Session 412

Manipulatives in High School Mathematics:
Examples from a Videocourse

Session Description:

In the elementary grades, teachers use manipulative devices such as pattern blocks and number cubes to provide learners with a concrete experience on which to base an understanding of abstract concepts. Can and should this practice be used with older students?

A videocourse for grades 7-12 teachers was developed through Eisenhower Act funds to address the use of manipulatives within six curriculum strands: number and numeration systems, patterns, algebraic concepts and operations, geometry and spatial sense, probability and statistics, and measurement. Activities from the videocourse will be highlighted emphasizing the theme that manipulatives are not toys but tools for developing higher levels of mathematical thought.