Explores the relationship between classroom discourse and mathematical development in a first-grade classroom. Addresses issues such as the teacher's role and the role of symbolization in supporting reflective shifts in the discourse. Contrasts the analysis of reflective discourse with Vygotskian accounts of learning that also stress the…

Discusses the difficulties students with learning disabilities have with mathematics. Six pedagogical criteria related to effective teaching practices are presented, followed by a narrative description of the extent to which the early 1990s editions of three basal mathematics programs applied these criteria in designing instructional sequences.…

Describes the use of mathematics skills in daily life using a home renovation business as an example. (YDS)

Demonstrates how to extend student awareness of a common computational pattern into the realm of algebraic thinking through carefully selected, sequenced activities and guided discussion. (YDS)

Describes two cases where an elementary school teacher's behavior influenced a student to either pursue or avoid math. Reviews the tenets of attribution theory, and theories regarding autonomous learning behaviors in relation to these cases. Discusses ways teachers can help students develop beneficial and useful attributions about mathematics…

The performance on a battery of cognitive tests of an individual with extraordinary ability at mental arithmetic was studied. Implications of the rather ordinary test performance of Shakuntala Devi in contrast with her calculating speed are discussed with reference to memory and information processing. (SLD)

Discusses a method of cubic splines to determine a curve through a series of points and a second method for obtaining parametric equations for a smooth curve that passes through a sequence of points. Procedures for determining the curves and results of each of the methods are compared. (YP)

Considered was the question of whether a strategy that was widely used by young children in clinical interviews occurred in less structured situations. Findings indicated that it did not occur in the performance of a routine counting task by preschoolers. Reasons for apparent discrepancies are discussed. (CW)

Describes number strips, arrow diagrams, and grids for number operations. Provides diagrams for the activity materials. (YP)

Provides an activity as an example of how matrices can be introduced from finite graphs and how finite graphs can be analyzed by examining their matrix representations. Presents the materials, objectives, prerequisites, directions, extension activities, answers, and worksheets. (YP)

Discusses how to use calculators in the mathematics classroom. Provides some teaching examples. (YP)

Discusses a strategy for clarifying students' understanding of decimals, improving their ability to read decimals, and increasing retention of decimal skills. (YP)

Provides four examples for testing the validity of logical arguments by using the method of truth trees. (YP)

Describes a teaching experiment examining the possibility of the redefinition of a multiplication problem from a problem of remembering, to a problem of figuring out why arithmetic rules make sense. (YP)

Develops a general computer algorithm to obtain a magic square having a number of rows that is a multiple of four. Presents a BASIC program and sample runs. (YP)