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Tending the Greenhouse Vertical and Horizontal Connections within the Mathematics Curriculum Maintaining a Climate for Mathematical Maturity Plant Fertilize Prune Re-pot Mathematics for Teaching Teachers need several different kinds of mathematical knowledge – knowledge about the whole domain; deep flexible knowledge about curriculum goals and about the important ideas that are central to their grade level; knowledge about how the ideas can be represented to teach them effectively; and knowledge about how students’ understanding can be assessed … This kind of knowledge is beyond what most teachers experience in standard preservice mathematics courses in the United States. Principles and Standards for School Mathematics National Council of Teachers of Mathematics The Vertical Disconnect Most teachers see very little connection between the mathematics they study as undergraduates and the mathematics they teach. This is especially true in algebra, where abstract algebra is seen as a completely different subject from school algebra. As a result, high school algebra has evolved into a subject that is almost indistinguishable from the precalculus study of functions. The Horizontal Disconnect In preservice preparation, teachers are often focused on the particular topic or subject matter at hand. Because individual topics are often not recognized as fitting into a larger landscape, the emphasis on a topic may end up being on some low-level application instead of on the mathematically important connections it makes. A Burning Question: How do we foster “connectedness” and mathematical maturity between grade levels/courses and within grade levels/courses? Some of the “Big Ideas” in Mathematics Composition and Decomposition (“Doing” and “Undoing”) Shape and Structure Generalization Process and Content Essential vs. Nonessential Features Geometric Thinking: Using the van Hiele Model Level 1: Visualization (recognition) At this level, the student vi