In order to describe, draw, and write about your ideas, you need to be aware of what you are doing and why you are doing it. As you manipulated visual representations of shapes to find the area of familiar or unfamiliar shapes, you needed to have a plan for how you would complete the task and then communicated that plan to yourself. In a classroom setting, you would communicate with others and share their ideas for finding the area.

In these activities, by thinking about and describing your own procedures, you are using communication to develop an understanding of area and how to find the area of any shape. You may also have begun to understand the origins of the formulas for area that you learned many years ago. Through the use of representations, you can communicate your thinking to yourself and others, which results in a better understanding of mathematical concepts.

By improving your ability to read about, write about, and discuss mathematics, you improve your overall effectiveness in the classroom. Fostering communication in the classroom helps students solidify their understanding of mathematics.

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