‘Numberless math’ gets kids thinking about and visualizing algebra

Posted Date: 08/14/2023

Today, elementary mathematics classrooms look and sound very different than what many parents may have experienced.

Many mathematics education researchers note that getting learners talking about mathematics and developing their own explanations is important.

To build students’ comfort and capabilities talking about math, sharing tasks that involve only pictures — what we call numberless or textless tasks — can elicit fascinating mathematical ideas. This puts learners in the driver’s seat, noticing, wondering and actually doing mathematics for themselves.

Parents, caregivers and teachers can use these strategies to get learners talking, explaining and visualizing important mathematical concepts while having quite a bit of fun!