless door
If we can clearly see how we are always surrounded by math genius
This work would feel less lonely… more seamless.
This poem was originally shared by Dr. Ayanna Perry on LinkedIn.
Citation
Perry, A. (2026). Poetry corner: Who belongs in math. Kaleidoscope: Educator Voices and Perspectives, 13(1), URL NEEDED.