Leveraging Children’s Multicultural Literature to Support Students’ Math Identity and Problem Solving

Authors

  • Suzanne Abdelrahim University of California, Davis
  • Margarita Jiménez-Silva University of California, Davis
  • Rachel Restani
  • Robin Martin University of California, Davis
  • Tony Albano University of California, Davis

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.63966/teem.v16i1.2010

Abstract

This article explores how multicultural children’s literature for elementary classrooms can be leveraged to develop students’ mathematical understanding and foster positive math identities, particularly for multilingual learners. By integrating diverse stories into mathematics instruction, teachers can create culturally relevant contexts that invite meaningful problem-solving in tandem with rich mathematical discourse. This article features a classroom vignette in which a third-grade teacher uses Too Many Tamales to engage students in an equal share task, demonstrating how students' cultural experiences enhance their conceptual mathematical understanding. Several pedagogical strategies are highlighted as effective ways to support mathematical reasoning  and understanding through authentic mathematical discourse.  Drawing from classroom practice and supported by research, the authors advocate for the use of multicultural texts to provide meaningful opportunities for students to connect their lived experiences to mathematical ideas, empowering them to see themselves as capable mathematicians. 

Author Biographies

Suzanne Abdelrahim, University of California, Davis

Suzanne  is a consultant with University of California Davis, School of Education. She has developed and facilitated professional development related to second language learning and has over two decades of experience coaching teachers both nationally and internationally. More recently, Suzanne has been focusing on promoting culturally sustaining, rigorous, problem-based mathematics.

Margarita Jiménez-Silva, University of California, Davis

Margarita is a Professor in the School of Education at the University of California, Davis. Her research focuses on supporting preservice and inservice teachers in serving multilingual students with an emphasis on STEM.

Rachel Restani

Rachel is a Research Fellow at the University of California, Davis. Her research promotes culturally sustaining, rigorous, problem-based mathematics instruction that leverage and elevate students’ strengths, especially those that have been historically marginalized from STEM fields. She has worked with teachers in K-12 classrooms both nationally and internationally.

Robin Martin, University of California, Davis

Robin serves as Director of Educational Research and Evaluation at the University of California, Davis. She provides interdisciplinary support and expertise in research design and quantitative and qualitative methods and statistical techniques, with an interest in applied research that supports researchers and educators with examining problems of practice in context.

Tony Albano, University of California, Davis

Tony  is an Associate Professor in the School of Education at the University of California, Davis. His research is mainly in educational and psychological measurement, focusing on accessible and engaging test design and psychometric methods for evaluating scale equating and item bias. 

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Published

2025-09-16

Issue

Vol. 16 No. 1 (2025): Teaching for Excellence and Equity in Mathematics

Section

Articles

License

Copyright © by the authors. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).