Reflect
Read the two summaries linked below to get a better understanding of the design principles and key structures of Illustrative Math. Then watch the short video to learn more about the 5 Practices for Orchestrating Productive Math Discussions.
Consider
- What is resonating with you from these readings or this video?
- What caused you to pause and think?
- What principles or structures from your own math classroom align with some of these beliefs or components?
Respond and Interact
After reading and watching, please post your response to one {or more} of the prompts above. Read our colleagues' reflections. Feel free to respond to someone by sharing a comment, insight or interesting possibility.
After watching the video one thing that has resonated with me is the the select and sequence. This is something I am trying to be more intentional this year by selecting work from students and in an order to present student thinking so it build on one another. I think the math lesson activities does a great job of this naturally, how the activities build on one another. I am also trying to look at the lessons and look for places where I would need to show student work in a certain order. There have been many times where I am teaching and I have just asked for volunteers and it can either derail my teaching or enrich by what they are sharing. So I think being more thoughtful and knowing the purpose of the lesson will help those different types of thinkers.
ReplyDeleteOh gosh, tell me about it. The derailing made me laugh because sometimes my inner conversation is just thinking..."Oh, no don't say it, don't say it. Aww, man they said it. " I think most of my derailing feelings come from when I feel rushed and want to be sure we discuss other strategies that are more aligned with the goal. I guess that is nice with pair shares and small group sharing prior to whole group discussions. A lot to think about!
DeleteI had the same reaction watching the video and thinking about how to sequence the different student solutions to the gear problem. Usually I am looking for a variety of models that third graders are using to solve problems. I hadn't really considered the order in which to share the responses. This inspires me to see student work with a new lens and share it in a more thoughtful way.
DeleteRight now, immediately after a PD and the content of part 2- I realize how thoughtful all this curriculum is. The routines and procedures ( and also the gazzillion papers and stages) everything is very purposeful. The thing -is I have not done much "planning with intention." I kind of flip through the slideshow, the book, and click around on the site-kind of frantically each day before my math block and of hope for the best. All right maybe I'm being dramatic, but goodness without really understanding what to expect and help students make connections I'm definitely missing the opportunity to leverage some of these practices because of my lapse of understanding. probably where and why I may be struggling. I am still trying to figure out how to "balance" the rigor of the expectations. Where should I focus and how can I help my students who need more practice w/procedural fluency. I think for now, I will focus on the 0-2 and really go in with a better plan of where students are and what they will need to help them do their best to meet our grade level standards. Another aspect that I thought was interesting was the math journal prompts. I thought it was neat how the prompts aren't just a reflection after a test or generic prompts. The prompts almost seemed to humanize math and the progression. I liked how it allowed students to think about things that they may have never been asked. It really is asset based!
ReplyDelete“Effective teaching requires being able to support students as they work on challenging tasks without taking over the process of thinking for them”. This statement was one of many that jumped out at me. We want to raise up THINKERS not mimickers. We want our students to be able to explain how they solved the problem, not how their teacher solved the problem. It requires a whole lot of self-control for me not to jump in and show kids how to get started and/or model a more efficient way to solve a problem. But when I do that...I'm robbing them of their chance to think.
ReplyDeleteWe are only allowed to ask questions and not tell. We also use the sentence, "Don't steal my joy." This means don't tell me how to solve the problem.
DeleteKathleen the few times I have had the opportunity to be in your math lessons I have really enjoyed how you guide and encourage each student in a positive way. You can see how they really are 'thinkers" and I love the "don't steal my joy" that is my favorite!
DeleteGiving the students the tools to be "thinkers" is so important and gives the confidence to explain how they got their answers.
What is resonating from the video is the intentional planning and anticipating student need. What I also noticed is each student will have different work and different work level. I see this happening with our current math curriculum as well. I see different thinking based on the problems. The intentional planning is important to note especially when you know your students struggles and strengths. I also noted down that all students are capable learners! I agree with this because this curriculum gives opportunity to ALL learners.
ReplyDeleteWhat I love the most is when they think about solving a problem in ways I did not.
DeleteI have used these practices before with the representation of mathematical thinking modeled with manipulatives, computation and writing. It seems to work best with a very rich task. A GF three act task is perfect. In a task such as this there is an opportunity for diverse thinking and a variety of strategies. In becoming familiar with our new curriculum, I will be looking for ways to implement this practice more often. A math talk is a good place for starters, but I need to consider more. And give myself permission to use 3 act tasks because they are so rich. But this first year I am very concerned about keeping up.
ReplyDeleteToday I used the measuring cup activity as an opportunity to orchestrate productive math discussions. It was a rich task. Each small group had a large white board to show their work and thinking. They had to explain using some kind of visual representation as well as numbers. All members had to participate. We talked about noticing and wondering. We also had museum walks so students could see the different ways to solve the same problem. As students worked through the different 3 cup watermelon questions and we shared their work, students overall became more skilled. There are opportunities with this curriculum. I just need to look more carefully.
ReplyDeleteI love it that you are intentionally searching for rich tasks in our curriculum. The last problem on the "Additional Practice Problems" usually has a pretty good task (it is called the Exploration Problem). Here is an example from 4th grade: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1eBz5sLM9EFf0gZDWOebrxiYa8LctXLBmiKxIFd343Ig/edit?usp=sharing
DeleteAs we were nearing the end of Unit 2 in third grade recently I felt the class needed some more practice and explore the additional practice problems from our new math curriculum. I recalled the content of the first video in this class and worked with the most challenging problem first. The discussion was rich! I also just checked out the link you shared with Kathleen. I loved the number line representations for problem 3, but the last problem, #8, is rich with possibilities!
DeleteI was curious about the journal writing prompts. Is anyone using them? I was thinking they might be easily added to the Cool Down sheets where teachers could have students circle the prompt and then jot down their thinking.
ReplyDelete@ Meribeth - I haven't seen anyone using the journal writing prompts yet.
DeleteI love that this lesson brought 3 act tasks back to the front of my mind and also really want to try the Journaling to get a chance to hear everyone's thinking not just those that are more outspoken. I feel like journaling might be a safe place to even ask questions or clarify thinking for some. I also think taking a look at the Minds Online would be great. My concern is I am feeling fragmented bit and with so much great stuff, what do I sift through in the limited time I have to get the greatest bang for the buck. Lots to absorb.
ReplyDeleteOne thing that really resonated with me was the use of the prompts at the end of a lesson for students to write about math after lesson. I love the Cool Downs each day as a quick formative assessment to see where kids are after each lesson, but I've taken note of these writing prompts & and I am going to start adding them to the Cool Downs periodically to encourage the kids to think deeper about math & how they feel about the lesson. When the students are done with their cool downs I have them leave them on their desks while I walk around and check/record each student's answer - usually when they are done, they can pull out a book and read it while I'm circling the room. This writing prompt will be a great thing to implement that they can complete on the back of their cool down while they are waiting!
ReplyDeleteI love this idea Krysta! Let me know how it goes after you try it. :)
DeleteThanks Renae! I absolutely will!
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