To help middle school students make better sense of decimals and fraction, the author and an eighth-grade math teacher worked on a 90-minute lesson that focused on representing repeating decimals as fractions. They embedded experimentations and explorations using technology and calculators to help promote students' intuitive and conceptual…

Learning mathematics is challenging. It requires discipline, logic, precision, perseverance, and accuracy. It can also be fun. When mathematics is set in a context that inspires students to want to solve interesting problems, students will have an intrinsic desire to learn the necessary skills to accomplish a specific goal. The game of Crypto! was…

Many students and adults feel that algebra is merely the shuffling of symbols. The three interrelated concepts of variable, expression, and equation are central to beginning algebra, and in recent years, helping students understand the idea of a variable has been emphasized. Although graphing calculators help students solve equations, it is also…

Simple nongraphing calculators can be powerful tools to enhance students' conceptual understanding of mathematics concepts. Students have opportunities to develop (1) a broad repertoire of problem-solving strategies by observing multiple solution strategies; (2) respect for other students' abilities and ways of thinking about mathematics; (3) the…

Describes a framework to help teachers decide when to use calculators with their students. (YDS)

Presents historical mathematics to students. Suggests allowing students to have two methods of problem solving with a graphing calculator to allow for a visual result. Indicates that students should have more than one opportunity to experience a solution to a problem, a variety of contexts for the problem, and an opportunity to communicate. (ASK)

Middle-school students were asked to determine the dimensions of a hotel atrium so that guests could enjoy the maximum area of scenic view, given that 650 feet of brass railing could be used around each floor. Several solution approaches are described. (MKR)

Presents 14 problems organized into three levels of difficulty. Topics include algebra, pattern identification, probability, and geometry. Includes solutions to the problems. (DDR)