Mediating Mathematical Action

If I wake in the night I may lie awake thinking and this thinking makes use of mental images. If I think about a person I may create a visual image of the person. If I think about a recent meeting with people I may imagine the language of the discussion. If I think about how to develop a part of my garden I may juxtapose the plant shapes and not the plant names. If I think about a mathematical problem I may imagine my recent work on paper or with a computer. These imaginings come from previous experiences and the richer the experiences the easier it is to symbolise, recreate and create in the imagination.