Teaching Mathematics : A Sourcebook of Aids, Activities, and Strategies

The art of teaching math lies in the ability of the instructor to motivate and inspire individuals to look beyond the numbers and understand the concepts. This book is designed to revive this art, focusing more on the aspects of learning the ideas behind the math rather than the sheer mechanics of mathematical operation. This text addresses the art of teaching mathematics while also providing specific aids and activities in arithmetic, geometry, algebra and probability and statistics for use in the classroom. The authors pay close attention to the role, importance, methods and techniques of motivation. They present ideas that will generate attention, interest, and surprise among students, and will thus foster creative thinking. The material in the text is based on talks given by the authors at professional meetings, as well as the actual application of their ideas in undergraduate and graduate classes they taught. Additionally, many laboratory and discovery activities have been used by authors in teaching junior and senior high school math classes. Instructors of mathematics, school administrators, math specialists, and parents.