Book excerpt: This monograph serves as a resource book on the Model Method. The main purpose is to make explicit how the Model Method is used to develop students' understanding of fundamental mathematics concepts and proficiency in solving basic mathematics word problems. Through the construction of a pictorial model to represent the known and unknown quantities and their relationships in a problem, students gain better understanding of the problem and develop their abilities in mathematical thinking and problem solving. This would provide a strong foundation for the learning of matheatics from the primary to secondary levels and beyond. This monograph also features the Mathematics Framework of the Singapore mathematics curriculum, and discusses the changes that it has undergone over the past two decades. These changes reflected the changing emphases, needs and challenges in the mathematics curriculum as we entered the 21s century.