Chapter 4: Creating Space for a Topic in The Null Curriculum

Mathematics curricula continue to become more standardized worldwide, which makes researching topics not appearing in the explicit curriculum challenging. In this chapter, we describe four lessons learned while conducting classroom-based research in Canada on a topic in the null curriculum. Despite its potential to support geometric and spatial reasoning, research in projective geometry with children was abandoned decades ago. Through our project, we learned multiple lessons while resurrecting, updating, inventing, implementing, and conducting classroom-based research within the null space of projective geometry. These lessons include: (1) locating relevant curriculum resources for a non-existent topic in the elementary-grades curriculum; (2) inventing ways to create, pilot, and use unfamiliar tasks in a classroom-based setting; (3) rationalizing the value of the topic to school district personnel, teachers, parents, and students; and (4) generating reciprocal growth in understanding amongst teachers and researchers. The insights gained offer ways to explore and justify the research, teaching, and learning of topics outside of the explicit curriculum.