Teaching Math Counts

~ Trenton ~
2005-2006

Quest Home | Trenton Home | The Math Forum @ Drexel

General Strategies . . .

. . . that improve understanding, computational fluency, and maybe even test scores!

Number Sense:

• Pay attention to parity (even/odd).
• Pay attention to final digits.
• Make estimation a habit.
• Use a second approach to check your work.

Operation Sense:

• Practice giving scenarios (short word problems) and have students determine what operation to use and how to use it.
• Don't teach "key words" to determine what operation to use. They can be very misleading.
• Help students develop their ability to visualize what is happening in a problem.

Computation:

• Teach a variety of algorithms and allow children to use whichever they are most comfortable with.
• Help children become fluent with number facts.

Communication:

• Have students paraphrase problems.
• Model good communication, emphasizing precise mathematical language.
• Create a Word Wall of math vocabulary.
• Build on the successful features of your literacy program.
• Have students rehearse math language orally before attempting to write.

Representation:

• Help students become skillful with a variety of representation forms: diagrams, tables, graphs, equations.
• Teach them to label diagrams and identify units.

Quest Home | Trenton Home | The Math Forum @ Drexel

Last updated January 30, 2006