tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6651514617266100245.post5042667552539072716..comments2024-01-03T04:58:04.221-05:00Comments on I Hope This Old Train Breaks Down...: Thinking About Elementary MathUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6651514617266100245.post-1632299491937126602013-01-14T22:00:00.156-05:002013-01-14T22:00:00.156-05:00You are spot on! These are the key areas for succe...You are spot on! These are the key areas for success in algebra, and I am having difficulty reaching some of the kids in my on-level classes because they lack understanding of all the basics. I saw Steve Leinwald at the NCTM conference talk about he drills these basic concepts into middle & high school kids by starting every class with a 5 minutes do now of quick questions on the basics -- multiplication facts, measurement estimation, operations with fractions, rounding -- love this ideaJessica Aitorohttp://mrsaitoromath.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6651514617266100245.post-24626254327898282412012-12-06T09:24:50.979-05:002012-12-06T09:24:50.979-05:00I've never seen the triangle before, thanks so...I've never seen the triangle before, thanks so much for sharing! Did another round of tutoring with the 5-grader today, and I've realized she doesn't really understand the relationship between multiplication & division, so the triangle is perfect timing. I'm also brainstorming bringing in playdough maybe to help her understand the concept behind fractions, but still thinking about how that will work.Amynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6651514617266100245.post-68500581178455307912012-12-03T06:48:49.715-05:002012-12-03T06:48:49.715-05:00These are great musings, and I really like the tri...These are great musings, and I really like the triangular diagram. It's clearly a fact family without having to explicitly say, "This is a fact family" and write out 4 equations. I often struggle with teaching decimal division too. I think having estimation skills is so much more valuable than doing an algorithm, but sometimes it takes a long time to also teach estimation, especially when kids haven't had lots of time to develop number sense in the younger grades. I've taught grades 3-8, and I completely agree that using manipulatives is so so so important. I like the way you teach division of fractions (bc I teach it that way too!) and one more thing to note is that 1/3 divided by 2 is like saying I have 1/3 of a chocolate bar and divide it by 2 people, how much does each person get? Understanding the difference between sharing and grouping when dealing with division problems is key to teaching this kind of fraction division as well. Rachel Kirchnerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10896311988735226805noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6651514617266100245.post-190539238608850912012-12-01T14:13:15.106-05:002012-12-01T14:13:15.106-05:00You've got some great points! We teach the stu...You've got some great points! We teach the students so many basics in the lower grades, but there's a disconnection in applying those skills. We teach converting fractions and decimals and how to estimate, but something gets lost as they move into higher levels of math. Do you think middle school is too late to teach the students the skills you mentioned? Is there room in the curriculum? This year, I'm really focusing on these kinds of skills. I feel as though I have to think out loud for the students to demonstrate the thinking and applying of skills that I want them to use. I am learning that the students have the skills, they just don't know when to use them. <br />Thanks for sharing!<br />Cindy<br />(@cgrmath)cgredconsultanthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00684476249710693553noreply@blogger.com