Algebra is a key area of mathematics that often bewilders those who study it and this then follows them into adult life. There are numerous occasions when adults, even the famous like the comedian Billy Connolly, decry the value of algebra. It seems to be a bewildering array of symbols that has no real connection with everyday life. Yet the reality is quite the opposite. Algebra is a wonderful tool for understanding the real world and yet one that is inaccessible for so many people. Why is that?
Very often the cause is poor teaching. Children are thrown into a world of meaningless symbols and that means they have missed an important part of their mathematical journey. That is why this book is an important contribution. It gives children the learning experiences where they start to generalise and that is the start of algebra. This si the reason why so many fail at more formal algebra. By placing the child in a safe familiar world, they are exposed to a new type of thinking about numbers that moves them forward into the ability to generalise. Many adults say they have never used algebra but in reality they have. Imagine putting up shelves in your home. Each shelf needs four screws. So this means you the number of screws is 4 x the number of shelves. This ability to generalise is called algebraic thinking. Generalising is a life skill, all adults need to be able to generalise. That is why this book is an important contribution to the education of children.