[Photo by Passion of Bilwa.]
I’ve put the word problems from my elementary problem solving series into printable worksheets:
Math Teachers: Be Less Helpful
[Dan Myer on YouTube.]
I especially like the “4 layers of a story problem” concept, which helped me understand how Dan converts textbook problems into What Can You Do With This? challenges.
Math Teachers at Play #25 via Point of Inflection
Featuring a wide range of topics, from an early arithmetic game to a logarithm murder mystery:
Enjoy!
The Cookie Factory Guide to Long Division
[Photo by scubadive67.]
Help! My son was doing fine in math until he started long division, but now he’s completely lost! I always got confused with all those steps myself. How can I explain it to him?
Long division. It’s one of the scariest of the Math Monsters, those tough topics of upper-elementary and middle school mathematics. Of all the topics that come up on homeschool math forums, perhaps only one (“How can I get my child to learn the math facts?”) causes parents more anxiety.
Most of the “helpful advice” I’ve seen focuses on mnemonics (“Dad/Mother/Sister/Brother” to remember the steps: Divide, Multiply, Subtract, Bring down) or drafting (turn your notebook paper sideways and use the lines to keep your columns straight). I worry that parents are too focused on their child mastering the algorithm, learning to follow the procedure, rather than on truly understanding what is happening in long division.
An algorithm is simply a step-by-step recipe for doing a mathematical calculation. But WHY does the algorithm work? If our students could understand the reason for the steps, they wouldn’t have to work so hard on memory tricks.
Online Math To Play With
This month’s Carnival of Mathematics is an interactive mind map. Click on the image to check it out, and then click on the + signs to expand each topic. Enjoy!
Meanwhile, April is Mathematics Awareness Month, and this year the focus is on sports. The MAM website features articles, activities, and posters for your classroom. In addition, the ever-helpful Sravani has collected an extensive set of links for your browsing pleasure.
He’s Alive!
What a Teacher Wants To Hear
I finally get it — you don’t have to worry about memorizing a bunch of formulas if you just understand where they come from. You can always figure them out again.
— unidentified student in Doug’s class
from the comments on Kate’s post Formulas? What Formulas?
Denise Gaskins' Let's Play Math 