Posted by David Wetzel
Math Teaching Tips
It is important for students be placed in situations in which they must apply, what they are learning in mathematics, to personal experiences and situations. This helps reinforce math concepts and moves them to a level of true understanding in mathematics.
Math Teaching Tips
Real World Geometry – take students outside and have them draw pictures of all the geometric shapes they see. Then have them share after reentering the classroom.
Weekly Word Problems – once a week begin math class with a word problem students must answer related to current concepts being studied. This is a key step in learning how to develop problem solving skills.
Use Math Tradebooks – use tradebooks in connection with concept being studied, such as: Anno’s Magic Seeds, Very Hungry Caterpillar, Sir Cumference, and Grapes of Math.
GeoBoards – use geoboards for students to design their own shapes and describe them to each other using correct geometric terminology.
Additional Resources
10 Math Teaching Tips for Elementary School - Problem solving, mental math, integration of technology, interactive math websites, math games, and more are all critical to helping students understand and learn math.
Teaching Math with a Box - A hands-on, minds-on approach to teaching and learning math; students apply concepts and share their findings with classmates and others in their school.
Math Function Generator Game - Math games help students make connections within and between math concepts as they learn to problem solve outside the normal math learning context.
Writing in Mathematics - An overview is provided of the importance and why writing in math is different. A recommended checklist is provided to help students write clear math papers.
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Posted by David Wetzel
Interactive Online Math
PBS has developed online math games called Math Active, which allow students interact with the each game as they study specific math concepts. There are 31 games and are designed for middle school math. These games focus on Protractors - Angle Action.
All interactive math games involve solving problems and include teacher directions. Some games have both Spanish and Navajo language versions.
Online Math
The following are examples of what type of games are available on the Math Active website.
Cones, Cylinders, & Spheres
Classify prisms, pyramids, cones, and cylinders by base shape and lateral surface shape. Identify the net (two-dimensional representation) which corresponds to a rectangular prism, cone, or cylinder. Recognize the three dimensional figure represented by a net.
Pythagorean Theorem
Solve applied problems using the Pythagorean Theorem. Solve problems using special case right triangles.
Transformation Trio
Students observe many examples of rotation, translation, and reflection transformations. Students using problem solving techniques for selecting the called-for type of transformation.
Resources
Math Active
Math Teaching Strategies
Posted by David Wetzel
Often there are times in class when students finish their work or test early. Instead of students twiddling their thumbs physically or mentally, give them a challenging math problem to solve. Problem solving in math promotes critical thinking and math reasoning skills, as students develop solutions to complex mathematical situations.
The Problem
A strategy game which takes advantage of the movements of a specific chess piece - the Knight.
Knights can only move 2 spaces forward and then 1 space to the right or left or 1 space forward and then 2 spaces right or left.
The Challenge
How can a knight in the lower left hand corner of a 5×5 grid visit each square exactly once?
The knight may not revisit a square.
The Procedures
Students can select anywhere to start on the 5 x 5 grid.
Place a 1 in the starting square.
Then place a 2 in the next square and so forth as the strategy game continues
One excellent characteristic of this game is that there are multitude of solutions. Here is one solution:
Extensions
Use different size grids, such as 8 x 8 or 6 x 6.
Additional Math Problem Solving Resources
12 Tips for Solving Word Problems
Math and Problem Solving Skills
Math Teaching Strategies that Challenge Students
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Filed Under: Math
