Word Walls in Math

How cute is YOUR Word Wall? Super cute like this one!?
How interactive is your Word Wall? If you're like me, when you were in the classroom it was probably growing cobwebs! Until an Instructional Specialist came in a modeled for me how to make it interactive in one of my science stations. From there, I used the same idea during my math stations! From then on, I realized the power of Math Word Walls in the language development as well as the mathematical success and confidence of my students!!

One focal area for this upcoming year will be WORD WALLS on my campus! Although the demographic make-up of our campus is thirsty for language development, you don't have to be an English Language Learner in order to benefit from such tools as Word Walls!

This link lists some additional tools that are best practices for all learners. I, myself, am a visual learner so any teacher that uses hand movements, allows movement, lets me talk and draw pictures provides the perfect atmosphere for me to learn. I can't tell you how dreadfully bored I am when I go to a training where my am held captive to my seat while the presenter does ALL of the talking (much less when they insult my intelligence by reading the Power Point to me word by word). But I digress!

I want to share a website with you that might assist you with a Word Wall station you could create in your class!
Google "Free Math Apps" and look for "The Math Learning Center". Or simply click on the link just listed. You should come to page like so:

Now,  let me paint the picture for your classroom set up.

All of your students are sitting on the carpet in a semi-circle around you and you have invited a student up to stand across from you. Prior to class (ideally during the course of the unit) you have placed up about 10-15 vocabulary words on your wall (via index cards or maybe printed out from one of these websites).

Math Word Walls

Vocabulary Cards

You hold an iPad with this free Web App pulled up called "Math Vocabulary Cards".

You read the definition of the missing vocabulary word to your partner, then turn the iPad to face him/her and let them look at the visual/definition. You encourage them to look at the words listed on the WORD WALL behind you two and use the clues on the iPad to take an educated guess. Once they guess...you hit the EYE looking button in the top right corner to reveal the answer.



The two of you trade places or you hand the iPad to him/her. They hit the PLAY button and you switch turns becoming the one using the clues to guess the words.

Once this "game" is introduced to your class, I might suggest putting students in pairs and letting them practice it for about 3 minutes while on the floor. Have a mini-discussion about procedures and expectations and then later in the week, make it a station!

In the station, put up a poster with your expectations and "I can" objectives such as:

"I can orally describe key math vocabulary using picture models and definitions."

If you want to differentiate for your more advanced learners, click on the little "HIDE/SHOW" button in the bottom middle and choose to either hide the definition (causing students to create their own) or hide the picture (prompting students to draw their own). 

What a buzz this station will be! You kids will love picking a partner and growing in proficiency as they conquer more words each week! You might even have them create 3 columns in their math journal labeled "Don't know", "Sort of know" and "I rock" and as they conquer more words, they can write them on sticky notes and move them from the "Don't know" category to the "I rock" category!!

If you have additional ideas, don't hesitate to leave a comment or two! Enjoy!

5th Grade Math Readiness Videos

I support a Title school in my district and in preparation for our Summer version of SSI, I put together a few videos for the teachers who would be facilitating the sessions.

I wanted to place these short clips on my blog site in efforts to "spread the love". Although I put together lesson plans for SSI, I knew the teachers who'd be working with our students, had never taught 5th grade. Initially, it was a scary thought, but when I found out WHO those teachers would be (some of our campus finest), I let out a sigh of relief. There's just a level of trust you accrue when you know that a model teacher can take their best practices and apply them to ANY group of students. Model teachers have the "with-it-ness" to study standards and apply their instructional practices for the benefit of students!

Despite this trait, I can't assume that we (as educators) don't daily fight the natural tendency to slip into our mathematical vernacular (our old ways we were taught). It takes looking at the NEW MATH TEKS from the concrete to abstract path rather than jumping straight into the abstract.

I might be on a 'road less traveled' when it comes to this approach, because many people might argue that students need to be taught 'whatever it takes' this late in the game 'to get them to pass the STAAR'. My belief is contrary, it's predicated on never abandoning the foundation of math for a quick teach. Retaining and comprehension are at stake. I'm not one to argue my stance, but just a heads up...these videos model quick re-teaches without "tricks".

Here are the Readiness Standards ONLY! Coaches, feel free to watch these in PLC with your teams, or simply share them with some of your 5th grade math teachers. You will hear me reference "SSI timing" so ignore certain phrases when thinking about how to use this in your initial instruction throughout the year!

5.3E

5.3G

5.3K

5.3L

5.4F

5.4H

5.9C

4.2A Can someone INTERPRET that for me?

I've heard teachers say that teaching 4.2A is just teaching "place value". They couldn't be more off base. It's more than that!

I've also seen teachers completely SKIP teaching 4.2A as to avoid the uncertainty of what it really means and to hide from the insecurity of 'not knowing'. They would probably find themselves in good company as this is a common practice with teachers.

Listen friend, there's no harm in studying your TEKS and using resources such as John Van De Walle's' "Student-Centered Math" to help you gain a richer understanding of how to meet the needs of your students!

Let's put an end to the avoidance as well as the misinterpretation of this standard, shall we?

Check out my 3 videos below and gain some ideas on how to uncover this understanding in your students! Hope you enjoy the hidden ELL strategies and formative assessments tucked in each video!

A special thanks to my fabulous network of teachers that aren't afraid to allow curiosity to spark investigation and both uncover as well as attempt new things! #indebted

Student Engagement...you or them?

What spurs engagement in our students? 

Is it an intrinsic attitude they must possess? Should they walk into class wanting to participate in the learning?

Is it an extrinsic motivating circumstance created by the teacher to pique and sustain the interest in the subject being taught? 

Is it a little of both? 

Watch a bit of the 7 min video clip and determine what is keeping these students engaged in the learning.

https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/subtraction-math-lesson-ousd#

In an article written by Richard Strong in Educational Leadership, teachers were polled about what type of work they found engaging. Their responses are wrapped up in the following summary,

"Engaging work, respondents said, was work that stimulated their curiosity, permitted them to express their creativity, and fostered positive relationships with others. It was also work at which they were good. As for activities they hated, both teachers and students cited work that was repetitive, that required little or no thought, and that was forced on them by others."

Consider the following components:
1. Stimulates curiosity
2. Allows students to express creativity
3. Fosters positive relationships with others

Fractions and more! (4.3F and 5.3K)

There's an epidemic spreading throughout our classrooms and it's deadly; a silent killer.

Do you care what that widespread outbreak is? It's the lack of manipulative use in the classroom.

The understanding of fraction concepts...I'm talking the conceptual awareness that is mandatory for students to be successful in computing fractions...is predicated on the concrete foundation of fraction manipulation. When students skip this constructive play time, when we (as teachers) fail to intentionally embed this hands-on time into their lesson plan, we set our students up for a weak, rule-based abstract understanding (or lack thereof) concerning fractions.

Here are a few videos to support a 4th and 5th grade TEKS, respectively:

4.3F (and 4.3E)

5.3K

Multiplying Decimals

As we continually grasp an understanding of the New Math TEKS, we notice that 5th grade embodies a lot of the standards previously taught in middle school/intermediate level.Within that sphere of knowledge, we (as Instructional professionals) have tried to own the concept of 'how do we teach an intermediate concept at an elementary level'?

I'd like to share many of my study tools with you and encourage you to dig a little deeper into uncovering the mysteries behind this question. One of my favorites (introduced to me by a mentor and friend) is Teaching Student Centered Math by John Van de Walle (3-5th). He is the guru (in my opinion) of breaking down math to its most concrete understandings and he offers various hands-on activities and formative type assessment ideas!

Another favorite study tool of mine is the Lead4ward Field Guide and the Region 13 Click on TEKS. Make sure your district and school have these documents...they are critical to our understanding of how the TEKS will be tested and more importantly they're the basis for ensuring the facilitation of solid Tier 1 instruction in the classroom.

Any-"who"...as we shift focus toward intervening and preparing to conduct STAAR review, a lot of reteaching is on the horizon and we've brought in some additional teachers from various grade levels to assist with this in our testing grades. So i've had to do some quick-teaches and minds have been blown. Teachers from lower grades are seeing how complex math has become at the upper elementary levels. But when mixed with concrete and representational strategies, these concepts aren't so abstract after all!

Check out my video blogs!