Effective Planning in Mathematics

The purpose of this blog is to outline the steps to plan an effective math program. Please scroll down to the very bottom of the blog and start at the first post to begin your math journey!

Cross Curricular Integration

With so many expectations to address throughout the curriculum, it is important to plan and integrate as many cross curricular expectations within your math program. In doing so, students will be able to connect mathematics to all areas of their lives and not see it as a separate subject.

There are many ways to integrate math into other subject areas...here are just a few examples:

• Mapping and Coordinate grids in Social Studies
  
• Kaleidoscopes for Art and Transformational Geometry
• Volume in Math and Science
  
• Communication processes in Mathematics and Literacy Expectations
  
• Create math videos to support Media Literacy, Oral, and Writing expectations
  
• Phys. Ed and numbers - group according to numbers, math physical exercises
  

Three Part Lessons in Mathematics

From unit plans, teachers can plan specific daily lessons to meet the needs of students.

The three part lesson in mathematics is a structure that enables students to review prior knowledge, practice problem solving skills and collaboration, as well as receive feedback.




Minds On (10-15 min)
The Minds On is usually a short activity, either whole class or partners, to activate prior knowledge and "warm up" the students for the main problem.

Action (30-40 min)
Once they are ready to go, students work in groups, (flexible grouping), and work out a rich open ended problem that will allow them to use a variety of strategies to determine a solution.

Consolidation and Connections (10-20 min)
Students can share their problem solving solution in a variety of formats: Math Congress (Parliament), Banshoe, or a Gallery Walk to name a few.
Once students have presented their work...this is where the rich teaching can occur based upon the needs of the group and what they have presented.
Anchor charts, highlights from the group can be created for further practice and review.

For more information: Read p.43 - 46 of A Guide To Effective Instruction in Mathematics, Kindergarten to Grade 6, Volume Three, Classroom Resources and Management

Unit Plans - Begin with the End in Mind!

Unit Plans in Mathematics are a series of tasks and activities that can be backward mapped from the expectations to make sure students have the necessary skills and knowledge to move onto other expectations and/or strands.

When creating unit plans, it's important to:

• scaffold lessons - lots of connections need to be pointed out!
  
• develop activities which support a variety of learning styles
  
• incorporate manipulatives
• use flexible groups
• perform assessment for, and as, learning
  
• incorporate real world applications for mathematics
• provide extensions to open ended problems
• Allow for revisions - make it a working and dynamic plan
  

Effective Long Range Plans

To create effective long range plans, teachers need to think about the following Q & A's:

Question: Where do I start with long range plans?

Answer: Always start with the Ministry Curriculum to determine the expectations for the grade(s) you will be teaching, as well as the previous year to see what they would have covered and the following year - to set goals!
Also talk to teaching partners, previous grade teachers, and post grade teachers to see what they have done, and/or hope to do!
Make sure to check other resources available to you at your school (texts), district, and online (EQAO).

Question: When do I teach certain strands?

Answer:
First determine the reporting requirements of your Board and which strands have to be reported on which report card.
Then, when creating your plans, make sure the students have the prior knowledge to attempt certain strands. For example, ensure students understand place value before trying to convert units in the Measurement strand.
Teachers can also check various math resources for planning calendars.

Question: How do I record long range plans?

Answer: A graphic organizer does the trick! The long range plans do not have to be as detailed as unit or lesson plans - they are more of an overview for the year.
http://www.eworkshop.on.ca/edu/resources/guides/Guide_Math_K_6_Volume_1.pdf

The Big Ideas

When planning an effective math program it can be very difficult to address every single expectation...another way to plan is to cluster your expectations around the Big Ideas!


For example, in Number Sense and Numeration, the Big Ideas for Grades 4-6 are:

• quantity
• operational sense
• relationships
• representation
• proportional reasoning
http://www.eworkshop.on.ca/edu/resources/guides/NSN_vol_1_Big_Ideas.pdf

By clustering expectations around these Big Ideas - students and teachers can go deeper into the math rather than trying to teach isolated expectations.

Big Ideas allow teachers to look from a larger perspective and provides them with opportunities to:

• Make instructional decisions based upon the needs of the students
• Identify what students have already learned
• Observe and track strategies and misconceptions
  
• Provide descriptive feedback to students
• Determine next steps for instruction
• Communicate with students and parents

http://www.eworkshop.on.ca/edu/resources/guides/Guide_Math_K_3_NSN.pdf

Traditional Mathematics!

The purpose of this blog is to support teachers with clear and effective planning tools and resources for mathematics.

To start with....let's watch a video on how they used to do math!