Learning is an emotional pursuit. A teacher’s most powerful ally is success. Students who can see (“feel”!) their own progress will bring up the perseverance needed to master each new concept.
However, there are times when math should just be fascinating. When we should all step back and say “Wow”.
There was still confusion after the activity described in our last blog. Normal, but corrigible! We had students draw a Place Value Chart on an 11 x 17 piece of paper. Something like this: Continue reading Group and Independent Practice: Multiplying and Dividing with Powers of Ten
Interestingly, this was one of the most difficult lessons we’ve taught this year, both for teachers and students. There are several possible reasons:
We believe there are 3 non-negotiable skills for fifth graders moving on to sixth grade:
Accordingly, we spend more time on these 3 units than most schools do, although we work in a handful of additional topics as well. The payoff comes later — middle school (and high school!) teachers don’t have to reteach these topics. A goal in itself! Continue reading Starting the Multiplication Unit
These 4 problems actually took a whole period! Problem-solving takes time.
We did this review in groups of 3, with some students rotating after each problem, but the rotation is not necessary. (See Alpha Beta Gamma post from Sept) Rotation breaks up the period with a little movement, and decreases group competition.
VERDICT: The kids have got it now. Continue reading Review Lesson: Fractions, Word Problems and Patterns.
We teach 5th grade fractions using a “Sandwich” strategy.
Time for a review lesson. Alpha Beta Gamma is a game we introduced in a September post:
Here are the PowerPt slides: Continue reading One Review Lesson
We spend one lesson investigating patterns we choose from this website:
http://www.visualpatterns.org/
It is best to start with patterns like #2, #15, #18, that add a constant number of objects at each step.
Concrete/pictorial students will spend the time they need to build or draw the next few steps in a pattern, and count the new totals at each step. Watch for leaps of intuition when a student gradually begins to see a pattern emerging, and takes the risk of predicting the 10th or the 43rd term. Continue reading 3 Investigations and 3 Homeworks – Investigating Patterns
Unbeatable! Combining a Greek myth with an investigation with a reward attached!
We start our investigation of patterns every year with this contest offered by Mathpickle:
http://mathpickle.com/project/daedalus-and-icarus-try-to-escape/
We start with any youtube video of the tale of Icarus. Then we show the video from mathpickle (link above). They claim to be offering a $1,000,000 prize to any child who can find a number that does NOT end with one when we follow these 2 rules: Continue reading The Collatz Conjecture via Mathpickle
STAIRCASES
Once again, this investigation is not about the answers, it’s about the seeing, thinking, talking, and discovery of patterns. It takes weeks to break students’ misconceptions that math is all about the answers at the back of the book. Children need daily excursions into the territory of “I wonder…”, “What if…”, and “I don’t know; what shall I do?” (best answer – an intrigued shrug!) . As they discover that the patterns are there, on the table (or floor, if that’s where they’re working!) – that they’re there, to be seen, their confidence grows.
We have to be careful not to push, not to squash the delicate tendrils of discovery. We mustn’t judge one student’s work as better than another’s because it is more abstract. Everyone sees what they see. Trust that insights are happening. Continue reading Can ‘Not Knowing’ be Engaging? Can ‘Figuring it Out’ Be Fun?