Your guide to our booth, sessions, and prizes, plus the best things to see and eat at 5,280 feet

Welcome to the Mile High City

The NCTM 2026 Annual Meeting and Exposition runs October 28–31 at the Colorado Convention Center, and we can't wait to see you there. This year's theme, Mathematics for a Changing World: Belonging, Learning, and Leading, puts teacher joy and well-being front and center. We're bringing that same energy to our booth and sessions.

Let us help you plan your trip. Here you'll learn where to find our team, which sessions to add to your schedule, how to enter our prize drawings, and our picks for the best things to do and eat near the convention center. Many of them come with a little math on the side.

Find us at the intersection of math and fun

Head over to Booth #923 in the exhibit hall. We'll be there Wednesday from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. and Thursday and Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Pull up a seat for one of our short in-booth presentations, swap ideas with our team, and pick up resources to take back to your classroom. Dedicated exhibit hall time runs from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. on Thursday and Friday, so it's the perfect window to stop by.

Wednesday, October 28
4:15 p.m. Play, Think, and Learn with ClearMath Elementary (K–5)
5:15 p.m. Better Together: MATHbook and MATHia^® (6–12)

Thursday, October 29
10:00 a.m. You Do the Thinking: Inside MATHbook (6–12)
11:30 a.m. Professional Learning: A Sneak Peek (K–5)
12:30 p.m. Follow the Math (K–12)
2:30 p.m. Meet MATHia (6–12)
3:30 p.m. Math Worth Talking About: Headline Stories (K–5)

Friday, October 30
9:30 a.m. Professional Learning: A Sneak Peek (6–12)
10:30 a.m. Let the Math Talk: Engaging Multilingual Learners (K–12)
12:30 p.m. What Comes Next: Building Math Coherence from K to 12 (K–12)
2:30 p.m. Better Together: MATHbook and MATHia (6–12)

Sessions to multiply your ideas

Our team is presenting four sessions during the conference. Start your Thursday with us: we're serving breakfast at our 8:00 a.m. session. Add these to your schedule in the NCTM conference app so you don't miss a minute.

Sharpen Your Pencils: It's Time to Do the Math
Thursday, Oct. 29, 8:00–9:00 a.m. | Room 202 | Presenter: Amy Jones Lewis | Breakfast served
Put pencil to paper and experience K–12 math from the learner's perspective. Together, we'll explore how ideas and representations develop across grade levels. You'll leave with a fresh look at how doing the math strengthens planning, coaching, and instruction.

Building Connections: Exploring the Arc of the Area Model from Grade 3 to Algebra 1
Thursday, Oct. 29, 1:00–2:15 p.m. | Bluebird Ballroom 3F | Presenter: Brianne Major
Trace the area model from its start in Grade 3 multiplication all the way to Algebra 1. You'll see how one powerful representation connects key concepts across grade levels and helps students build understanding that lasts.

Powered by Play: Building Big Math Thinking Through Games
Friday, Oct. 30, 1:00–2:00 p.m. | Room 202 | Presenter: Casey Andree
Experience K–5 math through hands-on games, collaborative stations, and MATHia Adventure. Discover how purposeful play builds mathematical thinking, sparks discourse, and gives students meaningful opportunities to practice and problem-solve.

Empowered Teaching: Anxiety-Free Learning
Friday, Oct. 30, 1:00–2:15 p.m. | Bluebird Ballroom 3F | Presenter: Nikea Moffett
Explore how our words and our feelings about math shape the way we teach and coach. Through interactive activities and shared reflection, you'll walk away with shifts that build community, sustain joy, and create anxiety-free math learning.

Let's do the math together

Our team is ready to answer your questions and show you how our K-12 math curriculum can support your district's goals. Fill out our quick form, and we'll reach out to schedule a one-on-one conversation at the conference, tailored to your students, teachers, and priorities. 

Increase your odds of winning

Want a chance to win? Stay for one of our in-booth presentations at Booth #923 or join us at one of our conference sessions, and our team will enter you in our prize drawings. Each presentation or session you attend counts as an entry, so the more you attend, the better your odds. We're keeping the prizes under wraps, but we promise they'll be worth it.

Top five things to do in Denver (with a little math on the side)

1. Count the triangles on the Big Blue Bear  
You don't have to go far for your first stop. The 40-foot sculpture I See What You Mean, better known as the Big Blue Bear, peers into the lobby at 14th and Stout streets. Artist Lawrence Argent built it from more than 4,000 interlocking triangles. Snap a selfie, then ask your students how they would estimate the bear's surface area.
700 14th Street (outside the Convention Center at 14th and Stout streets)

2. Find the mile-high step at the Colorado State Capitol 
Denver earns its Mile High City nickname on the west steps of the Capitol. Here's the fun part for math teachers: three different steps claim to sit at exactly 5,280 feet. The 15th step carries the original carved marker, the 18th got a brass benchmark after Colorado State University students resurveyed it in 1969, and the 13th was marked after new measurements in 2003. It's a perfect real-world lesson on measurement, precision, and why datums matter.
200 E. Colfax Avenue
(303) 866-2604
About 0.7 miles from the Convention Center (15-minute walk)

3. Watch money get made at the Denver Mint 
The U.S. Mint at Denver produces billions of coins each year, and its free guided tours run about an hour. Tours take place Monday through Thursday, so plan for Wednesday, October 28, or Thursday, October 29. Reservations open online 30 days in advance and fill fast, so book early.
320 W. Colfax Avenue (tour entrance on Cherokee Street)
(303) 405-4761
About 0.6 miles from the Convention Center (12-minute walk)

4. Spot zero right angles at the Denver Art Museum 
The Denver Art Museum's Hamilton Building looks like a crystal pushed up from the Rocky Mountains. Architect Daniel Libeskind covered it in 9,000 titanium panels, and none of its planes run parallel or perpendicular to one another. Walk the slanted galleries inside, then step back outside and try to find a right angle. 
100 W. 14th Ave. Parkway
(720) 865-5000
About 0.5 miles from the Convention Center (10-minute walk)

5. Crack the code at Meow Wolf Convergence Station 
For an evening adventure, head to Meow Wolf, a four-story immersive art experience built by more than 350 artists. Visitors explore alien worlds while solving puzzles and decoding clues hidden throughout the space. It's pattern-finding and problem-solving at its most colorful. Book timed tickets online.
1338 1st Street
(866) 636-9969
About 2 miles from the Convention Center (10-minute drive or rideshare)

Top five places to feed your inner mathematician

1. Teachers' Lounge Food + Drink 
Where else would a room full of math teachers grab a drink? Teachers' Lounge sits inside The Slate hotel, the former home of the Emily Griffith Opportunity School. Griffith founded the school in 1916 for anyone who wanted to learn, and it went on to serve more than one million students. Today, you can enjoy shared plates and a signature apple-themed cocktail named The Emily, just steps from the convention center.
1250 Welton Street (inside The Slate hotel)
(303) 292-5000
About 0.1 miles from the Convention Center (2-minute walk)

2. Sam's No. 3 
Any restaurant with a number in its name earns a spot on our list. This downtown diner has served Denver since 1927 and now sits at 1500 Curtis Street, across the street from its original location. Bring your estimation skills: the menu runs 16 pages and includes 20 breakfast burritos. Start your morning here before the exhibit hall opens.
1500 Curtis Street
(303) 534-1927
About 0.3 miles from the Convention Center (6-minute walk)

3. Stout Street Social 
The shortest distance between two points is a straight line, and this spot sits right across the street from the convention center. It offers more than 40 craft beers on tap plus a menu of shareable small plates, making it an easy choice for a quick lunch or a team dinner.
1400 Stout Street
(720) 214-9100
About 0.1 miles from the Convention Center (1-minute walk)

4. Rioja
For a special night out, head to Rioja on Larimer Square. This Mediterranean-inspired restaurant is one of Denver's most celebrated dining spots, so make a reservation. Bonus: you can tell your students you ate dinner on a square.
1431 Larimer Street
(303) 820-2282
About 0.4 miles from the Convention Center (7-minute walk)

5. Union Station 
Denver's historic train station offers several restaurants, bars, and coffee shops under one roof. It's a great spot to gather a group with different tastes. Tavernetta, an upscale Italian restaurant right next door, is worth the reservation.
1701 Wynkoop Street (Tavernetta is next door at 1889 16th Street)
(833) 391-0338 for Union Station; (720) 605-1889 for Tavernetta
About 1 mile from the Convention Center (20-minute walk)

Solving for an A+ NCTM equation

Here's a formula we can stand behind: great sessions + fresh ideas + a visit to Booth #923 = one memorable trip to the Mile High City. You give so much to your students all year long, and this week is a chance to recharge, reconnect, and rediscover the joy of doing math. Stop by, say hello, and enter our prize drawings. We can't wait to meet you!

Can't make it to this year's NCTM? You can still discover how our students add up.