5 Maths Gems #2

Last calendar week I promised I'd write a weekly postal service summarising the novel teaching ideas I'd seen on Twitter. Afterwards I worried whether I'd direct maintain plenty cloth to write about, but this calendar week I wasn't disappointed. Plenty of ideas were shared - here's v of them.

1. Revision Whispers. As I've said before, I'm ever on the await out for engaging ideas for revision lessons. Billy Adamson (@Billyads_47) shared this fantastic sentiment 'Maths Whispers!' inwards which pupils are given a fact or formula to communicate amongst their classmates, 'Chinese Whispers' style. Billy says that when his students were walking downwards the corridor afterwards, they were excitedly talking most what each disceptation was initially too what it became. I dearest this idea. It would operate good inwards other subjects too. Check out Billy's resources on TES. Here's a variation I powerfulness endeavor for Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 plane revision: carve upwards the degree into teams. The teams shape lines from the dorsum of the classroom upwards to the board. The pupils at the dorsum are given a message to read. Here's an representative from S2:
All teams direct maintain the same message. The message is simultaneously passed along the lines inwards whispers. The finally pupil inwards each describe writes the message on the board. The most accurate squad wins! Then shuffle the students too endeavor some other message. My A plane revision cards direct maintain plenty of ideas for messages - definitions too formulae would operate well.

2. Post-its. Mr Allan (@mrallanmaths) wrote this blog post most his purpose of post-it notes inwards lessons. He displays questions on boards around his classroom. Students (in pairs or teams) operate their agency around the room answering the questions on post-it notes. It's a quick too tardily agency of assessing agreement too finding misconceptions. It's also really engaging, fifty-fifty though the questions are precisely from a textbook. The sentiment originated from a tweet past times Chris McGrane (@ChrisMcGrane84) back inwards January. Shelley Smith (@saxsmith27) successfully tried it out this week.
Speaking of post-it notes, I similar this 'What stuck amongst you?' idea, shared past times @RemindHQ. It could endure a prissy plenary activity ane time a week, or fifty-fifty at the terminate of every lesson.

If you lot desire to a greater extent than post-it banknote teaching ideas too then banking concern jibe out 'fractions weblog post this calendar week I discovered the blog Authentic Inquiry Maths which is total of skillful ideas, similar T-charts for highlighting similarities too differences. Pupils purpose ICT to create their charts too you lot larn a prissy mix of presentation styles, similar the representative below.
Ed Southall's (@edsouthall) tricky maths problems on his website solvemymaths.com are also actually visually appealing too I await forrad to using them to challenge too extend my students adjacent year.
Area employment #2 - solvemymaths.com
Here's some other 'attractive' activity I spotted on Twitter this week. This ane was shared past times Khan Academy (@khanacademy).  It's an engaging activity because it's visually striking, accessible too has a skillful plane of challenge for pupils who've studied Pythagoras' Theorem. Shame I don't direct maintain the budget for colour photocopying!

4. Starting a novel schoolhouse year. With exclusively ii weeks left inwards the summertime holidays, I've started to meet weblog posts most things to practise inwards starting fourth dimension lessons of the schoolhouse year. I wrote a pair myself a few weeks agone - ane on your starting fourth dimension lesson amongst Year 7 too ane on kicking off Year 12.  Here's a few to a greater extent than I've spotted late that are worth a read:
  • This 'Deliberate Mistakes, Jo Boaler (@joboaler) talked this calendar week most the value of mistakes inwards ‘Setting upwards Positive Norms inwards Maths Class'. In this document, she suggests that nosotros brand a habit of inviting pupils to the board to portion their conceptual mistakes. She also suggests that pupils crumple a slice of newspaper too throw it at the board - precisely once, inwards a symbolic form of agency - non every fourth dimension they brand a mistake... Though I wonder if that would endure worth trying too, to works life a classroom civilization of ‘everyone makes mistakes’ too to encourage risk-taking. Can you lot imagine if your pupils threw all their mistakes at the board? It powerfulness larn a chip messy. Fun though.

    Jo makes a position out of other useful suggestions inwards her article, such equally writing students' skillful questions on posters around the room. She also talks most the importance of valuing depth over speed. Many of my students larn inwards in secondary schoolhouse amongst the impression that it’s of import to practise maths quickly. ‘Beat the clock’ type activities encourage this. What’s the rush?

    So, some helpful thoughts from Jo Boaler. Shame most the negative article she wrote this calendar week most maths teaching inwards the UK, but yay to the NCETM for defending us! It’s prissy to know somebody has our backs.

    And finally...
    I'll destination off today's postal service amongst 3 recommended reads:
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