How the Brain Learns Mathematics

About this book

To reach all your math students use your brainand theirs too! The bestselling and award-winning first edition of How the Brain Learns Mathematics quickly revolutionized math teaching and learning. The second edition takes readers to the next level with new brain-friendly strategies backed by the latest research from education and neuroscience and even more ways to seamlessly incorporate what you learn about your students developing minds into your math classroom. In this essential resource youll discover the cognitive mechanisms involved in processing mathematical operations while exploring the environmental and developmental factors that create learning difficulties. How the Brain Learns Mathematics also presents a unique and simplified four-step teaching model that relates students classroom experience to concrete real-world applications. Features of the new edition include More strategies for motivating adolescents Integration of the arts into mathematics instruction New information on how technology affects attention and memory Expanded sections on number sense and ELL instruction More than 160 new references and a greatly expanded index for readers convenience No matter what grade you teach your students are growing and changing. Understanding how their brains work is the key to reaching every one of themand making math a positive part of their lives for years to come. "David Sousas book is a wonderfully readable presentation of how neuroscience and cognitive psychology can inform the teaching of mathematics in elementary and secondary schools. Sousa engages his readers intellectually with recent research on the brain and mathematics learning and avoids pat answers where the evidence is suggestive rather than conclusive. The book is a valuable text for teachers who want a deeper insight into thinking processes behind the learning and teaching of math." Robert E. Slavin Director Center for Research and Reform in Education Johns Hopkins University "Teaching mathematics without having read this book is like trying to master tennis without a coach. Sousas book is a tour de force: It builds a solid bridge from cognitive neuroscience to daily classroom practice. Every teacher of mathematics will benefit from this well-researched well-organized thoughtful and practical approach to making math instruction align with how brains learn." Spencer Kagan Publisher/Professional Developer Kagan Publishing and Professional Development