This article describes how in early mathematics learning, young children are often asked to recognize and describe visual patterns in their environment--perhaps on their clothing, a toy, or the carpet; around a picture frame; or in the playground equipment. Exploring patterns in the early years is seen as an important introduction to algebraic…

What is the role of patterns in developing algebraic reasoning? This important question deserves thoughtful attention. In response, this article examines some differing views of algebraic reasoning, discusses a controversy regarding patterns, and describes how three types of patterns--in contextual problems, in growing geometric figures, and in…

Presents responses to the pattern problem that appeared in the November 1998 "Problem Solvers" section of this journal. (ASK)

This article reports on the use of a unique number system to facilitate teachers' understanding of the concepts of place value. Teachers' mastery of base-ten may hinder their recognition of the difficulties students have with place value, so the authors created a number system that used five symbols to represent values. Using this system, teachers…

Describes a model using a group of fifth-grade students to better understand the assessment standards. Discusses the activity, the lesson on tessellation, and instructional decisions from the perspective of the assessment standards. (ASK)

Explores algebraic thinking as children search for patterns while collecting, organizing, and graphing data and as they derive equations describing relationships found in the data. (ASK)

Presents a problem suggested for students in grades one through six concerning the concepts of grouping, reasoning, and pattern finding. Discusses the student problem-solving process. (ASK)