Introduction
In preparation for my work developing this curriculum unit, I spent three days learning about Singapore Math at Worcester State University in Worcester, Massachusetts. My interest and belief in the way math instruction is delivered in Singapore stems from the fact that Singapore is number one in the world in mathematics. A novel idea I discovered at the conference is that there is nothing Singaporean about Singapore math. The instruction is simply based on philosophies and best practices from educators such as Jerome Bruner and Zoltan Dienes. Singapore math uses the CPA Approach, which stands for conceptual, pictorial, and algorithm. The idea is to develop a visual concept of the skill, carefully match the skill to pictorial representation, and finally move to the algorithm. The ideas and strategies taught through Singapore math are designed to develop students' ability to visualize and generalize. Currently, students tend to learn algorithms that are based on memorization. By engaging my students in a series of hands-on and visual lessons, the students should learn fractions in a meaningful way that will make calculating and problem solving with fractions more meaningful and lasting.
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