Madeline’s Math Blog

Week 8  In Class Activity Analysis               In class we completed an activity placing coordinates on a grid to make an image. It mentioned in the slideshow that this could be fun for holidays. I often hear the complaint that teachers don’t teach in the weeks leading up to Christmas. This activity would be a great way to create a holiday picture, while still teaching curriculum. The picture could make a Christmas tree, a wreath or a reindeer. If you didn’t want to be Christmas specific you could have it be an animal, like the shark we completed in class in a learning activity presentation. This also could be an interdisciplinary lesson, using art and math expectations. Connections to Reading     Small (2013) describes a plotting activity like the one in class, explaining that students plot points on a grid and connect the lines as they go (using both plot by 3, 2 and go right two and ...

Week 6  In Class Activity Analysis  In class we completed a group problem solving activity using proportions, then a gallery walk, using the one stay/two stray technique. After completing the problem, another group came, while I stayed, and they completed a speak out loud to determine the clarity of our communication (I could only listen). Then our group was given the option to clarify our answer further.   By looking at clarity of answer, instead of if it was right, places a focus on process instead of the correct answer, as well as how clear we could communicate our answers. Through feedback from classmates, students were able to understand how to ensure diverse groups could comprehend our math problem solving strategies, which would help improve not only our strategies, but allow other groups to consider different ways of solving and communicating the answer to the question. I would want to ensure students understand how to give constructive feedback, how to c...