New School Signage Designed By Me!

As part of the digital team, at the end of the last Term, I designed some new signs for our library and school.  

We felt the need for the digital guidelines in kids speak, was really great and wanted to link it to our PB4L. I chose bright colours (from our virtues display) and words that students could read and understand. I love how it turned out and each class has one now too!

I also designed 5 WITS posters for around the school to remind students what to do on the playground when they have a problem. I used each of the 5 core virtues and the signs have been very well received by the school community. 

Bruce Moody Observation of Me

On Thursday Bruce observed me teach a maths group this lesson using some of what he has taught us. I wanted to use money as the 10 because it is easier to count in set 10's. I had done a lot of work around place value with this group so wanted to see if they could add and subtract using their place value knowledge in 10's. 

https://nzmaths.co.nz/resource/adding-tens

Resources: Mini whiteboards and pens, notes and coins, md book and pens.
On your whiteboards:
How much is the 2 worth in 24? The 4?   
How much is the 1 worth in 10?
1. if I had saved $24 to spend at my favourite shop Kmart and my Mum gave me $10 more to spend, how much do I spend at Kmart?
Show me 24 using the money (10’s and 1 materials)
Show me 10 using the money
How much do I spend?
So because 2 + 1 = 3, then 2 tens + 1 ten is 3 tens so 24+ 10 must by $34
2. If I found $20 on the floor at Kmart and then I found another $34, how much money did I find? 
Show me 20 using the money (10’s and 1 materials)
Show me 34 using the money
How much do I spend?
40+27=, 21+50= , 340 + 20=
3. I have some money in my pocket. I lose $40 and now I have just $10. How much was in my pocket to start with?
4. I had $52 and I lost $20 on the ground, how much do I have left to spend?

Bruce's notes: 

The lesson went well. A few pointers Bruce suggested was not to use the word "Count" when I should say "Tell me how many". I also missed a step when moving from changing a single 10. I missed changing multiple 10's like 52+20 and went straight to a 2 step problem 52+24.   He also suggested I do NOT spread the money out in front of the students, instead keep them in a stack with only the top note visible (they have to imagine the rest rather than tempting them to count it).

Inquiry Learning At Pukete

A slideshow presented to us at Staff Meeting to make sure we are covering what is required when teaching our topic inquiries.

I found this document I will use to explore inquiry headings further with my students:

Pukete Inquiry Skills

Inquiry provides the opportunity for students to explore authentic contexts which are relevant to them and their lives. These contexts, and the explicit application of a guided inquiry process, give opportunities in which to teach and develop the Key Competencies which are embedded through all stages and across all levels.

TRUMP Key Competencies- Capabilities for living and lifelong learning

Thinking, , Using Language, Relating to others, Symbols and Texts, Managing Self,  Participating and Contributing.

WONDER What I think I know... Organising thinking and questions N-What do I Need to know Define my ideas Engage and explore Review-what do I now need to know?	ACQUIRE Action Plan Can I find information? Questions to explore Understandings I have gained Investigate Refine, research, review Evaluate	INSPIRE I now think... Next questions Share Participate in action Inform with results Reflect Evaluate-where to next?
Immersing, exploring, defining Determine meaningful and authentic contexts for student inquiry Determine and share initial understanding and knowledge Stimulate curiosity	Planning Setting the stage for successful research process Mapping out the inquiry process and timeline Finding, Using, Recording Finding, evaluating , sorting and synthesising  information relevant to the task Making conclusions/ finding patterns Drawing conclusions Working ethically and responsibly with information	Presenting, Sharing, Taking action Expressing new understandings Present information effectively Display results of the inquiry relevant to the audience Taking part in meaningful action Evaluating Reflect on both the process and the learning Apply to new contexts: where to next?

Writing Moderation

On Tuesday Wk 6 T3 teams moderated our marked Hiwi the Kiwi writing samples. 

They were moderated against the Pukete School Writing progressions.

We brought to the team meeting the following:

• A copy of the Pukete School Writing progressions (in the expectations folder)
• Samples of concern (samples that you are not sure of: where they fit) for each class
• 2 samples from well below, below, at and above, and well above (if any) for each class

At the meeting:

We discussed the samples of concern and decided on the best fit. We justified and compared our samples from well below, below etc

From each team, we got one example of a piece of writing from each year level from well below, below, at, above, and well above if there are any. (8-10 samples)

This was a valuable process and I realised that I had been marking my students writing much harder than needed. It showed me how well the majority are doing.

Here is our class blog entry for Room 2 at the Hiwi The Kiwi Show

Bruce Moody Teacher Only Day Notes

Friday 11 August 2017

8:30

Beginning dialogue around 3 areas;

• Effective Teaching (more effective)
• Content- add/sub - mult/div
• Observations (mild stress)
• Assessment (evolving, more effective but less work)

Anticipation or Participation (Martin Simon, Ron Tzur)

• Teacher is working with children and children are participating, seems as though they are capable. Later, the children do not use the skills. The children were participating but did not get to the point of being able to anticipate when the skill is needed without the teacher.
• We want independent anticipation; when the child can retrieve the skill when needed. We want them to function without us.
• “If we do this (to the equipment) what's going to happen next?” (without using the equipment). “If this happens, then what?”

http://Explicating the Role of Mathematical Tasks in Conceptual Learning: An Elaboration of the Hypothetical Learning Trajectory Simon & Tzur

Hands	fingers	Build up the table. Change context (to $5burgers). Again, again.
5 6 7 8	25 30 35 40

• As a school we must own the learning of the child.
• Counting is not addition

Models (Bruce’s Slide)

• Physical, pictorial, analogies, known facts or processes, algebraic.

Models should help students engage with the mathematics and not simply solve the problem in front of them.

• Transparency Does the model act like glass in a window (you see through it), or a curtain (draws your attention to it)

Concrete*Literal*Abstract   

• Symbols LAST, often irrelevant, not necessary to operate on numbers
• “Let’s pretending” children need be past being completely literal before being able to ‘do’ maths

Transparency (Bruce’s slide)

What maths are we modelling? Eg learning to add 10s

Consider these two scenarios

1. There are 23 students in the class. You have an extra 10 children joining the class today.
2. You have $23 in your purse. You get given an extra $10

Do different images of the 10 come to mind? Ten individuals or one ten?

Counting model or addition model?

Beware of clutter.  $347+$299 Only $1 is important.  Place value houses.

Question: Where do you come up with all the stories?!?!

Response: There is no book of available stories. What is the framework I am using? Think about what is more likely to work.

Principle: what is the maths you are teaching? What will help children to see it and use it (participation and anticipation)? What works well, why does it work, do more of it. And share it

Place Value. 42. Forty two. Forty is four tens. Forty two is four tens and two ones.
Vary equipment and models.

Break 10:15-10:45

							Which model is better to use?

$60 was ⅔  of the prize. How much was the prize?

Draw a model (it propels them to the answer)  

$30

$30

$30

⅗ of children came to school in a car today. That was 45 children. How many children

15

15

15

15

15

“X By numerator, divide by denominator” or “divide by numerator, x by denominator” but we never know which model to use. The model is correct but does not children do not connect to it.

Counting

“Counting is the enemy of mathematics”

Mathematics is: Manipulation interpretation and communication of quantity

The = sign allows us to simplify (the goal of mathematics)

Some disagreement about 25+43

Zoe does NOT think we should ‘pretend’ 20 is 2 and 40 is 4. The maths is 20 and 40 is 60, not 2+4 is 6.

Counting (on and back) is not necessary if basic facts to 10 are known.

Counting and skip counting are meant to be quick transitory phases.

Gelman and Galistel’s (1978) five Counting Principles are often referred to in the literature as being necessary skills for children to obtain when learning to count (Marmasse, N., Beletsas, A., & Marti, S., 2017; Young-Loveridge, 1999) These are:

·         Stable order where the correct number words are consistently said in the correct order

·         One-one where the counter says only one number word for each item counted and counts each item only once

·         Cardinality where the counter knows that the last number word used on the last item counted is the amount in the set

·         Abstraction where it is understood that the items in a set need not be identical to each other

·         Order irrelevance where the counter knows that the amount in the set will be the same irrelevant to what order the items are counted

Each of these skills are acquired over time, and often quite slowly.

       (zoe’s assignment)

Marmasse, Beletasas & Marti, 2017 Numerical Mechanisms and Children’s Concept of Numbers

Young-Loveridge,1999 The Acquisition Of Numeracy

Counting across the gap. (animals in the sea context - blocks on blue lid)

Bruce suggests teaching bonds instead of family of facts. Zoe believes the children need to see relations between quantities and facts. Actually, Zoe sees it as the same thing. ‘Family of facts is just recording the bond in a conventionally accepted method’

Bruce says repetition is different to rote learning. Basically, rote learning made ‘fun’.

Semantics

Lunch 12:15-1:00

Beads on a string. - measurement, percentages

Card games (claim)

Objective = fluency

Number strings

   8+7=15

 28+7=35

 58+7=65

What will happen?

 38+7=

Observations

The most important thing that happens in your classroom is not the teacher, it is the learning. The purpose of observation is to look at the learning.

-what is the learning? “What learning did you see today?”

-what is the process?

Not attacking the teacher. We just want to get to the purpose of the lesson.

“The students are here, we want them to be here, so I’m doing this

Bruce Moody Maths PD

This week we have been lucky to have Bruce Moody in our school. Bruce is been teaching maths for many years and is very experienced. We had a staff meeting with Brue and these are my notes:

• Money problems (when more advanced in a problem) as beans and unifix are in 1's
• Condensation view eg 96 is a HUGE number to start as 96 ones but then working in 10's or $10 is only 9 groups of 10 and 6 ones.
• One problem phrased many ways 
• Spray and walk away (give the problem and let them work on it)
• Meaningful problems and materials 
• Giving space to solve problems with others 
• Transparency lense: maths equipment and glass window- use what works and doesn't get in the way like fine motor counters 
• Counters- too hard to pick up, too individual 
• Use unifix instead (4) or big objects like chairs with gaps, touch chair for 1-10 counting
• Talk to the person next to you rather than appealing to teacher 
• Finger patterns are really important - 1 more and face them to yourself rather than teacher.
• Blocks- 5 blocks, and 1 more ( numbers together in chunks then they are ready to learn number bonds , concrete materials.
• Mixed block colours
• Turn hands around to yourself to see 7 on fingers rather than turn away 
• Counting on only for 2 weeks, counting back not important. 
• Counting on-start at large numbers  
• Repeated and building over and over 5 and 2 is 7, 5+2 is 7 then as number story. 
• If they can do "10 and " they can count on
• Place value - year 2
• Basic facts to 10 is vital
• Money in money box ( $21) + 3$ ( margarine container out of sight and larger numbers so they can't go back to 1) then give more so they know when to stop. ( counting on) 

Yesterday Bruce took my higher maths group in a place value session- Jellybean Shop.  He used beans, film canisters, numeracy project money and a modelling book (kids names around the edges where they sat).

1. The students were first asked to guess how many beans they thought were in each container. They each had their own idea 4-9 )when he shook a cannister. 
2. He then asked them to count how many and they all came up with 10.
3. He then wrote a number in his book and they had to get them many beans and put them in front of themselves. If they did it quickly he paid them $1. 
4. The students all grabbed 24 beans in 1's (none took the containers of 10's) showing their thinking is still in ones.
5. He said no one could have money as they were too slow. Then he wrote a new number 36 and they had to get that many quickly. Bellah was the only one who grabbed 3 canisters and 6 beans (showing that she is thinking in 10's -Place value)
6. They repeated this process after Bruce made a big deal of Bellah getting them quickly and getting paid until slowly each child was getting the canisters and then the ones. 
7. Bruce said a next step would be to repeat this lesson again with them. He said then to have a variation of equipment so each child has something different to count and then lastly try with money. 

Bruce also suggested using the beads frame with a backing board on it to focus young children's eyes and then get them imaging and listening to the beads shifted. 

We have a teacher only day next term with Bruce also.