Completely understanding decimals can be incredibly tricky. We are asking kids to begin to understand quantities that are less than one. There are many mistakes I see students make when working with decimals. Teaching place value of decimals in a way students understand is essential. Decimal Place Value Mistake #1: The ‘Oneths’ Place Ok, WE know …
Teaching Place Value of Decimals to Help Avoid Common Misconceptions Read More »
Learning how to teach students to take notes not only benefits students, but makes the job of a teacher so much easier. Why Note-Taking? Note-taking is a life-long skill. To this day, if I take notes during a staff meeting, I am much more aware of what I need to remember than I will be …
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Many students struggle with place value concepts. I’m here to show you how to model decimals in a way that will help your students build the decimal place value understanding they need. Have you ever had a guest in your house help out in the kitchen? They grab a tool you use regularly, and totally …
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Picture books for math lessons can make things interesting for students. Some teachers are hesitant to try something new. One of my favorite classes I took during my teacher education program was a course on using children’s literature. The absolute best thing about it was that the instructor read us a new picture book every …
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Planning the sequence of math lessons for elementary students can be complicated. It’s overwhelming if you aren’t sure where to begin. There are several factors to consider when planning out the sequence of your math lessons. You must know your end goal, students’ starting skill set, and the sub-skills students need to be successful in …
Math Lessons for Elementary: How to Plan the Most Effective Sequence Read More »
Are you struggling to find enough formative assessment examples to use in your classroom? Formative assessment is a key to guiding your math instruction in a direction that is most useful to your student’s needs. The problem is, we often need to keep students engaged and not over-test them throughout our math lessons. Every class …
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When I first started teaching, I had the fantastic opportunity to roll up from fourth grade to fifth grade and got to keep about half of my students. There are so many reasons this was totally amazing, but it also taught me many valuable lessons. One of those lessons was about the importance of spiral …
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Vocabulary in math instruction is much more important than you ever realized. Explicit vocabulary instruction leads to improved math comprehension, increased test scores, and student confidence. These teaching strategies for vocabulary will improve your instruction and your students’ confidence! Have you ever seen the Game Night Episode of Big Bang Theory? In this episode, Sheldon, Penny, …
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When was your last long meeting or staff development day? Did you enjoy sitting in a chair for hours on end? Or even better, sitting on a bench in the cafeteria? Now, how would you feel about doing this every single day? Does this sound like a nightmare? I know it sure does to me! …
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Talking about math can be hard. Many people (teachers included) have a very difficult time feeling confident when it is time to express mathematical ideas using words. They may get nervous, lack the confidence to express their ideas clearly, or be lacking the vocabulary knowledge to explain their thinking. I can help with several tips …
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