Launching a Discourse-rich Mathematics Lesson

Facilitating meaningful mathematical discourse is dependent on the launch of the lesson where teachers prepare their students to work on the task. This article discusses the use of the Think Aloud strategy at the beginning of a lesson to model to students both the type of thinking that develops conceptual understanding, as well as how to share one’s thinking.  The Think Aloud strategy is one of a number of discourse strategies introduced in Project AIM (All Included in Mathematics), a 40 hour professional development program focused on promoting meaningful mathematical discourse in elementary classrooms. The article provides examples of teachers’ experiences using the Think Aloud in their classrooms to support discourse, and highlights some of the successes and challenges that come with implementation.