The authors tell how they devised strategies and activities to nurture the same kind of initiative, voice, and ownership in mathematics that children display in writing their own stories and choosing their own books to read.

Robin W. Cox is a Regional Literacy Coach with the South Carolina Reading Initiative. She has taught fifth and first grade, as well as mathematics education courses at the University of South Carolina. She is currently pursuing her doctorate in elementary education with a focus on inquiry.

David J. Whitin is a Professor of Elementary Education at Wayne State University, where he teaches courses in mathematics education and elementary school curriculum. David has been an elementary school principal and teacher. David has a Baccalaureate degree from Princeton University, a master's degree from Boston University, an M.A.T. from the University of New Hampshire, and a doctorate in elementary education from Indiana University. David's presentations are lively and interactive. He involves teachers themselves in a variety of experiences so that they have the opportunity to reflect on their own learning. He shares numerous samples of children's work to demonstrate how teachers have enacted these beliefs about learning in creative ways. He has frequently spoken for such groups as NCTE, NCTM, IRA and many groups nationally and internationally.