Zoltán Pál Dienes (Hungarian:[ˈzoltaːnˈpaːlˈdijɛnɛʃ]; September 11, 1916 – January 11, 2014), anglicized as Zoltan Paul Dienes, was a Hungarian mathematician whose ideas on education (especially of small children) have been popular in some countries.[1]
He was a world-famous theorist and tireless practitioner of the "new mathematics": an approach to mathematics learning that uses games, songs, and dance to make it more appealing to children.[2] He is credited with the creation of base ten blocks, popularly referred to as Dienes blocks.[3]
Dienes's life and ideas are described in his autobiography, Memoirs of a Maverick Mathematician (ISBN1844261921), and his book of mathematical games, I Will Tell You Algebra Stories You've Never Heard Before (ISBN1844261913). He has also published a book of poetry, Calls from the Past (ISBN1844261905).
