Math Matters: Understanding the Math You Teach, Grades K-8 (Second Edition)

Two reviews called this book "dry" or "sterile," but I don't agree. It is concise and clear, without bells or whistles in the prose, but I found it elegant and even fun. It talks both about the math itself and about which points children often struggle with, and includes many thoughtful activities. I can tell it has been refined over long experience.

This is not just a text book approach to math for students. It offers teachers many options, ideas, and approaches to the math for students. It also provides reminders of the thought process and the math involved in given situations. I appreciated the "review" for me and therefore, for my students. Things I would have taken for granted, I now realize must be reviewed for the students. Thank you.

The ideas in the book are great, but clear that the book was written by professors because it is a bit dry to read. The best part of the book is the activities and ideas which teachers can use to teach various ideas in the classroom.

"Suzanne H. Chapin is an Associate Professor in the School of Education at Boston University in Massachusetts. Her work includes research in the areas of gifted education, curriculum design, and teacher professional development in mathematics. She is a coauthor of Classroom Discussions: Using Math Talk to Help Students Learn, Grades 1-6 (Math Solutions Publications, 2003)." "Art Johnson is an award-winning educator who has taught for more than thirty years. During that time he has taught at the middle school, high school, undergraduate, and graduate levels. He has been named Teacher of the Year for New Hampshire and has received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics Teaching." "..... No matter what instructional program is being used, MATH MATTERS IS AN ESSENTIAL AND ACCESSIBLE book that serves all who teach or are about to teach K-8 mathematics---experienced instructors as well as those just starting out." [from the book of the back cover]

Conceptual, rather than procedural teaching of math--that is what this book tries to encourage. Although elementary math teachers can often (but not always) find the right answers for math problems, they overwhelmingly are ignorant as to WHY they follow steps spelled out in the procedure they learned so long ago. A teacher who does not know why cannot teach why. This makes for students floating in a permanent math fog. This book tries to fill the gap by laying out math basics--the mathematical principles behind the steps. I am a bit disappointed that no mention is made of the identity properties, but all in all, this book does a good, if sterile job. If you want to get EXCITED about understanding elementary math, you need to read Liping Ma's Knowing and Teaching Elementary Math.