I just did it in my head: Encouraging children to vocalise their mathematical thinking

“How do you know?” asked Mr Bell.

​“I just did it in my head,” replied Joey.

This is a comment we’ve all come across in our classrooms when asking a pupil to explain how they got to an answer.

Overcoming this barrier is important: as teachers we know how crucial it is to encourage children to vocalise their thinking, helping them to articulate their reasoning and deepening their understanding.

When children explain, they become much more aware of their thinking, and they understand their own reasoning better.