Children's early mathematical experiences play an enormous role in the development of their understanding of mathematics, and serve as a foundation for their cognitive development. In this descriptive study, we observed the naturally occurring mathematical activities engaged in by thirty-nine 3-year-olds, equally divided by race/ethnicity and…

Negative numbers extend our number line and greatly simplify our calculations, but sometimes students struggle with the concepts. These fun activities will help kids to make sense of the "other half" of our number system.

Least squares regression is the most common method of fitting a straight line to a set of bivariate data. Another less known method that is available on Texas Instruments graphing calculators is median-median regression. This method is proposed as a simple method that may be used with middle and high school students to motivate the idea of fitting…

Learning how to use mathematics curriculum materials to create learning opportunities is an important part of the work of teaching. This paper presents findings from a study involving 15 elementary preservice teachers enrolled in, first, a content and, then, a methods course, and discusses the extent to which three curriculum interventions…

Analysis of variance (ANOVA), a technique included in many introductory statistics courses, analyzes the relationship between a quantitative dependent variable and one or more independent qualitative variables. The nature of the relationship is expressed in a model with unknown parameters. Many textbooks emphasize the mechanics of the technique…

More than 2 decades have passed since Geoffrey Saxe's first visit to Papua New Guinea, when he began his inquiry into the highly idiosyncratic counting system of Oksapmin's people. As evidenced by his account, a quarter of a century is a period long enough to make historical shifts visible. The point of departure for this commentary on…

The Mobius strip, torus, and Klein bottle are used to graphically and analytically illustrate the differences between orientable and non-orientable surfaces. An exercise/laboratory project using the non-orientable Boy surface is included. (Contains 11 figures.)

Rhymes are often useful teaching devices for small children, and can even become a creative resource for teaching mathematics. The students and their teachers can change many of them to better fit their environment and/or extend the rhyme so that higher numbers are involved. A number of rhymes and folk tales lend themselves to more detailed…

Students, parents, and sometimes even teachers often believe that complex mathematics is too difficult for certain learners. But the programs described in this article demonstrate that anyone can learn, understand, and use complex math. Lesa M. Covington-Clarkson boosted the confidence of black 6th graders by teaching them to use graphing…

The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) recommended the use of calculators in the classroom in 1989. While calculators are more readily available in classrooms today than they were a few years ago, the recommendation is rarely followed in elementary grades. One of the reasons for this is a lack of appropriate classroom materials.…

Using science experiments in life science, chemistry, and physics, helps ground students' understanding of abstract algebra concepts in real-world applications. Hands-on activities connect mathematics with science in a way that is accessible to teachers and students alike. Each activity explores a scientific phenomenon, connecting it to algebra…

This book contains a collection of fraction lessons that support curriculum and instruction. The goals of the lessons are to give all students the chance to learn how to: (1) name fractional parts of wholes and sets; (2) represent fractional parts using the standard notation including proper fractions, improper fractions, and mixed numbers, and…

Algebra is one of the top priorities of mathematics instruction for the elementary and middle grades. This book is designed to help K-2 teachers meet the challenge of making algebra an integral part of their mathematics instruction and realize both what to teach and how to teach central algebraic concepts. Classroom-tested lessons help teachers…

This document outlines the Mathematics Curriculum Framework Project and provides details on the mathematics strands, standards, and benchmarks in the state of Michigan. Many activities related to the strands, standards, and benchmarks are presented for elementary, middle, and high school levels. A CD-ROM, a list of additional publications, and…

The University of Chicago School Mathematics Project (UCSMP) officially began in 1983 to improve mathematics education for the vast majority of students in grades K-12. UCSMP began by examining the curricula of other countries for proven ideas and methods, creating textbooks and training programs at both the elementary and secondary levels, and…