After working on project three I really focused on the questions that the teachers asked in the lessons on the book. I really liked how they asked things like "Who can explain the strategy Helaina and Lucy used?" This is a question which is open ended, but does not make one specific child answer the question. I really feel that paying attention to these aspects of lessons will help me become a better teacher in the aspect that I will learn how to better faciliate children thinking.
I also noticed that throughout the book the children had to do a lot of problem solving. I feel that problem solving, the way they talk about it in the Young Mathematicians at Work, is not always a task that is empasized in school. In the book the children have to problem solve by figuring out a way to solve a problem, not using an algorithm to solve the problem. This is a very different way of solving problems than I have been used to in my school experience. I really like the begining of chapter 4 when they talked about the student trying to create three equal parts out of a strip of paper. I also liked how they talked about how the child did succeed in the task, but how the question became what the thirds were of. It is through reading the math books this semester that I learned that digging into this deeper thinking is what causes children to move to the next level of mathematics.
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Kathryn,
ReplyDeleteI also really liked how the teacher would ask his class things such as, "Who can explain the strategy Helaina and Lucy used?" I love that it is an open ended question and it isn't directed to one particular student. I used to hate when I was in elementary school and a teacher would just call on me without my hand being raised. I was never prepared to answer her/him, I would get extremely nervous, etc. I think providing the class with open ended questions is a better strategy and the students who are prepared to answer it may do so without pressure. I also noticed how the students work a lot on problem solving in this book. I have noticed in my placement that the students RARELY do problem solving. They get lots of worksheets with algorithms and take time tests all the time. These chapters helped me realize the benefits of problem solving and how they will help students have a better understanding of not only their own learning, but also mathematical concepts.