This chapter discusses using math warm-ups in guided math lessons for middle school students. It recommends making warm-ups a daily routine that review previous concepts and introduce new ones. Various types of warm-ups are described, like number of the day, data collection and analysis, and logic puzzles. The chapter provides examples of warm-ups and suggests they stretch students intellectually like exercise stretches muscles. It also discusses facilitating small group and independent student discussions during warm-ups.

1. From the
perspectiv
e of a
GUIDED MATH middle
grades
BOOK STUDY teacher…
Chapter 3 :
Using Math Warm-Ups in Guided Math
© Michelle Lundy
~2012~

2. WARM-UPS SET THE TONE FOR THE
DAY
Needs to be a routine
1 or 2 quick tasks
Students can complete on their own
Discussed as whole-group
Should be carefully planned with student
needs in mind
Standards-based
Review problems
Topic of the day
Look ahead to future concepts

3. DOES THIS WORK FOR MIDDLE
GRADES?
I can’t think of a
single classroom
at my school not
conducting daily
warm-ups.
In fact, they are
part of our lesson
plan.

4. MATH STRETCHES
Just like an
athlete
needs to
stretch to
maximize
performance,
so do

5. TYPES OF MATH STRETCHES
Data Collection & Analysis
Number of the Day
What’s Next
How Did My Family Use Math
Last Night?
________Makes Me Think Of
…..

6. DATA COLLECTION & ANALYSIS
Use questions that will allow for data
collection
Decide best graph {students eventually
do this in middle school}
Real graphs ~ actual packs of crackers
Pictographs ~ pictures of items
Symbolic graph ~ cubes or sticky notes {used
more in middle school}
Have manipulatives available
Students love comparison and want to
analyze

7. NUMBER OF THE DAY
Teacher writes Middle
number on chart
paper School
Students write a Examples
different 52
representation as
they come in 7x
This is very 1.93 x 104
critical for
students to

8. WHAT’S NEXT
Teacher has pattern written on
chart paper or white board
Students fill in blanks as they come
in
Don’t correct students’ work yet
Middle School Examples
1, 4, 9, ___, ___, 36, ___, ___, etc…
1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, etc…

9. HOW DID MY FAMILY USE MATH
LAST NIGHT?
Cooking Shows
Shopping students that
Sales math IS all
Eating out around them!
Driving distance
Math is used
Gas mileage
Time
in daily
Weights
activities.

10. _______ MAKES ME THINK OF…
Great for activating strategy
Concept word displayed on board
Students may ONLY write a word, no
numbers or pictures
Middle School Examples
Equations/Inequalities
Surface Area
Probability
Absolute Value

11. FIGURE 3.1 TYPES OF DISCUSSIONS:
SYNOPSIS {PAGE 77}
Discussion Teacher Role Level of
Type Support
Think-Aloud Discusses reason for Highest level of teacher
choosing graph, shares ideas, support
models use, and records
analysis
Guided Carefully crafts guided Moderate to high level of
questions, rewords student teacher support
responses, and records
analysis
Facilitated Asks open-ended questions, Low to moderate level of
focuses discussions, may teacher support
record analysis or have
students write in journals
Independent Records students Low level of teacher support
observations before
discussion time and, if

12. FIGURE 3.2 MORNING STRETCH
PLAN FOR A WEEK: SYNOPSIS
{PAGE 86}
Day of the Morning Stretch
Week
Monday Number of the Day
Tuesday What’s Next
Wednesday How Did My Family Use
Math Last Night?
Thursday ______ Makes Me Think
Of…
Friday Data Collection

13. OTHER SUGGESTIONS
Mathematical Current Events
Politics
Economics
Stock Market
Statistics for sports, wars
Mathematics-Related Classroom
Responsibilities
Taking attendance
Choosing best way to display data
Self-monitoring with graphs

14. OTHER SUGGESTIONS
 Calendar Board
 Problem of the Day often part of this time
 Learn math incrementally
 Allows for visual models
 Designed for growth in mathematical language
 Typically in elementary classrooms
 I don’t see being able to spend time on this every day
in a middle school environment due to time
constraints.
 I do have a plan for using this set -up in a remediation
class we have each day during what my school calls
ELT. This is typically ‘bubble students’ on our state -
mandated test. These basic skills would be perfect for

15. CAN GUIDED MATH WORK IN A
MIDDLE GRADES CLASSROOM?

16. SOURCE
Author: Laney
Sammons
Website:
http://www.guidedmath.org/