This is the summary of a presentation given at the Joint Mathematics Meetings, January 10-13, 1996, Orlando, Florida.

At the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh all elementary education majors are required to complete a minor, for which one choice is mathematics. Our mathematics minor is a 24 credit non-calculus based program designed to meet the needs of those wishing to teach mathematics in grades 4-8. One of the required courses is Modern Algebra. On the first day of class I hand out my set of notes, which I call I the "skeleton". Through activities and investigations, my students discover what is needed to fill in the "body". This paper is a description of those activities and investigations. My intent is to increase students' mathematical knowledge, while at the same time reinforce familiar algebraic properties.

Dr. John Koker
Mathematics Department
University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh
Oshkosh, WI 54901
koker@vaxa.cis.uwosh.edu