When teaching mathematics to children the teacher’s enthusiasm can determine whether or not the child's math experience is negative or positive. For instance if you do not like math chances are, it will show up in the activities that you prepare for the child, as well as the way you go about a question because the children will sense your frustration that you have for math. If a teacher likes math on the other hand the activities will be well thought out, and the children will be able to ask questions without having the feeling that the teacher is frustrated because they are giving off a positive attitude. This is what shapes the person's feelings towards math, how good of a math teacher one is, and how whether or not the person's experience is negative or positive.
My general feelings towards math would have to be because of my elementary math teacher. She would have us sit down and do paper work about math rather, then having us do things that were hands on. The reason I feel like this has contributed to me not liking math is because the teacher gave me the impression that math cannot be fun. In middle school I felt embarrassed because we all were split into math groups, and as a result I felt like was judged because of this. I also thought my math was for people who could not do math well, and the people who were in the highest math group were people who were smart, and could easily do math. I always felt judged by my peers as well because I was not in the same group as them. During my high school years my math teacher did take time, and work with the students who wanted extra help on their work. He would not move onto a different topic until everyone knew what they were doing which helped a lot because in my opinion you cann...
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...o see where they were with their math skills, and what they needed to work on. Then, last I would like to know what I could do if a child does not want to participate in math because I have found in my previous practicums that if child gets frustrated while trying to do math they will just leave, and go do something else.
In conclusion I still have things I need to work on to make the child's math experience positive as well as finding ways that could help me encourage the child to find the right answer when they are struggling. I have also realized after thinking about my experiences I had in my math classes that I don't want the children to feel the same way I do. This could help me in a lot of ways because I know I don't want to give the children a negative outlook on math because it could stay with them for a while and determine whether or not they like math.
Van de Walle, J., , F., Karp, K. S., & Bay-Williams, J. M. (2010). Elementary and middle school mathematics, teaching developmentally. (Seventh ed.). New York, NY: Allyn & Bacon.
A key aspect of developing skills in maths is that the purpose of it is understood and that they can go on to apply this to real life situations i.e. to solve problems, to process information, to check answers, to interpret data, charts and diagrams, the understanding of money and how to manage finances, to use in practical every day activities. Mathematical skills are therefore developed in the earliest stages through practical work, which provides a child with a grounding in various aspect of maths such as shape, pattern, counting, sorting etc. these basic skills are then built upon as a child progresses..
I remember how mathematics was incredibly difficult for me and because of this I can relate to the struggles students have with math. For a teacher to be successful they need to create relevance for the students. I understand how to relate the various topics of mathematics to topics of the world, which for most students is difficult to do, For example, I remember at the CREC School I was observing at, there was a student of Bosnian decent who was having trouble understanding how to read a map of the United States. So I showed her a map of Bosnia with the same map key, and we discerned what everything meant (where the capital was, where the ocean was, major port cities were, etc…). She caught on quickly as she already had an understanding of Bosnia and it quickly transferred over to the map of the thirteen colonies. This skill is easily transferrable to mathematics by using relevant, real-world examples of concepts learned by
• Make approximately 10 copies of 1 cm grid paper on colored paper for each group of students.
I want to be the best possible teacher I can be. I want to communicate well with my students, and I want to be able to help them both now while they are in school and provide them with tools they will use when they are finished with school. In order to be a good teacher, I will use various methods and ideas from the philosophies of essentialism, progressivism, and behaviorism. I want to be open and willing to try new things and to always keep in mind the reason I became a teacher – to help my students learn math, in whatever way I can. When all is said and done, I want my grade as a teacher to be an “A.”
Skemp, R (2002). Mathematics in the Primary School. 2nd ed. London: Taylor and Francis .
I believe that learning mathematics in the early childhood environment encourages and promotes yet another perspective for children to establish and build upon their developing views and ideals about the world. Despite this belief, prior to undertaking this topic, I had very little understanding of how to recognise and encourage mathematical activities to children less than four years, aside from ‘basic’ number sense (such as counting) and spatial sense (like displaying knowledge of 2-D shapes) (MacMillan 2002). Despite enjoying mathematical activities during my early years at a Montessori primary school, like the participants within Holm & Kajander’s (2012) study, I have since developed a rather apprehensive attitude towards mathematics, and consequently, feel concerned about encouraging and implementing adequate mathematical learning experiences to children within the early childhood environment.
Teachers must be aware of who they are teaching during instruction. Getting to know a student’s background and culture will aid significantly when trying to identify why the students are disengaged. Some may not understand the instructions that are given and may require additional instructions. The teacher must also consider what curriculum is being taught, and what they want their students to gain from it. Math at this grade level becomes more complicated as students continue to progress to a higher grade
Kirova, A., & Bhargava, A. (2002). Learning to guide preschool children's mathematical understanding: A teacher's professional growth. 4 (1), Retrieved from http://ecrp.uiuc.edu/v4n1/kirova.html
As a secondary subject, society often views mathematics a critical subject for students to learn in order to be successful. Often times, mathematics serves as a gatekeeper for higher learning and certain specific careers. Since the times of Plato, “mathematics was virtually the first thing everyone has to learn…common to all arts, science, and forms of thought” (Stinson, 2004). Plato argued that all students should learn arithmetic; the advanced mathematics was reserved for those that would serve as the “philosopher guardians” of the city (Stinson, 2004). By the 1900s in the United States, mathematics found itself as a cornerstone of curriculum for students. National reports throughout the 20th Century solidified the importance of mathematics in the success of our nation and its students (Stinson, 2004). As a mathematics teacher, my role to educate all students in mathematics is an important one. My personal philosophy of mathematics education – including the optimal learning environment and best practices teaching strategies – motivates my teaching strategies in my personal classroom.
... a sense of accomplishment, something they cannot get through direct instruction alone. This sense of accomplishment will raise their mathematical self-esteem. This can, in turn, help students appreciate and enjoy mathematics even more. Few would argue against the idea that any teaching strategy that gets students to believe in themselves and enjoy the subject is a good one.
Many parents don’t realise how they can help their children at home. Things as simple as baking a cake with their children can help them with their education. Measuring out ingredients for a cake is a simple form of maths. Another example of helping young children with their maths is simply planning a birthday party. They have to decide how many people to invite, how many invitations they will need, how much the stamps will cost, how many prizes, lolly bags, cups, plates, and balloons need to be bought, and so on. Children often find that real life experiences help them to do their maths more easily.
The procedures of the lesson were quite clear and logical for the most part, the lesson went mostly according to plan, although some nerves on my part may have caused some minor changes. The children responded positively and enthusiastically to the lesson as well as participated actively during the sorting activity, answering questions throughout the lesson. I think that the activity was age appropriate as it was not too easy neither was it too difficult for the children to complete the tasks. The children seemed to be engaged in the activity and eager to participate, using the colourful handmade materials, as the activity was rather like a fun and interactive game. According to (Guha, 2002), play and language form the basis for learning about math in natural ways, and one great way to integrate math involves hands-on activities and problem-solving situations that pique your children's curiosity. There were also few interruptions throughout the lesson which helped ensure a smooth lesson flow. I also managed to keep the children disciplined and keep their volume down throughout the lesson, since it was conducted at nap time. However, there is definitely some room for improvement. During the storytelling session, some children seemed slightly disengaged, which was probably due to the length of story. I also made a mistake of asking the children a wrong quest...
Throughout out this semester, I’ve had the opportunity to gain a better understanding when it comes to teaching Mathematics in the classroom. During the course of this semester, EDEL 440 has showed my classmates and myself the appropriate ways mathematics can be taught in an elementary classroom and how the students in the classroom may retrieve the information. During my years of school, mathematics has been my favorite subject. Over the years, math has challenged me on so many different levels. Having the opportunity to see the appropriate ways math should be taught in an Elementary classroom has giving me a
Her first tip is to not have a negative attitude toward math in general. As the adult in the situation you are their role model and they may develop a negative attitude towards math if you do. The second tip is to have your children see you do math in your everyday life with a positive attitude. The third tip is to involve your child when you are doing math. This will make your child feel useful and also foster a love of mathematics. You can also relate books to math as an extension to get your child thinking mathematically. As a child, I did not like doing math homework, but had my parents been good at math and had a good attitude towards it maybe I would have done