Math Education Articles for Teachers - Page 3

There have been many opportunities in our relatively short history to chant “U.S.A. #1!” In Olympics and other world sporting events, space travel, and even internet technology, America has, at times, led the world. However, this is not the case with mathematics, a field where we have never claim...

There are quite a few creative ways you can have your students learn about environmental issues. You can discuss topics involving energy resources, alternative power sources, or trash-related issues. For example, when having your students delve into trash and recycling topics, you could have them...

When I learned about mathematical functions in high school, I was required to work toward proficiency by struggling through problem after grueling problem. Usually, we used the same method over and over again. It was essentially a drill-and-kill experience. As an educator, I've come to believe th...

If there's one thing I think teachers are tired of hearing students complain about, it is having to do a book report. Students say that book reports are boring and uninteresting, but this isn't how it has to be. Teachers can figure out ways to grab students' attention and make them love learning...

One day an elevator broke down in New York City, and while the grownups panicked about what to do, a ten-year-old girl slowed down her breathing using yoga techniques she had learned from her fourth grade teacher to help her remain calm until help arrived. This lesson, which was learned in the cl...

Every year teachers take out plastic clocks or other manipulatives to introduce students to the concept of time. While students may enjoy turning the plastic hands and quizzing each other to identify the correct time, this may not help them understand the reason for learning this concept. In orde...

In his 1997 article the “History of Mathematics Can Help Improve Instruction and Learning” Shmuel Avital states that math teachers should “examine history to understand learning difficulties.” Although Avital’s article was published fourteen years ago, his rationale and arguments are valid today ...

When you hear the word “math,” what comes to mind? Do you think “drill and kill”? Boring? Nerdy? Memorization? Plug and chug formulas? Calculators? Computers? Answers that are either right or wrong? You, as a teacher, may not think this way, but many of our students do. Our task, as educators, is...

Spring has sprung, and one of the greatest joys of pleasant weather is to putter around in a garden. But do you know how gardening relates to math? Flower petals, seed heads, soil, borders, and fences--along with other aspects of gardening--are all mathematical. So why not start a garden with you...

As a high school math teacher, I am not surprised when students struggle with factoring. It is one of the “dirty words” in algebra classes around the nation. Many students have been trying to factor for at least four years with little success. No wonder they are not thrilled about takin...

Probes and sensors connected to graphing calculators allow students to learn mathematical modeling because these devices gather data for a real-world experiment. A teacher may encourage students to think and talk about connections between a cooling experiment and a ball-dropping experiment, for i...

Last semester I took a graduate course class devoted solely to the use of problem solving strategies in the classroom. We focused on the following problem solving strategies outlined by Drexel University’s Math Forum: Guess and Check, Tables and Patterns, Simpler Problem, Change the Represen...

Over the past two-and-a-half years, I have enjoyed developing Project Based Learning (PBL) curriculum in mathematics on two fronts. One avenue has been for a national charter school system (the Henry Ford Learning Institute-HFLI) preparing middle school and high school math projects. Concurrently...

February is Black History Month. So why not highlight lessons that connect mathematics to Africans and African Americans?  Looking to African culture generally, students could investigate the cultural and mathematical significance of geometric patterns from various African tribes.  For...

In January we welcome the mythical Baby New Year, and give our regards to Father Time. We post our new calendars and make our resolutions. This month, we can also motivate students with lessons that relate to calendars and keeping the most popular resolution: getting healthy. An interdisciplinary...