Instructional Strategies on MATH

Mathwire Standard-Based Math Activities
http://mathwire.com/strategies/is.html


This is a website that focuses on strategies to make math an active participation subject, math assessment, classroom management, cooperative learning and differentiation.


The active participation strategies that were listed are:
         1. Use white boards:  These can be used when giving the entire class a math problem to work.  The students can then write their answer on the white board and hold it up when they have the answer.
         2. Thumbs up/ thumbs down: This requires that the student is paying attention in class.   So you as the teacher or the another student would complete a problem on the board.  Then you would ask the students if they agree or disagree with the answer to the problem by showing a thumbs up or thumbs down.
         3. Show me the answer:  This strategy can be completed in many different ways.  This could be using different manipulates to have the student show the answer.  It may be number cards and ordering them from smallest to largest.  You could have students do different grouping problems by using cubes.  I think that this is somewhere that as a teacher you can be really creative with.  I also think that this will really help students who are deaf or hard of hearing because they can have a concrete object to help them with the thought process that is involved in math.
         4. Think-pair-share: We all know what this.  Well guess what it works for math too!!!
         5. Let go and let students:  As the teacher you do not always have to be the one doing all the teaching.  Sometimes it is best to let the students show what they know and teach it to their peers.  This could be done by letting  a student come to the board and show the other students how he or she worked the problem.


Intervention Strategies for Math
by Heidi Janzen
http://www.glencoe.com/sec/teachingtoday/subject/intervention_strategies.phtml

Currently, at the school I am student teaching a lot of focus is being place on the benchmark test.  Therefore, many students have been placed into intervention groups to improve their math skills. 

Here are some intervention strategies suggested by this website:

First: Identify the students who are struggle and may benefit from intervention.

You can identify student by:
informal and formal assessment
integrate warm-up activities
write to learn
assign application problems

Second: Address the issue

You can use the following instructional strategies based on what the student needs:
use small group or student pairs
differentiate instruction
incorporate multiple representation
emphasize real life application
learn about tutoring options
consider seating arrangements

I believe that these are all things that we have learned or seen in our practicum experiences.  I am not for sure if I am beating a dead horse when I keep talking about differentiate instruction.  It seems that it comes up in nearly every teaching strategy I have pulled up.  It goes to show that it truly is important to try to teach to each student if at all possible.  If not to each student at least incorporate many different learning styles by providing information in different forms.

I have been in charge of one of the math intervention groups at my student teaching placement.  These students are in 4th grade and cannot do simple multiplication.  It has really been a challenge to relate most things back to addition and subtraction.  It has also been difficult to connect multiplication to division.  However, what I have notice that if I can find a way to tie the math problem to a real life situation it is much easier for them to grasp. The students also do better if they have some tangible item to count.  I have also realized that touch math doesn't always stick....however, finger math does :)