TBCS - Craig - Deliberate Acts of Teaching - Maths

Teaching Maths

Maths is one subject I love to teach. I have seen such pleasing progress in all my students. Most of my students are happy to do their Math lessons, and some will even choose to do it at break times or when they have finished other work. I have had a multi-faceted approach to teaching Maths this year.
This year, I have had students working at all the Grade levels from Year 1 - Year 7


My deliberate acts of teaching have included...

• Testing each student at the beginning of the year to access where they are.
• Each student is placed at the appropriate level for their skills in the Maths Buddy Programme that the School Uses. (Please see my Blogg on Maths Buddy)
• Monitor how each student is doing by roaming the room constantly and encouraging and giving help where needed.
• Monitoring each student through my laptop after hours to identify students who need particular help or groups of students who need help in a particular area and writing them in my weekly planning folder.
• At the beginning of most lessons, students who needed extra help are brought down to a table so I can help them as individuals or in groups as required. They will go back to their individual desks once they are confident and have passed the lesson they were stuck on.
• Setting a minimum achievement rate of 80% or more in any given lesson before allowing a student to move on.
• Year 6 students are to complete a Diagnostic test at the end of each section to ensure all lessons have been learned. If gaps are identified in their learning, they are required to redo those identified lessons again to ensure they are confident before they move on.
• The emphasis I encourage is not on completing a certain about of work or working at a certain speed, but on learning the concepts and being able to confidently use them, especially in Problem Solving situations. 
• I encourage students to redo lessons, even if they have passed them at 80% if they are not completely confident in themselves.
• I place an emphasis on learning times tables which we start every day with.
• I get the students to do warm-up activities of times tables before they go on with their lessons.
• If there are particular lessons that the whole class needs to learn, I will gather the whole class around the board and we will go over them together. These have included... 

                      -  Understanding mathematical words like addends and sums, minuends, subtrahends,                              and differences, etc.
                      -  Greater than and less than
                      -  Rounding
                      -  Telling the time.
                      -  And other issues identified in daily classwork or testing such as e-asttle.

• I try to know where each student is at, and plot their progress on an XL spreadsheet to help me have an overview of the whole class.

Next Steps

Place a bigger emphasis on learning Time Tables and add a Times Tables test at the end of each week to keep the spotlight on our need to know them by rote.

Be more forthright with the expectation that the lessons need to be learned and not just passed. This will include encouraging the students to use a star chart to indicate how confident they are at the end of every lesson, so they can revisit or redo lessons that may have been passed but not confidently grasped.

Make better use of the e-asttle tests that the class sits to identify areas of weakness and get more group work established based on what is identified at the time.

Standard 6
Teach in ways that ensure all learners are making sufficient progress, and monitor the extent and pace of learning, focusing on equity and excellence for all.

Standard 5
Select teaching approaches, resources, and learning and assessment activities based on a thorough knowledge of curriculum content, pedagogy, progressions in learning and the learners.

Standard 4
Manage learning setting to ensure access to learning for all and to maximise learner's physical, social, cultural, and emotional safety.

Improving Long Term Memory, Margaret 2019

Reflection:
One student in particular in Room 4 seems to struggle getting things into his long term memory though many also seem to struggle to follow instructions so I did a little research to see what I could do differently.  Mostly I found strategies that I have been using but sometimes tend to forget when time is limited or you are trying to do spontaneous activites which have not been pre prepared.  In particular this is for maths which has a focus on getting things into students long term memory by repetition and mastery of concepts instead of answering a few questions right then moving on.  This however does not seem to be working for David.  One of the suggestions is have students write out their steps as they can see their method in another form and the act of writing it down helps to consolidate. 

Next Steps:
As MathsBuddy is all online David may need encouraging to write his answers and working out instead of doing it in his head even if he can.  Check to see if this along with some of the other strategies suggested make any difference when it comes time to take diagnostic test.  Possibly find another way to check his understadning rather than diagnostics as he seems to also have a mental block about these.  Paper test, oral test?? Test at all??

1. Give directions in multiple formats

Students benefit from being given directions in both visual and verbal formats. In addition, their understanding and memorizing of instructions could be checked by encouraging them to repeat the directions given and explain the meaning of these directions. Examples of what needs to be done are also often helpful for enhancing memory of directions.

2. Teach students to over-learn material

Students should be taught the necessity of "over-learning" new information. Often they practice only until they are able to perform one error-free repetition of the material. However, several error-free repetitions are needed to solidify the information.

3. Teach students to use visual images and other memory strategies

Another memory strategy that makes use of a cue is one called word substitution. The substitute word system can be used for information that is hard to visualize, for example, for the word occipital or parietal. These words can be converted into words that sound familiar that can be visualized. The word occipital can be converted to exhibit hall (because it sounds like exhibit hall). The student can then make a visual image of walking into an art museum and seeing a big painting of a brain with big bulging eyes (occipital is the region of the brain that controls vision). With this system, the vocabulary word the student is trying to remember actually becomes the cue for the visual image that then cues the definition of the word.

4. Give teacher-prepared handouts prior to class lectures

Class lectures and series of oral directions should be reinforced by teacher-prepared handouts. The handouts for class lectures could consist of a brief outline or a partially completed graphic organizer that the student would complete during the lecture. Having this information both enables students to identify the salient information that is given during the lectures and to correctly organize the information in their notes. Both of these activities enhance memory of the information as well. The use of Post-Its to jot information down on is helpful for remembering directions.

5. Teach students to be active readers

To enhance short-term memory registration and/or working memory when reading, students should underline, highlight, or jot key words down in the margin when reading chapters. They can then go back and read what is underlined, highlighted, or written in the margins. To consolidate this information in long-term memory, they can make outlines or use graphic organizers. Research has shown that the use of graphic organizers increases academic achievement for all students.

6. Write down steps in math problems

Students who have a weakness in working memory should not rely on mental computations when solving math problems. For example, if they are performing long division problems, they should write down every step including carrying numbers. When solving word problems, they should always have a scratch piece of paper handy and write down the steps in their calculations. This will help prevent them from losing their place and forgetting what they are doing.

7. Provide retrieval practice for students

Research has shown that long-term memory is enhanced when students engage in retrieval practice. Taking a test is a retrieval practice, i.e., the act of recalling information that has been studied from long-term memory. Thus, it can be very helpful for students to take practice tests. When teachers are reviewing information prior to tests and exams, they could ask the students questions or have the students make up questions for everyone to answer rather than just retelling students the to-be-learned information. Also, if students are required or encouraged to make up their own tests and take them, it will give their parents and/or teachers information about whether they know the most important information or are instead focused on details that are less important.

8. Help students develop cues when storing information

According to the memory research, information is easier retrieved when it is stored using a cue and that cue should be present at the time the information is being retrieved. For example, the acronym HOMES can be used to represent the names of the Great Lakes — Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie and Superior. The acronym is a cue that is used when the information is being learned, and recalling the cue when taking a test will help the student recall the information.

9. Prime the memory prior to teaching/learning

Cues that prepare students for the task to be presented are helpful. This is often referred to as priming the memory. For instance, when a reading comprehension task is given, students will get an idea of what is expected by discussing the vocabulary and the overall topic beforehand. This will allow them to focus on the salient information and engage in more effective depth of processing. Advance organizers also serve this purpose. For older students, Clif Notes for pieces of literature are often helpful aids for priming the memory.

10. Review material before going to sleep

It should be helpful for students to review material right before going to sleep at night. Research has shown that information studied this way is better remembered. Any other task that is performed after reviewing and prior to sleeping (such as getting a snack, brushing teeth, listening to music) interferes with consolidation of information in memory.

From
http://www.readingrockets.org/article/10-strategies-enhance-students-memory


Link to Teaching Standard


-  Develop learning focused relationships with learners, enabling them to be active participants in the process of learning, sharing ownership and responsibility for learning.

Questions I might ask myself

• Do I understand effective pedagogy as described in the NZC?
• What are ways that I can successfully engage ākonga?
• Strategies
•  Discussing my practice with colleagues and being open to new ideas.
• Understanding and using a range of innovative, co-operative and inquiry learning approaches.

Margaret - Problem Solving in real life

Measuring out distance throw for athletics

Digging and weeding out the long jump pit

Measuring out weed mat to place on the garden before covering it with bark.

Activities with real purpose

As a teacher I sometimes get a bit overwhelmed by what needs to be organised for lessons or activities and tend to forget that organising the students to do this gives them a real chance to take responsibility, apply learning, develop leadership and learn some valuable life lessons that are not necessarily academic.  Steve had organised the playground to be re barked so as part of this he arranged for students to go out in small groups to do this along with having some of the more capable maths students work out how to place the weed mat down.  This involved measuring the area and working this out as a group.  Athletics provided another opportunity for students to set up stations for ball throw, sprints and relays which involved maths and team work again.  It was interesting to watch them getting on with the task.  Usually a leader came out, those with more gardening skills taught the others such as how to use a shovel effectively, weeding.

Next steps:  Continue using these opportunities of "caretaking" around the school as they come up either as whole class, small groups, energisers for those needing a break from class work

TBCS - Shapes game - Judy- Anne

Shapes game

TBCS - Maths Resources - Judy-Anne

https://sharewithus.co.nz/collections/2018-term-3-calendar/maths-week-2018/

TBCS - Culturally Responsive Maths Reading - Judy-Anne

Culturally responsive maths

Margaret - Ways of Learning - Standard 5 Design for Learning

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• After identifying the need for students to learn their timetables well to help them as they move onto more challenging maths tasks such as long division, myself and Steve have been testing students daily and giving them time during maths to learn these by rote.  We have emphasised the importance of learning these to help them with maths, become better at maths and to help them in the future.  I tested Aatea, she had good speed and accuracy but when she went to complete her maths she was unable to transfer her knowledge while working out long multiplication.  After a discussion with Steve about this, he pointed out that Aatea and some of the others learn more successfully with audio rather than written, which the multiplication was.  This made me think of how I am assessing and teaching children.  Am I assessing them equally and taking into consideration their styles of learning?  Audio or visual?  When planning activities have I got all the elements in there?  Oral instructions, written on the board or drive, videos, practical tasks.
• When testing timestables at least I will now use a mix of audio and visual (saying it and seeing it written) to help students learn both ways and take note if this helps Aatea and others transfer their skills to the actual problems.
• Links to Standard 5 - Design for Learning
• Developing ākonga metacognitive awareness by examining why particular strategies are effective or less effective in different learning contexts.
• Adapting lessons to ensure they address ākonga needs and interests as they arise.
• Helping ākonga appreciate the value or importance of what they are learning.

From Kidspot

https://kidspot.co.nz/school-age/learning-styles-in-children/

Learning styles explained

Auditory or language learners

These types learn through listening to what others have to say and talking about what they’re learning. They’re also more likely to:

• remember information by talking aloud
• need to have things explained orally
• may have trouble with written instructions
• talk to themselves while learning something new
• enjoy discussion groups over working alone

Worth noting: auditory learners might look like they’re not paying attention when you talk to them but their listening skills are more developed than their visual skills.

Visual learners

As their name suggests, these people learn through watching. It’s believed to be the most dominant learning style and many traditional classrooms are geared towards the visual learner. For their learning to make sense they need to be able to see, visualise and illustrate their knowledge skills and concepts. Visual learning characteristics include:

• remembering visual details
• preferring to see what they are learning
• needing to have paper and pens handy
• doodling while listening
• liking to write down instructions or see them demonstrated

Worth noting: Telling these learners how to do something may not make sense to them at all – they need to see it.

• Find out more about visual learners

Kinaesthetic/tactile learners

These learners like to be actively involved in the learning process, and learn best through hands-on activities and movement. Other kinaesthetic characteristics are they:

• want to actually do whatever is being talked about or learned
• like to move around while listening or talking
• often ‘talk’ with their hands
• like to touch things in order to learn about them
• remember events by recalling who did what rather than who said what

Worth noting: These types of learners can be misdiagnosed as ADHD or troublemakers because the more tradition visual or auditory learning styles just don’t work for them.

• Find out more about kinaesthetic learners

Is there a fourth style?

While the above three are the major styles discussed, some experts talk about logical or ‘analytical’ learners. These learn through exploring patterns and understanding how things relate to each other. These learners also:

• love knowing how things work
• are capable of quite logical thinking at a very young age
• ask a lot of questions so they can understand how things interrelate
• show an early aptitude at solving mathematical problems
• can grasp strategy games at a young age

Steve - Standard Criteria - Student Learning design 31 July 2018

• Adapting lessons to ensure they address ākonga needs and interests as they arise.

A student was having an issue in her diagnostic lessons. We identified the area of concern. Then looking at how to practise this area it was decided to go back a year level to the lessons most applicable (maths times tables x 4). She has continued to practise these lessons in preparation of going back to the original year level lessons, using the information she has now transferred into her long term memory.

TBCS - Early Maths Ideas - Judy - Anne

Maths

TBCS - Craig - Maths - Individual Programmes at TBCS

At Tasman Bay Christian School, we have the privilege of each child having a device to work on and in my room, that means that each student has a laptop. Along with the hardware, we have programmes designed to meet students at their point of need and to allow them to work at the pace the need to without being held back or holding others back. As the teacher I use these tools to allow each student to find success and to stretch them enough to make their learning experience a fulfilling one.

Maths Buddy caters for students from year 1 to year 13 including Cambridge Examinations.

• It has diagnostic tools to asses prior learning and where the students are at. 
• It has teaching videos before every lesson that cover the points being taught and the student can re-watch these videos as many times as they need to.
• The programme is constructed as to not allow students to finish the lesson till they have achieved a mark of 80% or greater. The lesson is repeated till this is achieved.
• If a student struggles in a particular area, they can be set lessons on the same topic from earlier grades to build a foundation in that particular area and to allow success to build them up to where they should be.
• The diagnostic tools are also used to show understanding in an area and that all parts that need to be learned - have been learned.

My jobs include monitoring each students progress, being available to help, keeping students on task, catching students who are getting bogged down and giving individual lessons, Keeping up their enthusiasm, and celebrating success with them.

• Structuring learning tasks so that all ākonga experience a degree of success, but also ensuring that they are required to stretch themselves to fully succeed.
• Adapting lessons to ensure they address ākonga needs and interests as they arise.

Margaret - Fostering tuakana/tēina relationships during Maths

During maths there are quite often students working on completely different lessons of varying levels which I find challenging trying to get to everyone to help.  During my observations of Steve in the class, I noticed he allowed the other students to help each other when they became stuck.  Quite often the other student could explain it in way that was understood and reinforced their own understanding at the same time.  This takes the pressure off the teacher to get to everyone and gives the students an important role.  I actually asked the class after one maths session where I saw many "teachers",  "Who had helped someone/been helped by someone and did they learn something new"  Finn had sat with Francis and showed him a different way to work out long division which Francis finally got.  I could see that both were quite pleased with the outcome.  I still need to reinforce the difference between helping and telling though and check some are not doing the work for others.

• Fostering tuakana/tēina relationships.
• Providing opportunities for ākonga engagement in co-operative learning, and reciprocal teaching.