November 23 – Fibonacci Number Day

Happy Fibonacci Number Day!

Scientists and Mathematicians celebrate this day today because of the first four numbers in the Fibonacci sequence, 1-1-2-3, or 11-23, November 23rd. This is a pattern which begins with either a 0 or 1 and adds the last two number to get the next number in the sequence. 0-1-1-2-3-5-8-13-21-34-55-89-144…

You can figure this out for yourself: 0+1=1   1+1=2   1+2=3    2+3=5    3+5=8

It is also said that these number come up in nature. Some examples being the branches of a tree, the arrangements of leaves on a stem, the fruit sprouts of a pineapple, the flowering of an artichoke, the uncurling of a fern, and the arrangement of a pine cone.

(Source: Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fibonacci_number)

And so today, in celebration of the Fibonacci Number Sequence, I bring you: a pinecone, a tree, and an artichoke.

Penguin and Pinecone written and illustrated by Salina Yoon (2012)

One day Penguin found something. It was too hard to be food and too prickly to be an egg. It wasn’t a snowball but it was cold. So Penguin got busy and knit his new friend a beautiful orange scarf to match his own. But his friend was still cold. Grandpa told Penguin that his friend was a pinecone and that it belonged in a forest far away. So Penguin packed his sled and pulled Pinecone all the way home. He made a soft nest for his friend and set stones in the shape of a heart around pinecone. Then he went back to his own home and thought about Pinecone growing bigger and stronger. Penguin packed his sled again and returned to the forest. There growing with the tall pine trees was one wearing an orange scarf just like his, surrounded by stones in the shape of a heart. Penguin and Pinecone played and played. And although Penguin eventually had to go home and leave Pinecone behind, he knew they would always be close in each other’s hearts.

This Tree Counts! written by Alison Formento and illustrated by Sarah Snow (2010)

Mr. Tate teaches his class about the importance of trees before each student plants his or her tree in the school yard. From the one large tree in the yard, Mr. Tate has the children count one owl, two spider webs, etc. Then he talks about how trees clean the air for us to breathe, gives us shade on a hot day, and provide wood for homes, guitars, furniture, paper etc. Then Mr. Tates counts as ten children plant new trees in a straight line. Before the class leaves, one students says goodbye to the old oak tree and tells it to have fun with its new friends. The big tree waved, and the ten small trees waved also.

Artichoke Boy written and illustrated by Scott Mickelson (2009)

Artichoke boy loves artichokes. He has artichoke eyes, nose, hair, ears, elbow, knees. He takes artichoke baths, eats artichoke dinners, rides artichoke sleds, and has artichoke ice cream. He has an artichoke mother, father, and sister. But as much as he loves artichokes, he loves his family best.