This book is for students working at Level 2 and covers Number and Algebra, Geometry and Measurement, and Statistics. Level 2a and 2b help students to move from counting to solve problems to beginning to use their basic facts and place value knowledge. There are new chapters covering geometry and measurement topics. Mathematics is all about solving problems and not about doing pages of sums so these books provides plenty of opportunity for students to put their mathematical knowledge to work in real contexts across all the strands.
Two major features of these books are the mini projects and the challenges.
Mini projects
These are open-ended mathematical applications. Teachers need to be able to stand back and behave as facilitators rather than controllers. Children need to be allowed to make mistakes; trial and error is a recognised problem-solving strategy. Likewise the ability to communicate in mathematics is important and the mini projects allow for a variety of ways of communicating. They allow the children to apply their mathematical vocabulary, signs and symbols.
Challenges
These are an added motivation for generally, but by no means exclusively, the more able students.
