Without a doubt, fractions prove to be a stumbling block for many children. Researchers have suggested a variety of explanations for why this is the case. The introduction of symbolization and operations before the development of conceptual understanding of fractions, a lack of understanding of the role of the numerator and denominator, and an…

This article presents a sequence of learning activities that lead to using the area model of multiplication to understand the distributive property (DP). The connection between area and multiplication is an important one, both for algebraic thinking and for geometry, as indicated in two of the critical areas for the third grade in the Common Core…

The How Far Do You Think You Can Jump? activity (see EJ1174770) was completed in three different contexts: an after-school mathematics enrichment program at Woodland and Country Schools in Weston, Massachusetts; a small-group pull-out of second graders at Wren Elementary in Piedmont, South Carolina; and a family math night in Lafayette, Indiana.…

Presents a series of reflections in which a second-grade teacher recognizes the value of encouraging children to develop various computational processes as well as a range of different solution approaches. Uses the context of mentally calculating costs of menu items. (MKR)

Presents an activity that concerns children's reasoning about counting from the perspectives of informal mathematics, work center mathematics, and cardboard box mathematics. (ASK)

Describes a second-grade classroom project to collect pennies to buy playground equipment. The unit combined practical, hands-on experiences and reflected six standards from the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Curriculum Standards. (MKR)

Provides measurement, estimation, and data analysis activities for grades three to four and five to six using boxes of cereal and containers of frozen yogurt. (MKR)

Suggests using the holes in the tear-strip edges of continuous-feed computer paper to convey the magnitude of one million. (MKR)

Presents two mathematics activities using the theme of school lunch menus and healthful eating habits to reinforce making predictions using computational skills. Includes reproducible student worksheets. (MKR)

Describes data analysis activities for grades three through six using unshelled peanuts. Includes two reproducible student worksheets. (MKR)

Discusses weak links in children's developing power in counting. Presents assessment information for mathematics curriculum planning and activities embedding the subskills of counting into daily routines. (MKR)

Describes how a children's book on counting was used in integrated mathematics-literature lessons in first-grade classrooms and how students created their own texts. (11 references) (MKR)