All students need to discuss mathematics to develop and deepen understanding. However, for English Learners (ELs), peer dialogue is imperative and indispensable to conceptual understanding as they participate in mathematical practices and engage in increasingly sophisticated uses of language (Heritage, Walqui, and Linquanti 2015). As ELs share…

Why is the use of letters in algebraic expressions and equations--variables--the source of such uncertainty for students and teachers? The authors studied a sixth-grade classroom and observed that students hold many misconceptions about variables. Some students hold an algebraic view of the equal sign. For them, it indicates an equation and…

"Principles to Actions: Ensuring Mathematical Success for All" (NCTM 2014) gives teachers access to an insightful, research-informed framework that outlines ways to promote reasoning and sense making. Specifically, as students transition on their mathematical journey through middle school and beyond, their knowledge and use of…

The traditional technique for converting repeating decimals to common fractions can be found in nearly every algebra textbook that has been published, as well as in many precalculus texts. However, students generally encounter repeating decimal numerals earlier than high school when they study rational numbers in prealgebra classes. Therefore, how…

Building sets, video games, and scatterplots may seem unrelated, but when they are combined into a problem-based learning (PBL) lesson, these elements join to create a unique learning experience. PBL lessons drive instruction by focusing learning and activities around a central challenge or question while providing a relevant, captivating, and…

The author wants her students to see any new mathematics--fractions, negative numbers, algebra--as logical extensions of what they already know. This article describes two students' efforts to make sense of their conflicting interpretations of 1/2 × -6, both of which were compelling and logical to them. It describes how discussion, constructing…

In "Principles to Actions: Ensuring Mathematical Success for All," NCTM (2014) defines productive struggle as students delving "more deeply into understanding the mathematical structure of problems and relationships among mathematical ideas, instead of simply seeking correct solutions" (p. 48). Hiebert and Grouws (2007, p. 387)…

When teaching algebra concepts to middle school students, the author often hears questions that echo her own past confusion as a young student learning to write linear equations using data tables that show only input and output values. Students, expected to synthesize the relationship between these values in symbolic representation, grow…

This article presents the Snail problem, a relatively simple challenge about motion that offers engaging extensions involving the notion of infinity. It encourages students in grades 5-9 to connect mathematics learning to logic, history, and philosophy through analyzing the problem, making sense of quantitative relationships, and modeling with…

Students are faced with many transitions in their middle school mathematics classes. To build knowledge, skills, and confidence in the key areas of algebra and geometry, students often need to practice using numbers and polygons in a variety of contexts. Teachers also want students to explore ideas from probability and statistics. Teachers know…

How better to begin the study of linear equations in an algebra class than to determine what students already know about the subject? A seventh-grade algebra class in a suburban school undertook a project early in the school year that was completed before they began studying linear relations and functions. The project, which might have been…

Mr. Perez and Mrs. Peterson co-teach a ninth-grade algebra class. Perez and Peterson's class includes four students with individualized education programs (IEPs). In response to legislation, such as the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act (2001) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (2006), an increasing number of students…

Mathematics teachers want to empower students as mathematical thinkers and doers (NCTM 2000). Specific ways of thinking and doing mathematics were described in the Process Standards (NCTM 2000); they were further characterized as habits of mind (Mark, Goldenberg, and Sword 2010); and more recently, they were detailed in the Common Core's Standards…

The Common Core's Standards for Mathematical Practice encourage teachers to develop their students' ability to reason abstractly and quantitatively by helping students make sense of quantities and their relationships within problem situations. The seventh-grade content standards include objectives pertaining to developing linear equations in…

How does one look for mathematical structure? Finding structure is a challenging yet accessible activity for all students. This article describes a lesson in which seventh graders engaged with mathematical structure. The setting was a seventh-grade prealgebra classroom in a suburban school. The classroom teacher was co-author Tatyana Finkelstein.…