Children are Born Mathematicians: Supporting Mathematical Development, Birth to Age 8

This brand new book for Early Childhood Mathematics Methods classes takes a comprehensive and chronological view of mathematics development in children, beginning at birth and going through the third grade. It offers specific teaching suggestions for each grade level based on the newly released NCTM (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics) standards. The new NCTM focal points for each grade are designed to help make mathematics teaching coherent and focused. Knowing what the two or three most important concepts are in each grade help teachers focus their teaching and their mathematics program. Using these standards can help teachers to use many different methods to reach their objectives rather than being tied to one specific method.

This book takes a constructivist approach, meaning that children should be active learners and interact with other children in learning and constructing their knowledge. The author stresses that this process is at least as important as correct answers, as is comprehension of concepts. Teachers should focus on questioning and promoting mathematical thinking rather than simply getting the correct answer. Finally, the author encourages teachers to see math as a developmental process that children engage in as they grown and develop. The teacher’s role is to promote concept understanding and development through active experiences and questioning techniques in combination with teaching skills in developmentally appropriate ways.