Finding One: Units in the Elementary Mathematics Curriculum

A unit is what we call “one.” This lecture examines where “one” appears - and often hides - in the elementary mathematics curriculum. It traces how units structure the big ideas in elementary mathematics, including numeration and place value, multidigit arithmetic, multiplication and division, and fractions. The talk highlights how seemingly disparate domains in school mathematics are tied together by unit concepts and how understanding in mathematics is dependent on flexible and relational reasoning about units and “oneness.”