All good things come to an end...

Me at the beginning of this term:

 

Me Now:

FINAAALLYYY

I do not even know where to begin when reflecting on the year's Junior/Intermediate Mathematics course. Not only did I learn and finally and confidently understand many different strands of math but I also learned how to help my students learn the RIGHT way. I am so excited to include all the various methods and approaches to math so my students can feel the way the man in the gif does when they learn math. I want the students to be confident in their math and have a growth mindset when learning and I can confidently say that I will be able to achieve this with my kiddies because of what this class has offered me.

At the beginning of this course I hated math, and I do not throw that word around gently. I truly believed in M.A.T.H being mental abuse to humans and identified with others who felt the same. I laughed on the first day when Pat announced that every person is a math person and we would grow to love math. I thought that would be impossible to achieve but little did I know that it was a growth mindset I was lacking. I didn't know that my struggling with math was actually my process of learning and from every mistake I made I learned.

Let's go back to the first few weeks of this course... if you want you can join me as I look up into the air and imagine a memory bubble appear...

"Let's start at the very beginning, a very good place to start"

YES I did just use lyrics from The Sound Of Music...

I think the most memorable class with an a- haa moment at the beginning of this year was with fractions! We learned that common denominators can be used not just for addition and subtraction but also for division! This is something that as a student we were never taught. Instead we were taught the more complicated and irrational way. Move over old way and hello new methods! I hope to pass along lessons and methods such as these with my munchkins!

Another one of my favourite memories was the week we completed patterns. This past week I actually taught a lesson with my students on number patterns but prior to using numerical patterns I used the example of skittles and shared with them what I had included in my blog. My students quickly understood what I had to share and it was evident they understood my lesson and the new material they were given. 

My class and I made a growth mindset anchor chart together that we have posted proudly for all to see in the classroom. When students get frustrated with getting a problem in math wrong I just point and the chart and they know they are only steps away from understanding the content! 

In addition to these specific weeks and lessons plus more benefitting my current placement I have also been turning to the textbook for additional resources and advice when composing my math lessons. The teacher tips and activities throughout the chapters help me to find one that is age appropriate for my students and in addition to see the student examples provided to know how to assess my students. 

I think the assignment I benefited most from was the lesson plan for mathematics. Able to receive feedback on the lesson plan helped me to further understand how to make a detailed and appropriate lesson plan for my students. This was a great learning experience and I was happy to receive feedback from it. 

 I think growth mindset is the most important thing I have taken away from this course. I have learned that my brain, specifically my math brain, is always working and always one step closer to problem solving. I am no longer afraid of math and intimidated by word problems and equations. I am no longer intimidated by manipulatives, measurement and fractions. Most importantly I am no longer intimidated by group work. It was this course that made me comfortable and open to working with other people in order to get to the end goal - in order to answer the question.

After working with elbow partners, group work, group congresses and after presenting my activity to my fellow teacher candidates I have learned that every person within a group plays a valuable role.

Overall, I have learned more valuable lessons and methods through this class in comparison to my others and I am thrilled to be able to incorporate them into my classroom with my students. 

If you would like, feel free to scroll below to browse the various memes that will make you laugh that are all connected to math!

Thank you so much for staying and catching up with me on my math journey! Hope you have enjoyed the blog and learned many things from what I have shared!!  

Have a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year!!

Emily De Melo

Cardio? No Thank You... I Thought You Said Oreo

Estimation

This weeks class was great! Not only was it filled with a variety of open questions surrounding estimation for each table to work with but it was also filled with OREOS!!!!!

The class opened up with an activity that circulated the room for us to guess how many Oreos were in the jar. Although when it reached my table I just wanted to grab them and run I estimated and nicely passed along. This may or may have not been after Pat told us we would all get our share...

As the jar of Oreos was being passed around the class for them to secretly make an estimation and write it on their sticky note the class continued on with this week's lesson. 

What is an Estimate?

- a thoughtful guess

- saves time and effort

- can be used the gauge the accuracy of their calculations

- we do estimates when it is not practical/ possible to count and measure the precise amount of something (aka a full jar of cookies)

Now that we are all on the same page about what an estimate is and what it can be used for, take a look at this week's problem with Daniella and Emily:

As a group, Courtney, Daniella and myself all divided the cube blocks equally as each cube represented one movie ticket. The cubes were a great manipulative for the students to be able to visualize the problem and understand what would be fair! 

Thanks for sharing Daniella:)

Our group had fun with this activity working together to demonstrate the fair share with blocks!

Here is Courtney dividing up the blocks in one of our activities!

Although I know you're just thinking about the Oreos we must move on!!

In addition to learning all about estimation we also learned about MEAN, MEDIAN, and MODE. Here is a fun, short and cute little riddle (with the old methods) to practice and or post in your classroom for your students to remember and decipher between the three!

During our lesson on the three Mean, Median and Mode we learned a different alternative way at calculating the Mean. Throughout our education career we were taught to add up all numbers and divide by how many numbers there are. This method works but there is always another way!!! We learned that you can also find the mean by finding the middle number...

Here is a couple examples if you are confused (Do not worry - I was at first too, but now we can all be Math Geniuses!!)

1) Find the mean (the average) of these 3 consecutive numbers:

4, 5, 6.

Old method: 4 + 5 + 6 = 15

15 / 3 (HOW MANY NUMBERS THERE ARE) = 5

New Method:

4, 5, 6.

5 is the middle number, therefore 5 is the mean.

2) Find the mean (the average) of these 4 consecutive numbers:

3, 4, 5, 6.

Old Method: 3+4+5+6= 18

18/4= 4.5

New Method:

3, 4, 5, 6.

4.5 is the middle number, therefore 4.5 is the mean.

So many neat and cool tricks to teach the students when they are learning these new things! Great way to help any student who is having difficulty understanding how to find the Mean and more!

A great week with lots of new ideas relating to estimation, mean, median, and mode to pass along to our students. Towards the end of class we talked as a group about assessment, feedback, promoting higher order thinking and improve student learning. Here is some pictures of the slideshow that we all discussed. 

Feel free to jot some of these down for what you are assessing your students or to share with your students so they know what is expected. If you do not want to record these for your own purposes, grab a glass of milk and some Oreos and enjoy a snack while reading!

What a great week filled with sugar, group work, new methods and new skills that I cannot wait to share with my students - the methods not the Oreos - those are mine! 

Take care and see you next week,

Emily

Group work does not have to be hard anymore..

Collaboration = Frustration

Frustration = Collaboration 

My entire university career, high school and elementary years was filled with collaboration and group work in multiple subjects. Every time someone mentions collaboration and group work I instantly get frustrated and if someone were to ask me what frustrates me, my response would be collaboration. This has all changed since teachers college and learning to work collaboratively with my teacher candidate peers in classes. I always felt that I was left doing all the work by the end of the task but, and this is shown through this weeks class particularly, the teacher candidates are all learning and want the same thing. We all want to work and help each other succeed and in the end we will be working in collaboration with our students to ensure the same thing. This weeks lesson was enjoyable and went by very quickly because of the hands on, on our feet, critical and fast thinking that each task required and that each group had to master. 

"Alone we are smart, together we are BRILLIANT" - Steven Anderson

Below I have attached two different anchor charts as examples of what an educator and their class can create at the beginning of the year. Both are a different approach at the same outcome - ensuring that the students know what group work is and how it works. Anchor charts are a great resource to have in the classroom to redirect the children to it if they fall off task. As long as students are aware of their expectations and understand them, collaboration within the classroom is possible!

                                 

When entering into the classroom the teacher candidates were instructed to choose a popsicle stick. on each stick there was a printed number on it. Each table was to organize themselves into a group containing one of each number (1-6). This is a great tactic and way at organizing group work. All students are mixed with a variety of levels and skills. Everyone has something to bring to the table and people will work hard to ensure not to let down their group partners. This also acts as a great way to keep kids on track instead of pairing them up with all of their friends they can socialize and mingle with other students in the classroom. I have seen a variety of methods when putting students into different groups and this is by far one of my favourite! Try it and let me know how the groups work out!

After meeting up with our group the instructions were to go to each station and complete the task with our friends. Each group member is given a clue that they read out and from there they can either, build the figures or find the solutions! The stations were enjoyable because it sets up that every member of it has a valuable part in order to complete the solution. Everyone is given importance in the group and this motivates everyone to work together which results in SUCCESS!

Here are some of the stations our group visited and completed - together!

 

Most successful group work/ collaboration experience that I have had yet! Collaboration is important, for more reasons than just working as a team. It teaches students to be able to provide feedback, receive feedback, work together, orally communicate their thoughts and understandings and overall will benefit them in their future. With any job and career one has collaboration will be a component of it. By students learning these life skills through their education they will not only succeed through the class they are taking but also in their future. Three cheers for group work!!! Cannot wait to try an activity like this within my classroom!

And for a little inspiration as you leave my blog today here is BILL NYE THE SCIENCE GUY!!

Couldn't have said it better Bill,

Emily