1. Being Better at Math Strategies for Elementary Mathematics Paula L. Naugle 4 th Grade Teacher Bissonet Plaza/ JPPSS

2. Lack of prior knowledge Missing foundational skills Limited experiences with “doing” math “ One right answer” approach “ Permission” to be “bad” at math Others? What Makes Math Difficult?

4. Strategies Constant exposure to meaningful math Allow students to verbalize their thinking Provide for meaningful use of manipulatives Help students develop “bridge” tools Create “reference” resources

5. Every day, provide meaningful math investigations through manipulatives, games, puzzles, and stories. Content example: Guess My Unit PIG Closest to 100 Two of Everything Strategy 1 - Constant exposure to meaningful math

6. Select a unit. Give clues about your unit until someone guesses what it is. mile centimeter pound gram inch kilometer cup decade quart milligram foot liter Guess My Unit

7. The goal of the game is to be the first player to reach 100. On your turn, roll the dice as many times as you would like, mentally keeping a running total of the sum. When you decide to stop rolling, record your total for that turn and add it to the total from any previous turns. If a 1 comes up on one of the dice, your turn is over and you score 0 points for that round. If you roll a 1 on both dice, you lose your turn and ALL points. Playing PIG

8. Roll a die. Decide if the number represents 10 or 1. For example, if you roll a 4, you must decide if you would like 4 or 40 points. Pass the die to the next player who also rolls once and decides how many points. After each turn, add your points. Play 7 rounds (you must play all rounds) The player who is closest to 100 (above or below) after 7 rounds wins! Closest to 100

9. Every day, expect students to explain their thinking. Content example: Math journals or blogs Follow Me NIM Strategy 2 - Allow students to verbalize their thinking

10. Math Journals or Blogs Everyday I have students write explanations to math problems in their math journals (Spiral notebooks – so last century). I will have my students keep their math reflections on a blog from now on. (21 st century) www.kidsblog.org or www.weebly.com Bennett’s Blog

11. Follow Me (I Have … Who Has…?) Make your own set using this site – http://www.senteacher.org/Worksheet/46/Loopcards.xhtml

12. Follow Me (I Have … Who Has…?)

13. Select a partner and count out 21 beans. One partner begins by selecting 1, 2, or 3 beans from the pile. The second partner then takes 1, 2, or 3 from the remaining beans. The person who takes the last bean loses! NIM

15. Manipulatives should be available and integrated into every math lesson. Content example: Loose Caboose True Blue Snap cube measurement Strategy 3 - Provide for meaningful use of manipulatives

17. Trina wants to win a goldfish at the carnival. In order for her to win, she needs to pick 2 blue tiles out of the “True Blue prize bag,” without looking. If the prize bag contains 3 blue tiles and 3 red tiles, what is the probability of winning the game? Predict the number of wins you will get in 40 trials. Then, conduct the trials and record the outcomes. True Blue

18. Students should be taught specific strategies to improve memory and understanding. Content example: Coin Chants Finger Multiplication Strategy 4 - Help students develop “bridge” tools

19. Coin Chants

20. (Click on the words above and the video will open in a player and start playing.) Finger Multiplication

21. Students should maintain a math journal or blog to record and store math resources. Content example: Gallon map Big Inch DMSCBS Rounding Cadence Real Life Math Chart Strategy 5 - Create “reference” resources

22. Gallon Map

23. 0 1 1 2 2 2 1 4 2 4 4 4 3 4 1 8 2 8 3 8 4 8 5 8 6 8 7 8 8 8 The BIG Inch

25. Estimate means to round a number Look at the neighbor and remember Round down 1, 2 Round down 3, 4 Round down 1, 2, 3, 4 Estimate means to round a number When I say zero, you say down. Look at the neighbor and remember Zero, down, zero, down. Round up 6, 7 Round up 8, 9 When I say estimate, you say round. Round up 6, 7, 8, 9 Estimate, round, estimate, round. Go Math! The number 5 is in the middle But rounding it is no riddle Round up the number 5 Round up the number 5 Always round up the number 5 ( Blue = Boy sing and girls repeat White = boys Red = girls Yellow = everyone ) Rounding Cadence written by Paula L. Naugle

27. Some of the material contained here I adapted from Heather Sparks 2008-2009 Oklahoma Teacher of the Year & 8th grade algebra and pre-algebra teacher Taft Middle School, OKC Public Schools