Describes how the author allows the children to make choices about their art and writing, enabling them to make connections between their own lives and work. Suggests that educators need to provide doorways to the things that give students ideas: books, music, objects, pictures, smells, sounds, and textures. (SG)

This article describes competitions across a range of curricular areas that develop students' problem solving skills by setting authentic, real-world tasks. As individuals or members of a team, students in these competitions are challenged with finding solutions to problems faced not only in today's scientific and technological world, but also in…

The fields of mathematics, science, and engineering are replete with diagrams of many varieties. They range in nature from the Venn diagrams of symbolic logic to the Periodic Chart of the Elements; and from the fault trees of risk assessment to the flow charts used to describe laboratory procedures, industrial processes, and computer programs. All…

An acronym, a word formed from the first letters of other words, is often used to name products or organizations. For example, when Hermione Granger, a very clever student at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, is enraged over the wizarding world's treatment of house-elves, she creates an organization to help put an end to this injustice.…

This article discusses the benefits of constructivism for both teachers and students. The author believes that teachers can increase student engagement in expressive performance learning without giving up performance quality.

This article analyses the modeling approach used by one student in a business problem. It is argued that if we use previous frameworks we are not able to classify the students' approach to modeling as purely theoretical or empirical. Instead the student used a theoretical approach when constructing a real model, but abandoned it when she had to…

Many students with disabilities require specialized instructional interventions and frequent progress monitoring in reading. The guided repeated oral reading technique promotes oral reading fluency while providing a reliable data-based monitoring system. This article emphasizes the importance of problem-solving when using this reading approach.

The study focuses on percarbonate-based stain removers since the percarbonate can be heated to produce additional sodium carbonate. An experiment that provides general chemistry students an opportunity to apply their knowledge of basic stoichiometry to solve a relevant, real-world problem is described.

A new textbook was considered which included engaging, carefully sequenced problems to help students develop skill and understanding of division. The teacher's manual encouraged Boerst to provide opportunities for the students to share multiple methods for division in order to reinforce the idea that many ways exist to solve mathematical problems.

The new Grade-Level Content Expectations (GLCEs) are addressed meaningfully through the well-organized district curriculum and text materials that embody the coherence called for in the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics' (NTCM) "Principles and Standards." The GLCEs helped to fine-tune the direction of exploratory lessons and…

Having used the DfES "Problem Solving" pack in a variety of school and centre-based applications, the author taught some of the lessons to classes of children and also observed lessons from the pack being taught to classes from Y1 to Y6. The lessons are part of a series of materials from the Primary National Strategy designed to help…

An event based on "find the rule" problems has been part of the University of Canberra Maths Day since 1985. In this paper, the authors describe the Swiss event, its context, its aims, its logistics, and gives examples of problems used in past events. The type of problems used, how they are used in an event at the maths day, and how the…

A well-known educator and researcher Anton E. Lawson highlights critical points on effective teaching, meaningful learning, and problem solving. He feels that every citizen should know that science is a collective enterprise that seeks to explain nature based on the open generation and test of ideas.

The understanding of fundamental neurological processes that enables the brain to analyze good learning produces physical changes in brain. The use of several regions of brain in the learning process and problem solving techniques are discussed.

Computer algebra systems are frequently used for research. In addition, some instructors have based entire advanced courses around these systems. One benefit is that they allow students to become familiar with the methods of calculus by individual experimentation. However, instructors have generally seen computer algebra systems as unsuitable for…