Why is it so difficult for students to talk and write about math ideas? Even students who can communicate well about other content areas can struggle when talking and writing about math. In order to share their math thinking they must be able to put that thinking into words and the words of math are complex.

We know that students are more apt to acquire new words when they are immersed in language. Are your students immersed in the language of math? Do they hear math all around them? It is unlikely that they will encounter many of the words of math during their time outside of school. And even at school, math words are infrequently used in other subject area classes. That leaves only math time for students to hear the language of math. And math words are very topical, so students might hear polygon words during the study of geometry or graphing words when they are examining data, but then may not hear those words again for quite some time as the class explores other math topics. There are so many words that are important to the study of math, that students are often overwhelmed by the sheer volume of words.

So what do we do to help students internalize math vocabulary? Looking up words in the dictionary and copying definitions is not the answer. Using familiar words, pictures, examples, and synonyms are all ways to help students better understand word meanings. Activities must get students talking about the words and meanings. Students need to speak the language of math to get more comfortable with the words (and the related ideas). And students need repeated exposure to math words since they are unlikely to learn them after hearing them just a few times.

Some of the simplest activities can be the most beneficial for students.   Creating word webs for math terms (e.g., polygon) and talking about how each word on the web connects to the central math idea is a great way to initiate informal discussions using key math vocabulary. Having students write riddles to show their understanding of math words pushes them to find clues to express the word meanings. Creating classroom word walls to display important words and including visual clues to remind students of the meanings of the words provides an ongoing reference for students.  Challenging students to sort lists of words based on their math meanings and to justify their groupings requires students to talk about similarities and differences between math terms and develop a deeper understanding of the words. Having students create their own vocabulary logs in which they record new words along with pictures, examples, and their own explanations of the word meanings helps students process their ideas. Do you have other ideas that have worked with your students?

Being able to express math ideas is not easy for students. The ability to find the words to express their ideas is a foundation for effective math communication.