Developing Computational Fluency with Whole Numbers

GCS teachers met today to discuss "Developing Computational Fluency with Whole Numbers", an article written by Susan Jo Russell, one of the authors of Investigations. The purpose of this article is to discuss WHAT computation fluency is.

Fluency,as used in Principles and Standards (NCTM, 2000) includes 3 ideas: efficiency, accuracy and flexibility.

• Efficiency - the student does not get too bogged down in many steps or lose track of the strategy. An efficient strategy is one that the student can do easily, keep track of the steps, and come to a solution.
  
• Accuracy - part of the problem solving process, including careful recording, the knowledge of basic number combinations, and other important number relationships. Student also double-checks work to make sure that the answer is correct.
• Flexibility - the knowledge of more than one way to solve a math problem. Students must be flexible in order to choose an appropriate strategy for the problem at hand. Students can also use another strategy to double check their work.