1. Mathematics …. as a language

2. What are the features of a language? Brainstorm/list Distinct vocabularies (almost the same meaning every time) Grammar (rules) tense Oral versus written Emotional content symbolism

3. Maths is a formal language Maths uses symbols and rules Maths communicates information precisely, completely and unambiguously But, some problems....

4. Pythagoras theorem The square of the hypotenuse is equal to the sum of the squares on the other 2 sides of a right-angled triangle This is about a triangle so why are we talking about squares Do you need to know what a right-angled triangle is before you understand this? Why do we use the word right? Sum – this means total but we do sums

5. Pythagoras Theorem 2 The – used 5 times Of – used 3 times Are these the only words we can be confident of?

6. Equations as language 2b + u = 88 2b + u + a3 =? 2d4+u+m8=? 2b+u+a3=? What are these equations communicating?