Follows students' natural progression from measuring with informal or non-standard units to using standard units to measure such attributes as length, weight, angle and temperature. Activities extend students' learning to the measurement of two-and three-dimensional objects. Students work in a variety of lively real-world contexts, gathering measurement benchmarks in a classroom scavenger hunt and investigating the area of a rectangle while acting as owners of a sticker factory, for example.

Children in prekindergarten focus on counting and gradually master the essential one-to-one matching of an object to a number. By the end of second grade, they can represent one, two and three digit numbers, understand simple fractions and apply a variety of facts and strategies to add and subtract skilfully. This book supports this progression by inviting students to count and order ducklings in a line, compute the total cost of several items on a menu and play a variety of games that reinforce their understanding of number, addition and subtraction.

Do your students suppose that 1/3 is greater than 1/2, since 3 is greater than 2? Do they believe that having “halves” means having two, and only two, congruent “pieces” of a whole? What tasks can you offer—what questions can you ask—to determine what your students know or don’t know—and move them forward in their thinking? This book focuses on the specialised pedagogical content knowledge that you need to teach fractions effectively in grades 3–5. The authors demonstrate how to use this multifaceted knowledge to address the big ideas and essential understandings that students must develop for success with fractions—not only in their current work, but also in higher-level mathematics and a myriad of real-world contexts. Explore rich, research-based strategies and tasks that show how students are reasoning about and making sense of fractions. Use the opportunities that these and similar tasks provide to build on their understanding while identifying and correcting misunderstandings that may be keeping them from taking the next steps in learning.

In grades 3-5, students extend their understanding of place value, larger whole numbers, fractions and decimals. They develop an understanding of multiplication and division, mastering and applying basic facts. Concrete materials can help students represent and reinforce these important concepts. Activities in this book invite students to use fraction circles to compare fractions and dot arrays to explore multiplication and the distributive property.

How can you introduce terms from geometry and measurement so that your students’ vocabulary will enhance their understanding of concepts and definitions? What can you say to clarify the thinking of a student who claims that perimeter is always an even number? How does knowing what changes or stays the same when shapes are transformed help you support and extend your students’ understanding of shapes and the space that they occupy? How much do you know … and how much do you need to know? Helping your students develop a robust understanding of geometry and measurement requires that you understand fundamental statistical concepts deeply. But what does that mean? This book focuses on essential knowledge for mathematics teachers about geometry and measurement. It is organized around three big ideas, supported by multiple smaller, interconnected ideas—essential understandings. Taking you beyond a simple introduction to geometry and measurement, the book will broaden and deepen your understanding of one of the most challenging topics for students—and teachers. It will help you engage your students, anticipate their perplexities, avoid pitfalls, and dispel misconceptions. You will also learn to develop appropriate tasks, techniques, and tools for assessing students’ understanding of the topic. Focus on the ideas that you need to understand thoroughly to teach confidently.

This is part of a series that shows teachers how to incorporate NCTM's Curriculum Focal Points for PreK-8 into their current mathematics curricula. The book provides practical ideas, sample student work and a sample state math curricula organised around the focal points. By focusing more intensely on fewer topics at each grade level, students gain a deeper understanding of mathematical ideas.