The Number Line in the Common Core

Strategies

Math Talks

There are four main principles taken from ⁵Intentional Talk that I follow when first implementing a Math Talk. First, the specific talk should achieve a specific mathematical goal. Well-defined goals will lead to more focused discussions. Second, students should know how to share their own ideas. A formal and transparent framework for professional dialogue to happen should be well known to students well before the first talk takes place.  See A1 for the particular norms in my classroom. Third, I orient students to the mathematical ideas generated from the class.  Lastly, all ideas are valuable.  These cultural norms harness a safe environment for students to focus and critique the ideas of others and not the students themselves. 

Whatever the protocol used, I make sure that my talks are consistent in format and in delivery.  The idea or style of talk may change, but the groundwork and norms are well laid out at the beginning of each year and class. Talks should range in time from 10-15 minutes, but if they go longer than normal, that’s quite acceptable. As long as that first principle remains intact throughout the talk, there is no need to end a productive talk early.  As far as frequency of talks concerned, this unit suggests that talks happen regularly three times per week. Prompts should have more than one answer and allow students to make meaning through multiple representations.

After the prompt has been given, I allow for 1-2 minutes of think time. When it is time for whole class sharing I scribe for my students for every talk, putting the name of the student next to the idea. That student owns that idea and it is crucial for students to see where that idea came from.

Due to the large portion of students whose primary language is not English, I make it a point in my class to have an organic, discussion-based approach for the major themes in each new unit. There is a mix of different levels of English fluency as well. ³The theme of Trilingualism needs to be incorporated here into many classrooms as well as my own. There are three languages that need to be taught in school: home language, formal language, and professional language. Home language is language spoken amongst peers within a specific community. Formal language is spoken in a school setting while professional language is spoken on the job site, in this case we can call it the technical language spoken for each specific subject. Teachers should offer guidelines to help students overcome the obstacles in the learning process. Instead of providing the ⁴corrective model, teachers need to create a discussion of that nature of language. This will then open up the change of discourse of the “I’m not good at math concept” we are all too familiar with as math educators. 

Math Vocabulary with ELL Populations

⁶In order to have successful children learning English, and in this case foundations in math, teachers need to instruct subject matter using simplified language with pictures, gestures, and demonstrations. This is exactly where the vocabulary will be so critical to develop deeper conceptual understanding.  When students are using the correct terminology, it allows for richer class discussion while maintaining precision in explaining how they arrived at that particular solution. Teachers must respect and admire the language strengths students bring to schools.  Only when students are seen as assets to the learning environment, can society bridge the gap between cultures. ⁷Children of poverty are able learners and teachers need to realign strategies by differentiating instruction. Vocabulary review along with pictured notes is vital to not only mathematics but other content areas. Teachers need to also accept the language in which students learn.

With each new vocabulary word that my students learn, they will put the following pieces into their notes: pictures, that vocabulary word in Spanish, and of course the definition. This is very important for my students to make the connection to their home language as well as the exact terminology that we use in class. This will help those who struggle with using academic language in their responses to explain how they did a particular problem set. The direction of standardized tests will assess my students on exactness of how they arrived at a problem’s answer.