Actress says Math isn’t a male domain
Courtesy photo Danica McKellar, now 32, played Winnie Cooper on “The Wonder Years.” McKellar, who graduated summa cum laude from UCLA with a math degree, recently wrote a book titled “Math Doesn’t Suck.”
bjohnson@VenturaCountyStar.com
Winnie Cooper’s a math wiz, Winnie Cooper’s a math wiz.
That sounds like it could have been a playground taunt from the nostalgic ABC show “The Wonder Years” — and actress Danica McKellar, who played Winnie on the hit 1988-1993 series, takes it as a compliment.
This A student loves math, to the point where she shelved acting for it. McKellar has a degree in math, co-authored a mathematical theorem on the properties of magnetic material that was published in the British Journal of Physics, and spoke to Congress several years ago on the importance of math education for women. Now, she’s penned an ode to a subject many abhor.
McKellar, 32, has written a new book called “Math Doesn’t Suck.” Released last month, it’s geared toward getting young people and specifically young girls interested in math.
That’s because her research has shown that the middle school years are when kids struggle with math as it morphs beyond mere multiplication tables to complex, conceptual ideas such as algebra.
“That’s when the majority of kids will decide if they are good at math and if math is for them,” McKellar explained in a recent phone interview from her Los Angeles home. “And girls get the additional negative message that math is for boys and not for them.”