At the commencement of 2022 there was an opportunity to be engaged in a curriculum development project focused on reimagining mathematics learning in primary schools. Schools were seeking new experiences to support engaging students and teachers in mathematics learning. Laburnum Primary School participated in the project with Monash University,…

Time estimations, patterns and measurement sense are important skills to develop within the mathematics classroom (Mildenhall, 2016; Thomas et al., 2017). To develop a true understanding of time, students need to holistically understand: the language of time, the notion of duration and succession, how time is measured, and the concept of time…

The authors share the results of a research project involving the use of mathematics to develop students' Numeracy General Capabilities. The current article delves into an example of a teacher supporting 'good habits of mind' through focussing on the Critical Learning Disposition of accuracy.

Creative thinking in mathematics is an essential 21st Century skill that can be developed and encouraged through an exploration of mathematical concepts. In the context of the new "Australian Curriculum: Mathematics," this article explores the possibilities that are unlocked when students engage with tasks creatively in mathematics. By…

In this article the authors overview how the recently revised (version 9) Australian Curriculum (Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority, 2022) and student difficulties with fractions relate to five developmental Fraction Schemes developed from multiple research projects in the literature. The article shares research findings from…

Differentiating instruction can be difficult, however, when higher performing students yearn to be stretched and lower performing students benefit from scaffolded support. One way to meet these students' learning needs and everyone in-between is to embrace the notion of novel exploration in support of critical school mathematics concepts. Novelty…

Self-explanation prompts are questions that encourage students to explain their reasoning. In this article Kelly, Laura and Julie explain the benefits of using self-explanation prompts for teachers, describe how they align with the Australian Curriculum, and provide instructions for creating them.

Productive struggle leads to productive classrooms where students work on complex problems, are encouraged to take risks, can struggle and fail yet still feel good about working on hard problems (Boaler, 2016). Teachers can foster a classroom culture that values and promotes productive struggle by providing students with challenging tasks. These…

Evidence suggests that some students have learned procedures with little or no underpinning understanding while others have a much more connected and conceptual levels of understanding. In this article, the work of four primary students is discussed in terms of their contextual understanding of multiplicative concepts. The difference between…

Using a game-based context and concentrating explicitly on language, students in the early years are able to make sense about place value amid the vagaries of the English language in naming numbers. This conceptual approach to understanding place value allows students to further develop number strategies beyond counting by ones.

Providing students with an opportunity to explore mathematical content through games allows teachers to include tasks that: (1) present alternative representations of the content; (2) welcome various expressions of mathematical reasoning; and (3) incorporate variations that empower all students to engage in the problem solving process. Games not…

Problems sourced from national and international competitions such as the Australian Mathematics Competition are often used effectively as enrichment and/or extension activities for high achieving students. While this has meant that they are sometimes deemed too esoteric or trivial for use in the regular classroom, this paper takes the view that…

The use of enabling and extending prompts allows tasks to be both accessible and challenging within a classroom. This article provides an example of how to use enabling and extending prompts effectively when employing a challenging task in Year 2.

Lorraine Day and Derek Hurrell provide a convincing argument for using arrays to promote students' understandings of mental computation strategies for multiplication. They also provide a range of different examples that illustrate the benefits of arrays in the primary classroom.

An engaging activity which prompts students to listen, talk, reason and write about geometrical properties. The "Bag of Tricks" encourages students to clarify their thoughts and communicate precisely using accurate mathematical language.