On the first day of class, I felt a range of emotions because the word 'Math' appears in the course outline. After the introduction of the course and the activities done in class, I feel much better about my ability and comfort level teaching math to students at the elementary level. The first thing we did was a dice exercise designed to get us thinking - a brain teaser. I was happily surprised by my ability to understand quickly the reasoning behind why multiplication was the correct answer versus addition, which to me, was a great way to begin the class.
READING: CHAPTER 4
Upon reading the first sentence of chapter 4, I felt a connection as a future math teacher. The sentence reads, "Planning is key to effective instruction in mathematics", which ultimately means taking the time to truly get to know the topics being covered to better instruct when giving a lesson. Another idea that struck me was the idea that there are multiple ways of doing things and therefore multiple strategies and ways of teaching to help students grasp a better understanding of a certain concept. I strongly agree with the importance of inclusion and group work when it comes to mathematics. Yearly plans and unit planning was also discussed and an important part to how a classroom runs smoothly by being prepared for both the long-term and the short-term. Setting goals for student success and perhaps having students set personal goals for the course is a great way to gauge where students are, if the lesson is effective and how to improve.
I felt a strong connection to the topic of math anxiety. Personally, I struggle with math anxiety and have from an early age. As a future teacher, I hope to rid my students of potential math anxieties they may be feeling by incorporating by encouraging group work and discussion. Negative past experiences with math for me have always centred around being singled out, unable to understand a concept or topic being discussed and my lack of self-confidence in the subject itself. I hope that by having struggled with math myself, I can relate better to students that may feel the same as I did in the past.
The section designated to, "Different lesson styles" was particularly interesting for me to read. I feel that the explanation given for each style: exploration, guided activity and direct instruction was useful in understanding how to tailor a lesson to different students needs. Although the titles are self-explanatory, I gained a better understanding of when each lesson style would be appropriate to use.
Equally important to incorporating different ways to teach a new concept is support for teachers to know what to say and how best to say it. Within the chapter, the notion of using resources to help plan a lesson is important. Incorporating useful textbooks to the course is beneficial to help students practice and review the answers and the process to get the right answer by way of the appendices, index and chapter reviews. As a future teacher, I know that textbooks will become very useful to me and my lesson planning surrounding a multitude of subject areas but most specifically math due to the explanations and step-by-step instruction certain textbooks provide.
Overall, the importance of inclusion for those who struggle with math anxiety, ESL students, gifted students and different learning styles/techniques is an important part to teaching and making math meaningful. By staying organized, planning ahead and remaining open to new ideas and learning styles, teaching and learning math for students in elementary will and can be an enjoyable stress-free learning environment for both student and teacher.
Upon reading the first sentence of chapter 4, I felt a connection as a future math teacher. The sentence reads, "Planning is key to effective instruction in mathematics", which ultimately means taking the time to truly get to know the topics being covered to better instruct when giving a lesson. Another idea that struck me was the idea that there are multiple ways of doing things and therefore multiple strategies and ways of teaching to help students grasp a better understanding of a certain concept. I strongly agree with the importance of inclusion and group work when it comes to mathematics. Yearly plans and unit planning was also discussed and an important part to how a classroom runs smoothly by being prepared for both the long-term and the short-term. Setting goals for student success and perhaps having students set personal goals for the course is a great way to gauge where students are, if the lesson is effective and how to improve.
I felt a strong connection to the topic of math anxiety. Personally, I struggle with math anxiety and have from an early age. As a future teacher, I hope to rid my students of potential math anxieties they may be feeling by incorporating by encouraging group work and discussion. Negative past experiences with math for me have always centred around being singled out, unable to understand a concept or topic being discussed and my lack of self-confidence in the subject itself. I hope that by having struggled with math myself, I can relate better to students that may feel the same as I did in the past.
The section designated to, "Different lesson styles" was particularly interesting for me to read. I feel that the explanation given for each style: exploration, guided activity and direct instruction was useful in understanding how to tailor a lesson to different students needs. Although the titles are self-explanatory, I gained a better understanding of when each lesson style would be appropriate to use.
Equally important to incorporating different ways to teach a new concept is support for teachers to know what to say and how best to say it. Within the chapter, the notion of using resources to help plan a lesson is important. Incorporating useful textbooks to the course is beneficial to help students practice and review the answers and the process to get the right answer by way of the appendices, index and chapter reviews. As a future teacher, I know that textbooks will become very useful to me and my lesson planning surrounding a multitude of subject areas but most specifically math due to the explanations and step-by-step instruction certain textbooks provide.
Overall, the importance of inclusion for those who struggle with math anxiety, ESL students, gifted students and different learning styles/techniques is an important part to teaching and making math meaningful. By staying organized, planning ahead and remaining open to new ideas and learning styles, teaching and learning math for students in elementary will and can be an enjoyable stress-free learning environment for both student and teacher.
Chapter Problem: Page 65
Problem: Each letter of the alphabet is assigned a value based on its position. For example: A=1, B=2, C=3...Z=26. Create three different words that are each worth 43.
Wife: 23 + 9 + 6 + 5 = 43
Hot: 8 + 15 + 20 = 43
Tick: 20 + 9 + 3 + 11 = 43
To find these three words, I used a trial and error method. I simply made a chart that had all of the corresponding letters to their designated numbers and began writing out simple words to try to find combinations of numbers that give me close to 43. I found this problem rather challenging and I am sure there is an easier method to obtain words to equal 43. I chose to use trial and error as a way to see what numbers worked and which didn't in a visual way. This math problem can be adapted in another way by using a different way of getting the value of 43. For example, instead of using addition you could incorporate multiplication, subtraction or division with the numbers of the alphabet.
Problem: Each letter of the alphabet is assigned a value based on its position. For example: A=1, B=2, C=3...Z=26. Create three different words that are each worth 43.
Wife: 23 + 9 + 6 + 5 = 43
Hot: 8 + 15 + 20 = 43
Tick: 20 + 9 + 3 + 11 = 43
To find these three words, I used a trial and error method. I simply made a chart that had all of the corresponding letters to their designated numbers and began writing out simple words to try to find combinations of numbers that give me close to 43. I found this problem rather challenging and I am sure there is an easier method to obtain words to equal 43. I chose to use trial and error as a way to see what numbers worked and which didn't in a visual way. This math problem can be adapted in another way by using a different way of getting the value of 43. For example, instead of using addition you could incorporate multiplication, subtraction or division with the numbers of the alphabet.