What the Kids Want!

After discovering that some of my class still don't like maths (sob) I decided to find out exactly what they liked, didn't like so much, and what they thought I could do to make maths a most enjoyable class.
To be honest, I was really a bit disappointed that they didn't all love maths in Room 7. I thought I was doing pretty good, with all the fun activities, the problem solving groups, the art!
But no, not so. After devising a survey that the children happily (and honestly) filled in, I found out...

• some - would like worksheets please! 
• we want to have a maths games day again (I used to have games day Wednesdays when my class were streamed)
• we don't actually use the homework reflection card (and I thought this was such a great idea!)
• maths in Room 9 was the best fun

So... the first thing that I did was ask what made maths in Room 9 the best. Responses included games, the homework, and that it just was! I talked to Yvette to find out what she does in maths, but things have changed for all of us since beginning the Maths PLD, so it was not going to be as it was when those children were in her class.
Today I observed Yvette's maths lesson so that I could see what maths now looks like in Room 9. I saw super engaged, enthusiastic children, problem solving, talk moves, everything that we have learned being applied, and I gained some very "fun" ideas that I am eager to try!
I'm not going to put all my observation notes here, Yvette will probably put them on her blog anyway so you can check them out there.
It was a most worthwhile observation and I am grateful to Yvette for allowing me to come and watch.

I have warm up games every session, but games day Wednesdays were always so loud! While the majority of the class were focused on practising strategies through games, reinforcing ideas and increasing number knowledge, there were always a few that would be off task, mucking around, and not doing anything to actually extend themselves. Or they would be arguing over turns on the computers (10 minutes, maths games only, 1 person at a computer at a time) but at least they were using time measurement and an analogue clock! And during this time I would be trying to work with a small group.
So from now on, warm up games, whole class, and the opportunity to play other games when they have completed set tasks.
The homework reflection cards that I made... it turned out that they didn't really know what to do with them! So we had a few practises and now that they understand, I think they will be better used! My fault for not explaining properly.
And finally, for those children who love worksheets, and I can't for the life of me imagine why, I have shown them websites where they can select all the worksheets they could possibly want. Which leads me to another thing... next year I think that the children won't even need maths books. They are rarely used now, and a scrapbook would be a much better option.
Before I go, the fun thing we did do this week, totally unplanned, was begin a Post it note challenge. This was inspired by my daughter's email with a photo, she works for Office Max, showing a window decorated with Post it notes to create a big Angry Bird. Warehouse Stationery tried to outdo them with a Pacman design, and now it is a Post it note war. My class wanted to do their own, which they have started on using the grids in their maths books. I now have big plans for area and perimeter with this... there is so much we can do!
And I devised a geometry/measurement assessment task that just worked perfectly, I'll put a photo of that on next time because that's a whole new story!

Peer Observation

This was carried out a while ago, the 18th May. I never thought to copy it to my blog at the time, but here it is.
Observation notes from observation by Pam...

Kelly, first of all, thank you for allowing me to observe you in your wonderful learning environment.

These are the points I noted, while observing you working with Tekyllah and Kahla on 5 by 10. Or is it 10 by 5? I haven’t clarified this yet!

The focus for today was on subtraction facts and doubles.

• The two girls were totally engaged through out the whole session.
• You were using lots of relevant maths language.
• Clear instructions.
•  Wait time given.
• The girls were verbalising the maths they were doing.
• Lots of encouragement.
• You had a variety of quick, fun, maths games, that linked to the skills the girls were working on.

I will certainly be making the doubles game up for Xion, and will get to you the subtraction games that I have found successful.  I also agree with you that you need to pick the group carefully with this strategy, as some children don’t get a chance to answer as they process their thinking slower than some others.

Thanks again, Kelly.

I found Pam's feedback/feedforward really helpful. It's nice to just be able to discuss what you're doing and why with someone else, and to get ideas of where to next. Pam has great ideas and I appreciate her sharing them with me.
I keep changing and modifying the tasks, games, groups and individuals I work with for 10 x 5, and use it with Will for spelling as well. I know he gets extra assistance with Shelley and Kaye, but he just gets so excited about his weekly spelling test that we have to have our little daily practise! My class are so considerate when I am working with Will, they just get on with things quietly and let him have his time with me, one on one. Sometimes he follows me around on duty so we can verbally practise those rhyming words. And he will tell you all about his growing brain if you ask him about it!

Reflection

Tonight I am just quickly putting my thoughts down, we had Maths PD today and I need to write some things! I keep thinking about the quote in the reading we had by Richard DuFour, "Rather than listing what students need to do to correct the problem, educators need to address what they can do better collectively." I think that we do need to think about what we are doing, and I found the idea of intervention interesting. I like the idea of identifying struggling students through exit tickets (I've just started using these) to see exactly what needs to be focused on, and that intervention should be timely, directive, diagnostic and systematic. I admit that I am finding it hard to think of putting all of the blame for struggling students back on the teacher... the ones who don't or won't put in any effort at all... so now I'm thinking there has to be ways to get those children involved, eager to learn, wanting to contribute, and about all the fun things that we do in class... I guess you really never do get to a point where you have the whole thing perfected. I don't know whether or not I am making sense, but I'm posting it anyway. And one other thing that leads back to us as teachers continually trying to find ways that work... if everyone is capable of succeeding in maths (growth mindset - and yes I truly believe we all are) then why are there so many people (adults) out there that seem to not have a clue? Is it the way they were taught, they way that they learned, with their fixed mindsets? Is it always the teachers fault? And if, as adults, they still don't get it, why are they not trying to learn now? Why aren't we (as adults) taking responsibility for our own learning? I never want to stop learning.
And that all sounds like a load of waffle when I read it back but never mind, it's what I am thinking, even though I'm not really communicating with clarity and precision.

This was the awesome thing I took away from today's session...
click the link  Have you got maths eyes?

Area & Art

I saw a picture on pinterest and decided I could do this with the class as an art type activity (which I originally intended for early finishers) but then once I showed it to the class and started talking about how the squares for their creations would need to be accurate (we decided 6cm was a good size) it suddenly became a maths session. Folding the squares into the right shape meant it covered 1/4 of the area, we started with 8 squares by 8 squares, each one 3cm x 3cm covering the black background. I asked the class how big the background needed to be ( I had A4 black paper) so then they had to work out the area their work would cover. I had to get bigger sheets of black paper, and Finn and Sloan decided to go even bigger, making theirs 10 x 10.
Not only did we cover area, but perimeter and some pretty good multiplication strategies as well. 8 x 3cm, then 24 x 24 to get the area. 24 x 24 was interesting, one child suggested 20 x 20 + 4 x 4, so 416. The class were happy with this answer. I questioned them about this, but we run out of time. It wasn't until the following day that someone clicked, and was able to see where it was not right!
The larger sized one on display was easier for them to work out, and lead to discussion about the area of other shapes. Groups used the maths reflection cards at the end of the session to share new learning, think about what they have learnt, and what they would like to know. I collated their answers because they were just a little bit hard to read! Awesome because now we can look at the area of triangles and circles... and I love circles!

                                                                    Reflections

Our Little Maths Book!

I read The Grapes of Math to my maths class every year,  and it is always discussed, and the children like to read it to themselves afterward. This year, I read it to my class, and I guess because we had been working with arrays, and looking at patterns, and focusing on a variety of low floor, high ceiling problem solving activities, the discussion was just so much more in depth. I think the children could relate to, or understand the maths better, knew exactly what was being shown, and could identify the groupings, arrays and patterns. So I said, thinking aloud, "I wonder how hard it would be to make our own book?"
Here is the result of that wondering...