Teaching Math Through Problem Solving

The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM, 1980) recommended that problem solving be the focus of mathematics teaching because, they say, it encompasses skills and functions which are an important part of everyday life. Furthermore it can help people to adapt to changes and unexpected problems in their careers and other aspects of their lives. I recently visited one class in which students were learning math through problem solving. Here are some artifacts of the learning that happened.