I am glad that I get to talk about this as a math student and teacher because there are many that think vocabulary in mathematics is not important. As I think about the many math teachers that I have had I don't recall anyone spending a lot of time on the vocabulary. I know that a lot of my teachers used the math vocabulary and maybe told us what it meant but that is about it. I do not agree with this practice at all. The vocabulary in math is so important and we do not spend enough time learning about the meaning of each word. Often times, if the student doesn't understand a word they will just skip it and figure out the problem without it. I feel that if the students had a better grasp of the mathematical vocabulary that they would have a better understanding of the mathematical content. It is so much easier to answer a question when you know exactly what the question is prompting you to do. If the students don't have to spend time fumbling with the vocabulary, they will be able to follow discussions more effectivly and they will also complete their assignments more efficiently. The students will be more likely to understand the core content and continue to strengthen their mathematical foundations. I do not want to do what my past teachers have done with the vocabulary. I would like to pick a few of the key words out of the section and define them and ask the students to define them. Let them tell me what they understand about the meaning of the word. Hopefully this will give them an opportunity to develop a good understanding of the words and open up the doors for discussion and discovery.