My student teaching experiences have been unique to say the least. I have found some new ways to introduce content literacy, which is encouraging. During a day devoted to vocabulary, my host teacher and I incorporated a different definitions technique. We allowed the students to make a sort of "hide-away" vocabulary organizer. The organizer included the word, the definition, and an example. I think the students prefer the new method versus the traditional method. While teaching this technique, I also noticed that many of my students were not using the glossary and were having struggles developing definitions and examples using the chapters. Taking a peers advice, I decided to take the time to explain the uses of the glossary. We actually discovered that the glossary also incorporated examples for each vocabulary word. Talk about killing two birds with one stone...
I am now working on word problem literacy. I believe that students struggle with the mathematical interpretations of word problems. I have noticed that they have struggled with simply pulling out the given information. Thus, we have devoted some time this week to word problem literacy techniques. If anyone had any advice on this, I would appreciate it.
I still have difficulties with avoid readicide in my classroom. I want to incorporate reading, yet we do not use our textbooks often. I am thinking about incorporating math journals during my TWS and maybe developing a mathematics history assignment.
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I think using a math history assignment would be very good. It would cross disciplines and get kids to learn more about how the math we use today came about. Students learn a few mathematicians but don't really know how they came about learning the concepts we use today. I think you should do that assignment and help the kids in researching the history of math.
ReplyDeleteSounds pretty cool Mikey--I like that you are finding ways to incorporate literacy into your classroom. I know I am not a math person but I was a skeptic about it, yet you seem to have found a technique that is working. I also think it was good that you went over glossary use...
ReplyDeleteI like Paul's idea of the math-history assignment. This is really interesting because like he says, in math you spend so much time learning about the equations and infinite numbers, but what about the people? There are people behind everything, so maybe teach them about mathematicians and see the result...who knows!
I hope all is well with the teaching! See you soon!
Wow, Mikey - you are making head way with math literacy!
ReplyDeleteFor the small amount of text, word problems are very complex in nature. Watch your students and see what they do (and don't do)? Where are their confusions?
What I notice in students is that they try to read word problems - even complex and multi-question ones, straight through as with narrative, and then they become hopelessly lost and confused.
Word problems require "close reading," that is, reading in chunks and thinking - processing each part.
Readers must also identify the important information - based on what the questions are asking. And - there are often multiple questions.
Then, they must translate this information into the math formulas and symbols - a completely different language system.
I'd suggest being "metacognitive" about how you approach and solve the word problems. Notice what hang-ups your students have and give them strategies for close reading and thinking, processing the information, and translating it into the math computation. Most of the time, it's the reading, understanding the questions, and identifying what is important information that hangs them up.
In addition to a way to approach these problems, your thinking aloud and sharing your thought processes should help.
You will make a difference!
As far as students struggling and not using the glossary, I've seen in my class that regardless of their access, very few students utilize the tools at hand to complete a task. I don't know if this is because they don't know about it (glossary, index, etc...) or if they're too lazy, because I've seen a little bit of both (depending on the student). I've had students turn in work with blank answers and I'm dumbfounded as to why they don't ask me to help them out. A lot of it results in one student doing all the work, and the rest free-loading off that student.
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