Musei e mostre per la matematica: tra divulgazione e didattica

Abstract

Exhibitions, in the sense of gathering material together for people to view or interact with, are becoming increasingly common. They can take place in a variety of settings from schools to museums. In Italy, in the seventies , Emma Castelnuovo (1913- 2014), who taught mathematics at  “Torquato Tasso” secondary school in Rome, performed with her students some mathematical exhibitions. Her ideas, her books and articles  described   new methods in teaching mathematics, which  had great influence in the years to come. In this article,  the novelty in Castelnuovo’s approach to the didactic is described. Moreover, more  recent enterprises concerning museums and exhibitions devoted to mathematics are also presented.