The changes in the math curriculum might seem small but they represent a very large philosophical shift. The traditional approach to teaching math has been to focus on procedures. We taught students how to do the math but there wasn’t a big focus on when we would use the math or why the procedures …
Read More “A Math Class Make-Over: A Current Approach to Math Education”
I recently finished Jo Boaler’s new book ‘Mathematical Mindsets’ and was, as always, blown away by her work. I learned a lot from the book and as a result am going to create some add-ons to our lesson plans and videos. Firstly, if you haven’t already been using the differentiated tasks that are in …
Hello, everyone! I had some great responses from the blog post – Dividing Large Numbers and teachers had some really good questions about dealing with obstacles. So here are some questions and suggestions: Question: What do I say to a student who knows how to do the long division algorithm already? My Suggestion: First, …
Read More “Dealing with Obstacles (Follow up to ‘Dividing Large Numbers’)”
The other day I walked into a grade 6 classroom with my big bin of base 10 blocks and there was a buzz of excitement. Students, who are now accustomed to the style of lessons I generally teach, immediately start clearing their desktops to get ready for their blocks. One girl exclaimed “I love …
Hi everyone! Brain research indicates that the brain learns first at a concrete level (hands-on manipulatives), then at a pictorial level and finally at an abstract level (Souza, 2008). Furthermore, we also know the more senses that are involved in learning, the more powerful the learning becomes. Differing Learning Styles So when we use …
Read More “Why Is It So Important To Use Manipulatives In Math Classes?”
