Lannin, Barker, and Townsend describe how social factors, cognitive factors and task factors simultaneously influence the way students address problems and how this influences their reasoning. Booker and Bond (2009) document the effectiveness of working collaboratively and the 668value of encouraging multiple perspectives. As they both document, developing algebraic thinking can be achieved when students are encouraged to use a variety of strategies and are supported to communicate their ideas, reflect upon solutions and have opportunities to speculate about the concepts and ideas they have constructed.