We like to think that we're pretty good at math, especially after years of schooling. But every once in a while, a simple third-grade math problem manages to trip us up and make us question our ...

This holiday-themed brainteaser looks simple, but it's quietly tripping up adults everywhere. A math teacher walks us through ...

Have you ever tried to help a child with their third-grade math homework, only to find yourself stumped? You're not alone. Many adults are surprised to discover that some of the math concepts taught ...

Organizational strategies that help students break complex word problems into manageable chunks may be the key to solving them, according to a 2025 study.

Students often struggle to connect math with the real world. Word problems—a combination of words, numbers, and mathematical operations—can be a perfect vehicle to take abstract numbers off the page.

Researchers tested a research-based intervention with English learners with math difficulty. The intervention proved to boost comprehension and help students synthesize and visualize information, ...

Word problems try and tell students a story about the math problem in front of them. They are a useful way to connect abstract numbers to concrete situations, so students can learn early on to apply ...

Working memory is like a mental chalkboard we use to store temporary information while executing other tasks. Scientists worked with more than 200 elementary students to test their working memory, ...

Segue Institute for Learning teacher Cassandra Santiago introduces a lesson on word problems to her first graders one spring afternoon. Credit: Phillip Keith for The Hechinger Report The Hechinger ...