#5: Too Many Resources and Too Little Time - A Math Mentoring Moment with Nicole Martin
Dec 31, 2018
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Nicole Martin, a 3rd/4th grade math teacher in Las Vegas Nevada, shares her struggle with organizing math lessons using online resources. The hosts provide tips on structuring math blocks, maximizing learning opportunities, and differentiating tasks for all students. They also discuss challenges in a diverse classroom, using small group lessons and 3-act math tasks, strategies for challenging high-achieving students, and building a strong mathematics program.
Organizing math resources and integrating them effectively can be a challenge for teachers, especially when balancing engaging activities with required standards.
Finding a balance between regular math lessons and online math programs can help spark curiosity and engagement while ensuring students are progressing at an appropriate pace.
Striving to meet the diverse needs of students through concrete representations, encouraging proof of thinking, and creating a supportive learning environment is essential for teachers.
Deep dives
Struggling with Organizing Math Resources
Nicole Martin joins the Making Math Moments that Matter podcast to discuss her struggle with organizing math resources. She has come across many great resources such as three-act math tasks and estimation 180, but finds it challenging to integrate them effectively into her math lessons. Nicole seeks guidance in structuring her math block to include these resources consistently. She is concerned about balancing these engaging activities with teaching the required standards and meeting the diverse needs of her students.
Finding a Balance in Lesson Planning
Nicole is trying to strike a balance in her lesson planning by integrating activities that spark curiosity, like notice and wonder, with regular math lessons and Zern, an online math program. She appreciates the engagement Zern provides but worries that some students are not progressing as quickly as they should. Nicole is seeking strategies to effectively combine these resources, ensuring that students are learning the required standards while also incorporating the engaging activities she has discovered.
Challenges of Differentiating Instruction
As a teacher at a Title I school, Nicole faces the challenge of meeting the diverse needs of her students. Some struggle with basic number sense, while others are more advanced in their mathematical understanding. Nicole is striving to find ways to support both groups, as well as those in between, while still covering the necessary content. She recognizes the importance of providing concrete representations and encouraging students to prove their thinking to bridge the gap and build a supportive and inclusive learning environment.
Using modules to teach and practice math concepts
The curriculum in the podcast episode is broken down into modules, each covering different math standards. Students go through lessons and practice exercises related to the module's content. The curriculum is computerized and provides students with an exit ticket to assess their understanding.
Incorporating three-act math tasks into lessons
The podcast discusses the use of three-act math tasks as a teaching tool. The tasks are used to elicit curiosity and provoke mathematical thinking in students. The podcast hosts recommend using the tasks as part of the formal lesson and consolidating the learning through student discussions and multiple representations. This approach helps engage students, address diverse learning levels, and facilitate deeper understanding of mathematical concepts.
In our first Mentoring Moments episode we chat with Nicole Martin, a 3rd/4th grade math teacher in Las Vegas Nevada. Nicole was struggling with how to structure her math lessons in a way that is engaging yet meaningful when she has so many great resources she’s found online.Nicole shares with us how after finding so many great math resources online such as 3 act math tasks, estimation 180 and more, she struggles to organize her math block to include these resources with intentionality on an ongoing basis. Listen in as we hear Nicole’s story and the tips we give her to try out in her classroom.
You’ll Learn:
How to structure your 70 min math block to teach through problem solving.
How we can maximize learning opportunities with online resources.
How to differentiate problem-solving tasks to meet the needs of all students - especially your high flyers.
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Are you wondering how to create K-12 math lesson plans that leave students so engaged they don’t want to stop exploring your math curriculum when the bell rings? In their podcast, Kyle Pearce and Jon Orr—founders of MakeMathMoments.com—share over 19 years of experience inspiring K-12 math students, teachers, and district leaders with effective math activities, engaging resources, and innovative math leadership strategies. Through a 6-step framework, they guide K-12 classroom teachers and district math coordinators on building a strong, balanced math program that grows student and teacher impact. Each week, gain fresh ideas, feedback, and practical strategies to feel more confident and motivate students to see the beauty in math. Start making math moments today by listening to Episode #139: "Making Math Moments From Day 1 to 180.
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