K-12 Teaching Resources

Packed with effective instructional strategies, this book explores why certain K-5 students struggle with math and provides a framework for helping these learners succeed. The authors present empirically validated practices for supporting students with disabilities and others experiencing difficulties in specific areas of math, including problem solving, early numeracy, whole-number operations, fractions, geometry, and algebra. Concrete examples, easy-to-implement lesson-planning ideas, and connections to state standards, in particular the Common Core standards, enhance the book's utility. Also provided is invaluable guidance on planning and delivering multi-tiered instruction and intervention.

Effective teaching is a combination of technical skills and knowledge but good teachers also need to understand how children learn and how they can most effectively be taught. This text explores the various strategies for engaging children in mathematical learning in the light of theory and practice and is designed to talk straight to the teacher/student about their classroom approach to the teaching of primary mathematics. The importance of creating a learning environment in which children can learn to be young mathematicians, where they can explore, create and solve problems, cannot be underestimated. The student and practitioner is offered the opportunity to develop their practice by reviewing a range of approaches to the teaching of mathematics and the development of those young mathematicians, with examples of thought-provoking activities to inform their own practice.

This handy reference is particularly useful for elementary teachers who are changing grade levels and special education teachers who teach multiple grades and multiple ability levels. Guide teachers to help all PreK-8 learners make sense of mathematics Elementary and Middle School Mathematics: Teaching Developmentally illustrates how children learn mathematics, and then shows pre-service teachers the most effective methods of teaching PreK-8 math through hands-on, problem-based activities. As you engage with the activities, you'll boost your own knowledge of the math and learn concrete, developmentally appropriate ways to incorporate problem-based tasks in your classroom. Examples of real student work and new common challenges and misconception tables help you visualize good mathematics instruction and assessment that supports and challenges all learners. An important reference to consult throughout your teaching career, this book reflects the Common Core State Standards and NCTM's Principles to Actions, as well as current research and coverage of the latest teaching technology.

Now in its Third Edition--expanded with over 100 new tasks and questions--this bestselling resource helps experienced and novice teachers to effectively and efficiently differentiate mathematics instruction in grades K-8. Math education expert Marian Small shows teachers how to get started and become expert at using two powerful and universal strategies: Open Questions and Parallel Tasks. This volume includes key changes that will make it easier for teachers to use in all quality state standards environments, including direct links to Common Core content standards and standards for mathematical practice. Classroom examples, many new for this edition, are provided at each grade band: K-2, 3-5 and 6-8. Along with each example, the text describes how teachers can evoke productive conversations that meet the needs of a broad range of learners.

Learn how children's literature can help K-5 students see the real-life applications of mathematical concepts. This user-friendly book shows how to use stories to engage students in building critical reasoning, abstract thinking, and communication skills, all while helping students understand the relevance of math in their everyday lives. Each chapter is dedicated to one of the eight Standards for Mathematical Practice, and offers examples of children's literature that can be used to help students develop that practice. You'll find out how to: Encourage students to persevere in solving mathematical problems and use multiple approaches to find the answer; Help students reason abstractly with the aid of concrete objects and visuals; Guide students in constructing arguments to explain their reasoning and engage in critical discussion with their peers; Teach students to recognize mathematical patterns and use them to solve problems efficiently; And more! The book offers activities for beginners as well as for more advanced problem solvers. Each chapter also provides guidance for ELLs and students with special needs, so no matter your classroom environment, you'll be able to use these strategies to make math class more dynamic, engaging, and fun.

Teaching Secondary and Middle School Mathematics combines the latest developments in research, standards, and technology with a vibrant writing style to help teachers prepare for the excitement and challenges of teaching secondary and middle school mathematics today. In the fully revised fifth edition, scholar and mathematics educator Daniel Brahier invites teachers to investigate the nature of the mathematics curriculum and reflect on research-based "best practices" as they define and sharpen their own personal teaching styles. The fifth edition has been updated and expanded with a particular emphasis on the continued impact of the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics and NCTM's just-released Principles to Actions, as well as increased attention to teaching with technology, classroom management, and differentiated instruction.

Develop a deep understanding of mathematics. This user-friendly resource presents grades 6-8 teachers with a logical progression of pedagogical actions, classroom norms, and collaborative teacher team efforts to increase their knowledge and improve mathematics instruction. Make connections between elementary fraction-based content to fraction operations taught in the middle grades. Explore strategies and techniques to effectively learn and teach significant mathematics concepts and provide all students with the precise, accurate information they need to achieve academic success. Benefits Dig deep into mathematical modeling and reasoning to improve as both a learner and teacher of mathematics. Explore how to develop, select, and modify mathematics tasks in order to balance cognitive demand and engage students. Discover the three important norms to uphold in all mathematics classrooms. Learn to apply the tasks, questioning, and evidence (TQE) process to grow as both learners and teachers of mathematics. Gain clarity about the most productive progression of mathematical teaching and learning for grades 6-8. Access short videos that show what classrooms that are developing mathematical understanding should look like.

This innovative guide will help teachers immediately engage students in fun, classroom-ready argumentation and take ownership of their learning. It will also facilitate deep mathematical understanding and encourage logical, clear connections between abstract ideas.

Argumentation leads to deeper understanding Many students' interest in mathematics fades as they are asked to solve seemingly endless disconnected problems. Despina Stylianou and Maria Blanton show how building daily instruction around mathematical argumentation can enliven your classroom and re-engage your students. Teaching with Mathematical Argumentexplores how argumentation-discussing and debating a rich mathematical problem-provides all students a deeper understanding of mathematics. You'll find guidance for: understanding what argumentation isand building a classroom culture that supports it engaging every student in argumentation, not just "strong" or "high performing" students assessing your students' argumentsand designing instruction responsive to their learning. The potential to transform student engagement At its core, argumentation helps students delve deeply into foundational mathematical concepts, enhancing their understanding and confidence along the way. Research shows that this type of instruction has the potential to transform student engagement and success in mathematics, and so Despina and Maria argue that mathematical arguments should have a far more central role in teaching and learning than most of us have ever considered. With ideas for structuring discussions and suggested tasks to try, this book will show you how to elevate argumentation in your instruction and harness its power for enhancing student learning.

This book, the eleventh in the Putting Essential Understanding into Practice Series, focuses on misconceptions about variables, expressions, equations, and functions that students often bring to grades 6 8. The authors present tasks given to middle-grades students and examine sample responses to them to show how teachers can bring misconceptions to the surface, where they and their students can inspect them, recognize errors and limitations, and replace faulty thinking with robust ideas.

We know that Differentiated Instruction (DI) helps all students to learn. Yet DI challenges teachers, and nowhere more than in mathematics. In this new book, written specifically for secondary mathematics teachers, the authors cut through the difficulties with two powerful and universal strategies that teachers can use across all math content: Open Questions and Parallel Tasks. Showing teachers how to get started and become expert with these strategies, this book also demonstrates how to use more inclusive learning conversations to promote broader student participation. Strategies and examples are organized around Big Ideas within the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) content strands. With particular emphasis on Algebra, chapters also address Number and Operations, Geometry, Measurement, and Data Analysis and Probability, with examples included for Pre-Calculus. To help teachers differentiate math instruction with less difficulty and greater success, this resource: Underscores the rationale for differentiating secondary math instruction. Provides specific examples for secondary math content. Describes two easy-to-implement strategies designed to overcome the most common DI problems that teachers encounter. Offers almost 300 questions and tasks that teachers and coaches can adopt immediately, adapt, or use as models to create their own, along with scaffolding and consolidating questions. Includes Teaching Tips sidebars and an organizing template at the end of each chapter to help teachers build new tasks and open questions. Shows how to create a more inclusive classroom learning community with mathematical talk that engages participants from all levels.

This book focuses on algebra as a language of process, expands the notion of variable, develops ideas about the representation of functions and extends students' understanding of algebraic equivalence and change. In the activities, students apply properties of functions by using median salary data, explore the meaning of equivalent equations and use recursive or iterative forms to represent relationships. The supplemental CD-ROM features interactive electronic activities, master copies of activity pages for students and additional readings for teachers.

Helping your high school students develop a robust understanding of functions requires that you understand mathematics deeply. But what does that mean? This book focuses on essential knowledge for teachers about functions. It is organized around five big ideas, supported by multiple smaller, interconnected ideas essential understandings. Taking you beyond a simple introduction to functions, this book will broaden and deepen your mathematical understanding of one of the most challenging topics for students and teachers. It will help you engage your students, anticipate their perplexities, avoid pitfalls, and dispel misconceptions. You will also learn to develop appropriate tasks, techniques, and tools for assessing students understanding of the topic.

The algebraic notation we use today allows for the compact representation of complex calculations and problems, however, that compactness can be a barrier to sense making. Teachers must help students reason through this barrier. Reasoning about and making sense of algebra are essential to students' future success. This book examines the five key elements (meaningful use of symbols, mindful manipulation, reasoned solving, connection algebra with geometry and linking expressions and functions) identified in Focus in High School Mathematics: Reasoning and Sense Making in more detail and elaborates on the associated reasoning habits.

In today′s world of increased accountability, teaching mathematics offers more challenges than ever before. This resource helps beginning teachers get off to a great start by providing information on everything from assessment to standards-based teaching to student engagement strategies. The authors focus on NCTM content and process standards and offer guidelines for instructing and assessing English language learners, students with special needs, and gifted students. Filled with practical strategies as well as helpful classroom vignettes that encourage thought-provoking discussions on teaching secondary school mathematics, this guide shows teachers how to: - Focus on the big ideas in teaching mathematics - Design a curriculum that is meaningful - Differentiate instruction to include all learners - Engage students by meeting their affective, behavioural, and cognitive needs - Use a variety of methods to assess students′ understanding Covering the key elements to successful teaching, this essential mathematics resource helps beginning educators lead their class with confidence.