Prime Professional Learning: Mathematical Problem Solving – The Bar Model Method

The Bar Model Method is a key problem-solving strategy taught to primary school students in Singapore. It is acknowledged as an effective problem-solving heuristic that enables students to understand, visualise and represent conceptually complex problems and their solutions simply and elegantly. In doing so, it reinforces and builds their conceptual and procedural knowledge, making them more effective problem solvers. The visual representation of the problem and the solution construction by the student enables the teacher to understand the student’s thought process and allows the teacher to correct misconceptions immediately and appropriately. This professional learning workbook introduces teachers to the fundamentals of using the Bar Model Method.