What is the relationship between fractions and rational numbers? Can you explain why the product of two fractions between 0 and 1 is less than either factor? How are rational numbers related to irrational numbers, which your students will study in later grades? How much do you know… and how much do you need to know? Helping your upper elementary school students develop a robust understanding of rational numbers requires that you understand this mathematics deeply. But what does that mean? This book focuses on essential knowledge for teachers about rational numbers. It is organised around four big ideas, supported by multiple smaller, interconnected ideas-essential understandings. Taking you beyond a simple introduction to rational numbers, the book will broaden and deepen your mathematical 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.

"A series for teaching mathematics."--P. [1] of cover.

Like algebra at any level, early algebra is a way to explore, analyse, represent and generalise mathematical ideas and relationships. This book shows that children can and do engage in generalising about numbers and operations as their mathematical experiences expand. The authors identify and examine five big ideas and associated essential understandings for developing algebraic thinking in grades 3-5. The big ideas relate to the fundamental properties of number and operations, the use of the equals sign to represent equivalence, variables as efficient tools for representing mathematical ideas, quantitative reasoning as a way to understand mathematical relationships and functional thinking to generalise relationships between covarying quantities. The book examines challenges in teaching, learning and assessment and is interspersed with questions for teachers’ reflection.

What is the relationship between addition and subtraction? How do you know whether an algorithm will always work? Can you explain why order matters in subraction but not in addition or why it is false to assert that the sum of any two whole numbers is greater than either number? It is organised around two big ideas and supported by smaller, more specific, interconnected ideas (essential understandings). Gaining an understanding about addition and subtraction is essential as they are the foundation for students’ later learning of multiplication and division. Essential Understanding Series topics include: Number and Numeration for Grades Pre-K-2 Addition and Subtraction for Grades Pre-K-2 Geometry for Grades Pre-K-2 Reasoning and Proof for Grades Pre-K-8 Multiplication and Division for Grades 3-5 Rational Numbers for Grades 3-5 Algebraic Ideas and Readiness for Grades 3-5 Geometric Shapes and Solids for Grades 3-5 Ratio, Proportion and Proportionality for Grades 6-8 Expressions and Equations for Grades 6-8 Measurement for Grades 6-8 Data Analysis and Statistics for Grades 6-8 Function for Grades 9-12 Geometric Relationships for Grades 9-12 Reasoning and Proof for Grades 9-12 Statistics for Grades 9-12

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.

A Focus on Fractions is a groundbreaking effort to make the mathematics education research on how students develop their understanding of fraction concepts readily accessible and understandable to pre- and in-service K– 8 mathematics educators. Using extensive annotated samples of student work, as well as vignettes characteristic of classroom teachers’ experiences, this book equips educators with the knowledge and tools to reveal students’ thinking so that they can modify their teaching and improve student learning of fraction concepts. A Focus on Fractions 2nd edition includes sections on the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics and the Ongoing Assessment Project (OGAP) Fraction Framework integrated into each chapter as well as a new chapter on the OGAP Fraction Progression and how it can be used for formative assessment purposes. This updated edition assists teachers in translating research findings into their classroom practice by conveying detailed information about how students develop fraction understandings. Additional images and examples serve to flesh out and supplement the newly-introduced concepts in this updated and expanded edition. Special Features: Looking Back Questions at the end of each chapter provide teachers the opportunity to analyze student thinking and consider instructional strategies for their own students. Instructional Links help teachers relate concepts from the chapter to their own instructional materials and programs. Big Ideas frame the chapters and provide a platform for meaningful exploration of the teaching of fractions. Answer Key posted online offers extensive explanations of in-chapter questions. New sections devoted to the CCSSM and OGAP Fraction Progression are woven throughout the book as well as a new stand alone chapter on the OGAP Fraction Progression. The OGAP Fraction Framework is an all-new eResource, now available as a free download from the book’s website: www.routledge.com/9781138816442.

Unpacking"" the ideas related to multiplication and division is a critical step in developing a deeper understanding. To those without specialised training, many of these ideas might appear to be easy to teach. But those who teach in grades 3-5 are aware of their subtleties and complexities. This book identifies and examines two big ideas and related essential understandings for teaching multiplication and division in grades 3–5. Big Idea 1 captures the notion that multiplication is usefully defined as a scalar operation. Problem situations modelled by multiplication have an element that represents the scalar and an element that represents the quantity to which the scalar applies. Big Idea 2 relates to the algorithms that problem solvers have invented - some of which have become “standard” - for multiplying and dividing. The authors examine the ways in which counting, adding and subtracting lead to multiplication and division, as well as the role that these operations play in algebraic expressions and other advanced topics. The book examines challenges in teaching, learning and assessment and is interspersed with questions for teachers’ reflection.