Integer operations are typically introduced in sixth grade, but they are a consistent area of struggle among these students. This struggle also inhibits their understanding of algebraic computations involving positive and negative terms. In this article, the author provides introductory tasks and models for adding and subtracting integers that can…

Recently, there has been increasing evidence showing that males estimate whole numbers more accurately than females on the number line. However, relatively little is known about what factors contribute to this gender gap. The current study explored potential mediators of the gender difference in number line estimation, including spatial skills and…

The development of math reasoning and 3-d mental rotation skills are intertwined. However, it is currently not understood how these cognitive processes develop and interact longitudinally at the within-person level -- either within or across genders. In this study, 553 students (52% girls) were assessed from fifth to seventh grades on 3-d mental…

Quantity recognition in whole number representations is a fundamental skill children need to acquire in their mathematical development. Despite the observed correlation to mathematics achievement, however, the ability to recognize quantities in structured whole number representations has not been studied extensively. In this article, we…

Teachers report that engaging students in solving contextual problems is an important part of supporting student understanding of algorithms for fraction division. Meaning for whole-number operations is a crucial part of making sense of contextual problems involving rational numbers. The authors present a developed instructional sequence to…