Discussed is the construction of a simple apparatus, the sky window, which can be used to investigate astronomy concepts. Activities using the sky window are suggested. (CW)

The differences between drill activities and practice activities and the reasons why there are differences are discussed. Two games that uses playing cards to provide students with untimed opportunities to practice their facts are described. (KR)

This article compares the relative merits of using Cuisenaire rods (unsegmented, unnumbered, and representing continuous quantities) and number sticks (segmented, numbered, and representing discrete quantities) to introduce number and arithmetic concepts to beginning students or students with learning difficulties or mental disabilities. (DB)

Nineteen gifted students and 11 average students, age 11, completed Einstellung Test problems and were queried about their metacognitive knowledge. A three-way interaction among giftedness, speed, and flexibility was found, with metacognitive knowledge as the criterion. Regardless of speed, inflexible children had less metacognitive knowledge than…

Presented is a comparison of two major surveys of the teaching and learning of mathematics conducted by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement. Surveys indicate that performance levels have declined in computational skills and increased in algebra. (Author/CW)

This article describes an empirical investigation of the extent to which incorrect arithmetic algorithms persist over time. Results with 30 fourth-year and third-year English students over up to 3 months shed light on "bugs," or students' learning of incorrect concepts, and indicate that they are not very stable in children of this age.…

Discusses why it is important to teach arithmetic, showing teachers how to match what they are teaching with children's real-world needs, presenting seven basics for teaching arithmetic today, and offering seven classroom strategies for implementing the instruction. The seven basics emphasize the importance of arithmetic skills and math facts as…

Presents activities on writing and learning about cuneiform numerals and some mathematical and numerical topics in the context of Mesopotamian culture. Includes resources for further reading. (ASK)

Presents information on a project to promote young students' mathematical thinking in which teachers attempt to explore ways to foster students' mathematical development by watching a CD-ROM containing student interviews. Discusses the role that technology might play as a catalyst for teachers to reflect upon their teaching experiences against the…

Examines the idea that the arithmetic calculator can act as a cognitive tool, supporting the amplification or reorganization of systems of thought. Examples were found in which use of the calculator helped pupils work with unusual problem representations and adapt solution strategies in which they focused on planning and monitoring computations…

Investigates the effect of mental schemes corresponding to additive and multiplicative situations in the process of interpreting and solving problems. Classifies relative difficulties of problems according to their situations which are considered through a written test administered to pupils in grades 2, 3, and 4. Supports the assumption that…

Examined two possible explanations for the arithmetic tie effect: faster encoding of tie problems versus faster access to arithmetic facts. Found that the tie effect vanished with heterogeneous addition problems, and for seven out of eight participants, the effect vanished with heterogeneous multiplication problems. Concludes that the tie effect…

The paper reports three studies addressing the role of numeral writing for arithmetic performance. About 650 children in the age range 5-7 years participated in the studies. The results demonstrate a positive correlation between number of digits correctly written and number of arithmetic problems solved. The correlations between number of reversed…

This article illustrates students' efforts to resolve an apparent discrepancy between their self-generated solutions and the answer obtained using the division algorithm for fractions. (Contains 5 figures.)

Working from Carolyn Kieran's categorization of "arithmetic" and "algebraic" thinkers, the article describes one eighth-grade "arithmetic" thinker's progress as she attempts to solve one- and two-step equations.