How might fourth graders address the problem of measuring the size of a leaf? And why might their classroom teachers choose such a shape to measure? One group of fourth-grade students in an urban Australian school were interested in knowing the sizes of leaves on a passionfruit vine growing at their school. The children were excited after a visit…

This paper examines 6th grade children's local conceptual development and mathematization processes as they worked a comprehensive mathematical modeling problem (creating a consumer guide for deciding the best snack chip) over several class periods. The children and their teachers were participating in a 3-year longitudinal teaching experiment in…

Mathematical modeling is explored as both problem posing and problem solving from two perspectives, that of the child and the teacher. Mathematical modeling provides rich learning experiences for elementary school children and their teachers.

Children live in a highly sophisticated world composed of interlocking complex systems. An appreciation and understanding of such systems is critical for making effective decisions about everyone's lives as individuals and as community members. This article addresses one approach to introducing children of all achievement levels to introductory…

This paper addresses the first year of a three-year, longitudinal study which introduces mathematical modeling to young children and provides professional development for their teachers. Four classes of third-graders (8 years of age) and their teachers participated in the first year of the program, which involved several preliminary modeling…

The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) continues to emphasize the importance of early statistical learning; data analysis and probability was the Council's professional development "Focus of the Year" for 2007-2008. Such a focus is needed, especially given the results of the statistics items from the 2003 NAEP. As…

This paper argues for a renewed focus on statistical reasoning in the elementary school years, with opportunities for children to engage in data modeling. Data modeling involves investigations of meaningful phenomena, deciding what is worthy of attention, and then progressing to organizing, structuring, visualizing, and representing data. Reported…

We report on how two middle-grade teachers supported their students' mathematical reasoning within the context of a novel modeling task in data analysis. We examine how the task features supported the development of teachers' knowledge as their students engaged with the task. Analyses of the teachers' practices suggest that the task features…

This paper addresses the developments of a class of fifth-grade children as they worked modeling problems during the first year of a 3-year longitudinal study. In contrast to usual classroom problems where students find a brief answer to a particular question, modeling activities involve students in authentic case studies that require them to…

Discusses the nature of tasks used to elicit the development of such systems by middle school students. Analyzes mathematical reasoning development of students across tasks and the diversity of thinking patterns identified on problem tasks. Discusses student reasoning about the relationships between and among quantities and their application in…