This book consists of a series of activities aimed at providing a problem solving, hands-on approach so that students can experience concepts in algebra. Topics include ratio and proportion, patterns and formulas, integers, polynomials, linear equations, graphs, and probability. The activities come in the form of reproducible blackline masters…

This book was written as a resource for middle and high school teachers hoping to ease their students' transition to algebra. Drawing on experiences with three professional development programs, key "habits of thinking" that characterize the successful learning and use of algebra are outlined. Strategies teachers can use to cultivate…

In the early 1980s, American College Testing (ACT) saw a need for a system that would respond to the planning and assessment needs of students, parents, teachers, and administrators, and conducted an extensive review of what was being taught in American schools from grade 7 through college-sophomore level in order to identify the important…

This paper is designed to show how graphics display calculators can be used to analyze data. The paper describes a classroom activity, where students calculate a linear regression on a data set and answer questions related to the regression. Teaching notes, a full solution, and calculator instructions are included as are blackline masters. (MM)

Presents an activity to teach piecewise functions using wax paper and rectangular grids. Helps students understand the idea of different pieces by literally "piecing" together a new type of mathematical function. Also describes a followup activity and explains how piecewise functions can be graphed using graphing calculators. (NB)

Presents five guided activities that use a graphing calculator to help students discover the fundamental theorem of algebra. Includes student worksheets and illustrates solutions. (KHR)

Emphasizes the commonalities among classes of polynomial functions. Provides exploratory activities for students as well as a teacher's guide. (KHR)

Investigates an interesting application of probability in the world of sports. Considers the role of permutations in the lottery system used by the National Basketball Association (NBA) in the United States to determine the order in which nonplayoff teams select players from the college ranks. Presents a lesson on this topic in which students work…

Presents activities designed to engage students in an experiential and theoretical application of problems in precalculus and to study geometry, coordinate systems, rates, linear applications, and the concept of function. Illustrates problem situations and includes student worksheets and a teacher's guide. (KHR)

Presents problems designed to focus student attention on the visual representations that accompany the verbal statements of problem situations involving motion over a period of time. Shows that as a result of engaging in these activities, students gain a better understanding of a given problem situation before they apply procedures to answer…

Provides classroom suggestions for combining numerical, algebraic, and geometric techniques with the understanding of a simple method for computing square roots. Historical origins of the method illustrate the debt owed to ancient minds living in what are now India, Pakistan, Iraq, and Egypt. (Author/NB)

Presents four related problems that provide examples of ways to include justifications of interesting mathematics in courses taught prior to a geometry course. (ASK)

Reviews a number of interesting sites on the Internet for mathematics education and considers the different ways in which the information available can be used as a teaching resource. Provides practical guidance on how teachers might take information in text, graphic, and file formats and use it either for themselves or with pupils. (Author/ASK)

Describes an activity on fractal geometry in which students built a 19-foot-tall Sierpinski pyramid in the Minneapolis Convention Center in conjunction with the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics' (NCTM) 75th Annual Meeting in April, 1997. Contains 13 references. (ASK)

Presents an activity that focuses on the features of ellipses and the concepts of limit and infinity. (ASK)