Alternative Teaching Techniques for Struggling Students

1. Helping the Student Struggling with
Math Word Problems
Alternative Teaching Techniques for Struggling Students

2.  Achieving in math depends greatly on the student’s
ability in problem solving. Math word problems are
common in standardized tests as well as in everyday
assignments. When solving a word problem, the
student must be able to take the words in the
problem and translate them into mathematical
language. This presents an obstacle to children
lacking in oral and in written vocabulary. Other
students struggle with the computation required to
solve the word problem. For these students, some
alternative teaching techniques that you can use
are…

3. Talk about and Rephrase the Word Problem
 For the student with low language skills, give the
child the opportunity to verbalize the problem or talk
about possible solutions so that he practices the
language.
 Simplify the language in the word problem by
paraphrasing it using synonyms and/or easier
vocabulary.

4. Visually Simplify the Word Problem
 Let the student circle key information or use color
highlighters.
 Have the student circle the necessary information
and then cross out the rest. Then have the student
replace the operational words with symbols to help in
setting up the problem.
 With the student, go through every sentence in the
story, asking if the child needs the information in that
sentence to solve the problem. If it is not needed,
have the student cross out that sentence.

5.  Prepare, and put on charts or index cards, examples of
word problems with the important information already
highlighted or underlined so that the student has models
to look at and to follow. Also, highlight the words that give
clues in which operations to use.
 To reinforce the auditory information, use visual
representations like pictures, symbols, maps, number
lines, and flowcharts.
 Help the student develop a mental image of the problem,
which the child can reinforce by drawing pictures.
 Draw a frame or border around each major section in the
word problem, or around the different steps.

6. Sequence the Information
 Have the student number the information in the word problem
according to the order in which he needs to use it.
 Use a stepwise approach; that is, teach the student to think of
problem solving as a sequence of steps rather than something that
you do all at once.
 The steps in the problem can be visually separated using color. For
example, the first step is always red, the second step is always blue,
and the third step is always green. When you use a sequential color
procedure, you can tell at a glance where the student is stuck in the
problem solving process.
 To make coloring effective, specifically discuss with the student why
the sentences in the word problem have different colors.

7.  Show the student a word problem with the answer,
but not the steps, and have the child find the steps
used to reach the answer.
 In a solved problem, present the steps required in a
random order, so that the student sequences the
steps in the right order. Have the child explain the
sequence.
 Before the student starts solving the problem, have
her hypothesize the number of steps needed.

8. Simplify the Computation in the Word Problem
 Use simpler calculations to control the effect of a low computational
skill in problem solving.
 If the order in which the student solves the computation does not
affect the final answer, reorder the steps in the word problem so that
the student handles first the computation that is easier for him, e.g.
he solves first the addition step, and then the long division part.
 Have the student handle one computation only (e.g. addition), and
you or a peer solve the hardest computation (e.g. long division).
 Give the student some credit for correct reasoning, even if the
computation is incorrect.
 When the student has difficulty with the computation involved, have
him substitute smaller numbers (e.g. 4*8 in place of 465*86) so that
he can understand the operation involved, and then he calculates
using the original numbers

9.  Have the child substitute easier numbers (e.g. 50*40
instead of 49*38) to get an idea of what the answer
is. Then have the child calculate using the original
numbers.
 Have the student work on fewer problems, e.g. five
problems instead of twelve, so that he spends more
time talking through the algorithm or process at the
conceptual level.

10. Break One Longer Problem into Easier Ones
 Have the student try to find part of the answer and
see if she can proceed from there.
 Have the student break the longer problem into two
or three mini-problems (each step is a mini-problem),
solve each mini-problem, and then combine the
results. Alternatively, the child can try to break the
problem into smaller or simpler questions, answer
each question, and then combine the results.

11. Teach the Student a Strategy for Problem Solving
 Give the student a scaffolded strategy for solving multi-
steps problems. For example:
1. Read the problem
2. Reread the problem to find out what information is
giving you (What do I know?)
3. Reread the problem and decide what is asking you to
do (What do I need to find out?)
4. Identify the operation(s) you need to solve the problem
5. Use objects or draw pictures to visualize and solve the
problem
6. Write your partial answers to the problem
7. Combine your partial answers to solve the problem

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