This article explores the algebra that can be uncovered in many middle-grades mathematics tasks that, on first inspection, do not appear to be algebraic. It shows connections to the other four Standards that occur in traditional algebra problems, and it offers strategies for modifying activities so that they can be used to foster algebraic…

This paper reports our implementation of a handheld wireless environment to support Jigsaw cooperative learning activities in a college setting. A quasi-experimental research design was conducted to investigate the effects of using handhelds, as well as issues associated with the use of handheld technology. Two intact classes of fourth-year…

Shooting the basketball is the skill that is the most frequently practiced by those who play the game. Just like any other skill, shooting the basketball requires proper mechanics and adequate practice. This article provides physical educators and coaches with information to help students and athletes become more skilled in shooting a basketball.…

This study compares teaching and learning activities in 4th and 5th grade classrooms that were permanently equipped with one laptop for each student and classrooms that share a cart of laptops that create a 1:1 laptop environment on a temporary basis. The study originated from a question posed to us by Andover Public Schools (MA): "How does…

The most recent advances in information technology have brought wireless communication and mobile devices to education. The wireless technology enhanced classroom (WiTEC) integrates a wireless local area network, mobile learning devices, and client-server architecture to support instruction and learning activities. This article introduces a…

The interconnected world of actors and movies is a familiar, rich example for graph theory. This paper gives the history of the "Kevin Bacon Game" and makes extensive use of a Web site to analyze the underlying graph. The main content is the classroom development of the weighted average to determine the best choice of "center" for the graph. The…

Observing young children at play is a very common and useful method for identifying the presence or absence of certain developmentally appropriate skills. Such observations can vary from general overviews of typical classroom activities to extensive and highly detailed data-collection systems. Although educators should use a series of…

That processes of interpretation are unavoidable in any educational experience has not received serious attention in teaching and teacher education. One of the authors devised an exercise for her graduate class to help them understand practical aspects of hermeneutic theory in connection with rationality, truth and the nature of teaching and…

Often, bright young people languish in a setting where repetition and rote learning lull them into passivity. When students are not challenged, they fail to understand that true achievement comes with effort. Because of bureaucratic pressure, limited funding, and large class sizes, teachers often find themselves "teaching to the middle" or…

Databases can be used as cognitive tools to help students integrate and interrelate content areas and thus make learning more meaningful. Sound applications of databases in teaching may actively engage students in analyzing, synthesizing, and evaluating information and constructing knowledge. Through building and exploring databases, students ask…

This article outlines five activities that provide an environment conducive to the wholeness of each child and the health of a group: including, attending, embracing, releasing and remaining. Including is hospitality offered to difference, so that each child shows up; attending is a just distribution of attention, so children learn meaningfully;…

Role-playing is a well regarded learning activity. By participating in this activity, students can apply their knowledge through their assigned roles in a realistic but risk-free situation. The role play stimulates class discussion, dramatizes rhetorical principles about purpose, shows how to adapt a text to an audience of employees in a…

Perimeter and area are important real-world concepts in their own right, and their relationship certainly is no less important. This relationship can be intuitively challenging for both children and adults. In this article, the author explores the relationship between perimeter and area with students from grades 4 to 6. The study of perimeter-area…

This article reports research in three Nottingham schools, concerned with (1) "The school as fertile ground: how the ethos of a school enables everyone in it to benefit from the presence of artists in class;" (2) "Children on the edge: how the arts reach those children who otherwise exclude themselves from class activities, for any…

This article describes a teacher's approach of implementing hands-on musical experiences and expanding her repertoire of interesting activities that engage students and instill in them a love of music while remaining true to the philosophy and practice of Montessori education. The author shares her vision of Montessori music education which is a…