The NCTM Standards encourages teachers and students to explore multiple approaches and representations when engaging in mathematical activities. The activities in the "Your Better Half" investigation engage students in the understanding of the commonly used fraction half by using the set and the area model and it is found that using real-world…

This breakthrough series of modules is intended to cover a range of topics and illustrate key ideas in mathematics, science, and technology education by actively engaging students in their learning processes. The module presented in this package is on measurement. Activities include posing questions, setting tasks, and encouraging students to…

A collaborative action research project with preservice teachers built on Wood's (2003) paper on strategy reporting, inquiry and argumentation and the NSW Department of Education and Training documents called substantive communication. There is little research on argumentation about space mathematics in primary schools so this is the focus of the…

Get students into math using outer space! Mission Mathematics translates the NASA experience into language and experiences appropriate for young learners, and provides teachers with mathematics activities that complement many of the available NASA resources for students and educators. In these motivating investigations, young children engage in…

This quantitative study compared two groups of community college students who were studying elementary statistics. The control group consisted of 38 students in two classes during the fall of 1998, and the treatment group contained 40 students in two classes during the spring of 1999. The treatment group participated in ten data collection and…

This stand-alone workshop session explores the connections between home and school mathematics learning through the lens of equity. It is appropriate for use with teachers, staff developers, after-school program providers, and other educators who work with parents. All three session activities can be done, or the leader can opt to keep the session…

The physics learning problem that students usually regard equations and other symbols in physics as algebraic exercises rather than representations of real world phenomena is commonly known. This article discusses how the Web-based interactive instructional materials were used to help students connect the symbolic world and the real world. The…

This issue of ENC Focus focuses on the topic of inquiry and problem solving. Featured articles include: (1) "Inquiry in the Everyday World of Schools" (Ronald D. Anderson); (2) "In the Cascade Reservoir Restoration Project Students Tackle Real-World Problems" (Clint Kennedy with Advanced Biology Students from Cascade High…

College courses that are taught without any technology are part of the past. With software that can do almost any mathematics including calculus, traditional teaching, with the instructor as all-knowing, is obsolete. In this paper, a comparison is made between business mathematics courses and general physics courses taught at a small private…

Explains how to implement an activity in which students measure the volume of their oral cavities. Enables students to develop skills in estimation, measurement, connections, statistics, applying concepts and procedures, and communication. (DDR)

Discusses the mathematics learning related to NCTM standards that emerges as children engage in play in early childhood and kindergarten settings and offers suggestions for the effective use of play in teaching young children mathematics. Focuses on the use of blocks and manipulatives. Discusses how teachers' assumptions and mathematics knowledge…

Discusses the issue of deciding what is or what should be taking place in mathematics classrooms. Concludes that it is necessary to prepare the students in today's classrooms to live and work in tomorrow's world. Contains 16 references. (ASK)

Presents an investigation that focuses on estimation skills as children attempt to solve problems involving concepts of weight, volume, and counting money. (ASK)

Highlights an activity that focuses on learning the geometric concepts needed for students to design blueprints for a city park by mastering fifth-grade geometry concepts and applying their knowledge in a real-world context. (ASK)

Describes the use of experiential learning activities in a first grade classroom composed of learners at several levels, including some with learning disabilities and some with special speech and language needs. Presents learning activities to integrate mathematics with developmentally appropriate process writing, including a birthday graph, dice…