MathTools
Affordable, recyclable, easy-to-ship manipulative for educators in developing countries.
Affordable, recyclable, easy-to-ship manipulative for educators in developing countries.
We are a company focusing on the importance of education for children and adolescents worldwide. We strive to provide the best solution to teaching mathematics in a low-budget environment while maintaining the quality of education we could expect from a classroom with the competition’s tools.
We have paired with a mathematics education professional on this venture to provide only the best possible tools for classrooms around the world.
We offer a set of manipulatives for teachers to use in their classrooms. They’re the world’s first punch-out style cardboard kits that can be used as an educational asset!
Our manipulatives are:
Our product is geared towards the educator in a low-budget or restrictive environment. This could be any teacher handling maths in a poor suburb or a developing nation.
The manipulatives are designed to be the ideal replacements for their more expensive counterparts when money is a concern.
The teacher’s job is to make sure their students understand mathematics. Often times, writing on a chalkboard may not get the idea across to pupils – this is where manipulatives are useful. We are making these tools as accessible as possible for the passionate teacher who can’t afford to pay for expensive plastic tools to be shipped in. The teachers we serve care deeply about their students and so do we.
Partnering with a mathematics education professional who has a master’s degree in the topic has allowed us to gain an incredible amount of insight into what tools best suit a teacher’s need. This allows us to tailor our line of manipulatives to be exactly the foundation that any teacher around the globe would need to teach math effectively.
Many mathematics manipulatives exist on the market today. Many are creative and some newer items in the market are even better than the traditional tools used to teach.
However, this market doesn’t extend to developing nations, where budget constraints and shipping logistics come into play. Our flatpack, budget-friendly and recyclable product has little competition in that market even if it is very much outclassed in the average north-American classroom.
First and foremost we value the student. Typically the younger the students in the classroom, the less likely you are to put across information with just a blackboard. The students care about using manipulatives because that’s what’s the most fun for them! They allow students to participate more actively in the classroom.
Our promise to these students is to deliver a product that encourages their learning by being more fun than a blackboard-style lecture.
The teacher is our second direct user for the product. Teachers care about products like these because they help them do their job. Real examples of this can be found all across North America and at teacher conferences. Our target teachers care about our product because it’s a much more affordable product in comparison to typical plastic offerings. Our quality offering could make the difference between keeping everyone’s attention and losing some students in class.
Our promise to teachers is to make the most effective tools possible so that their job in the classroom will be easier.
The principal and school administration are the third consideration. They are the enabler for getting tools like these into classrooms. Our target schools are in developing areas, so one of our focuses is keeping cost as low as possible in both production and shipping. The easy-to-assemble flat packs we produce are the ideal budget solution for schools with a limited budget, allowing us to deliver affordable education, much to the delight of the checkbooks of schools.
Our promise to school administrators is that we will strive to keep costs low in order to allow them to put our product into classrooms.
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Welcome (back) to our Idea Page site!
Access to the Creative Commons tools and a lot of the content on site is free. We just ask that you sign in / sign up using your existing social account. To do this, click one of the icon(s) below:
This will take you to their secure sign in tools - we'll never see your password and you don't have to create and remember yet another one. This is for convenience but it's also to keep the sign in process as secure as possible.
That said, we will receive your name and email address from them as well as any other profile information you approve for them to share.
By signing into this publicly available version of the Idea Page web site: 1) you acknowledge that anything you share here cannot and will not be protected in any way; 2) you agree that you will only share ideas and intellectual property that you own and that you are willing and able to have publicly shared; 3) you agree not to share any personally identifiable information about any other person and that any personally identifiable information you share about yourself is shared voluntarily and at your own risk; and 4) you acknowledge that you are bound by the full Terms of Use, Privacy Policy, and License Agreement found here », including but not limited to the terms related to Termination, Limitations of Liability, and Indemnification.
Customer (C)
8
Value proposition (VP)
9
Substitutes & alternatives (SA)
10
People (P) on the team
8
Offering (O)
10
Distinctive competencies (DC)
8
Great concept but I believe that the market that you want to ship into won’t be easy to break into. Not because it’s flooded with alternatives but primarily transport issues and getting the products to the right people to begin with. Cardboard may not always be the best option in most of the products you’re shipping as well since a lot of your target countries have tropical climates and shelter is seldom available. Overall its an excellent idea and will create a lot of impact.
Customer (C)
10
Value proposition (VP)
10
Substitutes & alternatives (SA)
10
People (P) on the team
10
Offering (O)
10
Distinctive competencies (DC)
7
Holy wow this is a great idea. It makes so much sense to use recyclable, cheap tools necessary to teach math in developing countries. There are next to no substitutes to your product, you’re easily the right man for the job and the cause is a just one that you are passionate about.
My one reservation is, why are you the only one that can do this? Do you have any connections with charities? Are there any schools that would like to partner with you and maybe send these products over for free?
I would easily invest in this, it is a worthwhile cause coming from a solid foundation.
Customer (C)
10
Value proposition (VP)
10
Substitutes & alternatives (SA)
7
People (P) on the team
10
Offering (O)
10
Distinctive competencies (DC)
9.4
Taking on education is a noble cause. Partnering with educators is an even better stride in the perfect direction. The customer is clear and they will greatly benefit as some students do not even have classrooms but they have curious minds that want to learn!
In terms of alternatives, it might be easy to re-create, however in the developing parts of the world there are materials that are hard to procure, therefore this product will do well as an educational import.
The people on the team are passionate about the subject and have expertise in school and post secondary which is always a plus. The passion and the cause is both noble and clear.
Customer (C)
10
Value proposition (VP)
10
Substitutes & alternatives (SA)
8.5
People (P) on the team
8.9
Offering (O)
8.5
Distinctive competencies (DC)
7.5
I believe this is both highly feasible and highly impactful. This extends beyond just third world countries. There are many parents who are unable to afford their children additional learning tools, There is also potential in how replaceable and environmentally friendly this product is. Many kids tend to be careless with their belongings, either damaging them in their use, or losing them on their way home.
One aspect to improve upon is expanding your target market to parents as well. There is a market out there for parents eager to give their child a head start in their learning career.