Play allows young children to acquire and practice mathematics skills and concepts while engaging in meaningful and enjoyable activities (Bobis, 2010; Reed & Young, 2018). In particular, open-ended play provides children opportunities to discover materials, explore concepts, and solve problems (Rosli & Lin, 2018) and in the process,…

Every educator knows the sinking feeling of a lesson gone wrong. As teachers look around the room and realize that many of their students are just not getting it, they often feel like failures. However, the struggle students experience as they persevere through high-quality challenging tasks is not a sign of failure, but rather a key aspect of…

This article aims to present a first approximation of the conceptual field of measures of central tendency (MCT), grounded in the theory of conceptual fields. We propose six situations according to type of variable, data presentation (raw or grouped) and amount of data. We revisit specific situations for the mean and exemplify several…

Four variations of the Koch curve are presented. In each case, the similarity dimension, area bounded by the fractal and its initiator, and volume of revolution about the initiator are calculated. A range of classroom exercises are proved to allow students to investigate the fractals further.

Ben Zunica describes a lesson in which computational thinking has been successful in assisting students to understand the process of simplifying surds. The strengths and limitations of this approach are discussed. The author concludes that computational thinking can assist in solidifying understanding of a range of mathematical processes for…

Due to the nature of the teaching environment, students may often develop perceptions of their lecturers' ability as mathematicians, based on the pre-prepared and well-rehearsed content they present. In reality, performing mathematical calculations and solving problems is a difficult skill, and students may compare their own experiences…

Students, even as young as kindergarten, are natural problem solvers (Carpenter et al., 2017). Even before they learn to count, they can make sense of mathematical problems and real- world situations (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, 2022). Kindergartners can make sense of complex story problems, including Separate Start Unknown…

In this paper we follow a hypothetical mathematician who is working on a problem that is eventually solved. We treat this problem as if it were difficult for the mathematician. In following the mathematician's work, we note both what she does and what she doesn't do in the process. By the latter, we consider the times when progress is not being…

Computational thinking and activity are vital aspects of what it means to conduct scientific and mathematical work. In light of this, some propose that students' mathematical education should include an integration of computing into their mathematical experiences, giving students opportunities to engage with computational tools as they reason…

In this article the author describes an intervention program for students who were approximately six months behind expected standards. The program, "Prepare 2 Learn," had four components: building prior knowledge; developing mental computational fluency; encouraging a growth mindset; and meta-cognitive strategies. The qualitative data…

This article makes a case for introducing moving averages into introductory statistics courses and contemporary modeling/data-based courses in college algebra and precalculus. The authors examine a variety of aspects of moving averages and draw parallels between them and similar topics in calculus, differential equations, and linear algebra. The…

Visuospatial representations of numbers and their relationships are widely used in mathematics education. These include drawn images, models constructed with concrete manipulatives, enactive/embodied forms, computer graphics, and more. This paper addresses the analytical limitations and ethical implications of methodologies that use broad…

We propose a divisibility criterion for elements of a generic Unique Factorization Domain. As a consequence, we obtain a general divisibility criterion for polynomials over Unique Factorization Domains. The arguments can be used in basic algebra courses and are suitable for building classroom/homework activities for college and high school…

Quadratic functions are explained in the three equivalent formats: Standard (or Expanded), Vertex and Factorised. However, cubic functions are represented only in the two equivalent formats: Standard (or Expanded) and Factorised. In this article, the author shows how cubic functions can be expressed in three equivalent formats like quadratic…

The study of how children learn numbers has yielded one of the most productive research programs in cognitive development, spanning empirical and computational methods, as well as nativist and empiricist philosophies. This paper provides a tutorial on how to think computationally about learning models in a domain like number, where learners take…