For the past couple of
weeks, we’ve been talking about a newly-released guide from the US Department
of Education Institute of Education Sciences entitled Teaching Math to
Young Children. They provide 5 recommendations for teaching math to
young children. The first recommendations are to “teach number and
operations using a developmental progression”, “teach geometry, patterns,
measurement, and data analysis using a developmental progression,” to “use
progress monitoring to ensure that math instruction builds on what each child
knows,” and to “teach children to view and describe their world
mathematically.” This week, we will talk about the fifth and final
recommendation, to “dedicate time each day to teaching math, and integrate math
instruction throughout the school day.”
Up to this point, we
have seen the numbers, operations, and concepts children need to understand to
help them explore and explain their world, how to make sure that each student
is acquiring these concepts and making sure they can apply these concepts to
real life. We now move to our own
awareness of the use of math throughout the curriculum and making sure that we
seize opportunities to teach math whenever we can.
The recommended
strategies for setting aside dedicated time for teaching math daily and
integrating math instruction throughout the school day include:
- Have a set plan for daily math instruction. This can be done in both large groups and small groups.
- Include math in routines and daily activities. During morning circle time, we can discuss “We have 8 boys here today and 10 girls here. We have 18 children all together.”
- Point out math across the curriculum. In a science lesson, we can find and describe patterns we find in nature. In art, we can talk about what shapes we find in a particular work of art.
- Create a math-rich environment. Include items like blocks, foam shapes, different colored beads and cubes, measuring materials (ruler, scale, measuring cups), and sorting bins.
- Play math games.
For more information and
suggestions on implementing these recommendations, check out the guide at: http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/pdf/practice_guides/early_math_pg_111313.pdf#page=18
Misty
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