Teaching Essential Mathematics, Grades K-8
Increasing Engagement and Building Understanding of Key Concepts
- Timothy J. McNamara - Educational Consultant, Texas
"The activities can be used to help students understand the reason for the algorithms. Students should not just learn 'how,' but also 'why.'"
—Carrie Chiappetta, Math Teacher
Magnet Middle School, Stamford, CT
"This is a much needed resource book for both inservice and preservice teachers."
—Helen Melvin, Second-Grade Teacher
Dr. Levesque School Elementary School, Fort Kent, ME
Creative, ready-to-use classroom activities for teaching essential math concepts!
Not all educators feel comfortable teaching math, yet it is critical for all students to gain a solid foundation of mathematical understanding in grades K–8. Written by a national consultant in mathematics instruction and assessment, this resource helps educators gain the confidence they need to teach math in creative and engaging ways.
Teaching Essential Mathematics, Grades K–8 provides teachers with an overview of the key mathematics concepts students need to acquire and includes hands-on activities and clear examples to help students learn these concepts in depth. The classroom-ready activities and calculator exercises are organized according to the NCTM content standards, and each activity is directly aligned with specific benchmarks. The material also features:
- Suggestions for incorporating cooperative learning into mathematics instruction
- A comprehensive glossary of mathematical terms to broaden educators' subject knowledge
- Reproducible blackline masters that can be used with students immediately
Both new and veteran teachers can leverage this book's many rich examples and student-centered learning tasks to re-energize their instruction and renew students' enthusiasm.
"Putting together a book for teachers that contains 'tried and tested' lessons created by award-winning educators is very important and useful. The activities can be used to help students understand the reason for the algorithms. Students should not just learn 'how,' but also 'why.'"
"This is a much needed resource book for both inservice and preservice teachers."
"The activities presented provide a foundation that allows an elementary school teacher to make sense out of the mathematics being taught. The book will appeal to teachers because the lessons begin at a very basic level but methodically progress to a higher level of mathematical thinking."
"The author has successfully created a resource book for teachers that accomplishes the goal of 'more discovery and more connections between topics' for mathematics classrooms, which will result in more student engagement. This book will be a valuable resource to new teachers looking for appropriate lessons tied to curriculum standards, veteran teachers looking for new ideas for content-specific activities, and college instructors of preservice and inservice teachers."