Presents a study in which 13 fifth-grade students were given an assignment to invent their own numeration systems following a unit on bases and a look at early events in the history of numbers. Offers an assessment of student understanding of numeration provided by analyses of the patterns embedded in their invented systems. Contains 13…

Demonstrates the use of the memory functions on hand-held calculators by presenting three activities that are appropriate for use in middle grades (4-8). The constant arithmetic feature of the calculator is also required. (JN)

Evaluated an experimental program in which students were taught to design models as a tool in the learning of percentages and compared results with outcomes from a control group in which teachers directly provided models. Results for 121 fifth graders in The Netherlands show significantly better performance in experimental condition than in the…

Interviews with fourth, fifth, and sixth graders found that they thought about the concept of average as mode, median, and/or a procedure. Presents approaches to develop the concept of average. (MKR)

Describes a learning strategy which asks students to write questions that can be answered from the information posted on a graph that they created. (MG)

Describes an activity used with a fifth-grade mathematics class in which students solved a problem and wrote a convincing argument to prove their solution made sense. (SR)

Describes a fifth-grade student solving the "Food for Thought" problem featured in the February 1998 issue. (ASK)

Discusses ways to help students improve their problem-solving skills. Presents some mathematics problems to be used in classrooms. (ASK)

Develops and tests a learning environment for teaching and learning how to model and solve mathematical application problems using four classes of fifth graders. Indicates that the intervention had a positive effect on different aspects of pupils' mathematical modeling and problem solving abilities. (Contains 62 references.) (Author/ASK)

This report describes a three-year project aimed at improving mathematics education in grades 6-9 in Birmingham, Alabama. The purpose of the project was to enhance mathematical knowledge and improve the instructional skills of middle school mathematics teachers (n=58) through an innovative teacher enhancement program. Since the middle school years…

A study was conducted to determine whether vocabulary instruction in the "little" words would enhance children's performance on mathematical word problems. Thirty-eight fourth, fifth, and sixth grade students were pretested in mathematics computation and were assigned to experimental or control groups. The control groups received drill…

Four students participated in a two year study (fifth- and sixth-grade) focused on the development of their understanding of multiplication of fractions. During the first year, all students received individualized instruction designed to encourage them to build on their informal knowledge of partitioning to solve problems involving multiplication…

The effects of a task-focused goals (TFG) treatment in mathematics were studied with low-achieving students with or without learning disabilities. Results with 40 elementary classrooms showed that TFG students enjoyed the approach, but that increased effort was associated with greater learning only for those without learning disabilities. (SLD)

Describes an activity designed to help students understand the concept of a variable and the process of gathering like terms or simplifying algebraic expressions using egg cartons and plastic eggs. (MKR)

Outlines four solution methods for the Mangoes Problem, discusses how middle school students have approached the problem, suggests generalizations of the problem, and gives an example of a related problem that can be used as an extension to explore the four strategies discussed. (MKR)