Differentiated Instruction + Student Centered Learning = Math Success

A couple of years ago, some colleagues and I started using math centers in our classrooms. We learned from other teachers that were doing math centers in their classrooms and other resources. At the bottom of this entry I included the references.

We were already doing centers during Language Arts, but now we had decided to start centers during math time because we realized that our students were at different levels and we felt that we weren’t reaching all of them.

Since our math lessons were whole group, we realized that we didn’t have time to work with individual students and in small groups, and we, as teachers, were becoming frustrated.

Math Centers helped us and our students tremendously. We started using time more efficiently, we were able to immediately assess and assist student learning, and we were able to review and differentiate content as per students’ needs.

Our students were able to learn at their ability level, experience success and enjoy Math, increase their self-esteem, gain new understanding, learn from their peers, participate in activities of appropriate lengths, and work collaboratively.

Math Centers were the answer to our problems! Below I will briefly explain how math centers work.

Math Workshop Model:

Before we begin Math Workshop rotations everyday, students take turns solving daily routines, which consist of four problems on the board. This provides daily practice of concepts in the current unit and helps students review skills learned in units we have already completed.

Math Routines are in clear plastic communicators so activities can easily be replaced weekly or per unit.

For each unit in math, we divided the class into three groups (red, green, blue or A, B, C) that rotated through three stations:

1–Work With Teacher

2–Independent Practice  & Math boxes

3–Math Games/ Esuite

Students do the same centers in the same order everyday so the rotation chart doesn't change.

Work with Teacher:

Independent Practice

Games/ Technology

80 Minute Math Schedule

•10 minutes: Daily Routines/Math Message

•66 minutes: Three Center Rotations (20 minutes per center + rotation time)

•4 minutes: Closure/Exit Slip/Math Minute

 Assessment:

References:

•Math Workshop in Rm. 13 http://hill.troy.k12.mi.us/staff/bnewingham/myweb3/

•Developmental Grouping to Differentiate Instruction http://blogs.scholastic.com/top_teaching/2010/

• Math Workshop in the upper elementary classroom http://blogs.scholastic.com/top_teaching/2010/05/math-workshop.html

http://jasztalville.net/weblog/?p=24305/math-workshop.html 

•EveryDay Math For Educators http://everydaymath.uchicago.edu/educators/

Effective Teacher

There are many attributes and skills that are necessary to be an outstanding teacher. However, I selected the following attributes that in my opinion are among the most important ones:

1) High expectations: An outstanding teacher knows and strongly believes that all her students can learn and will learn. If her students are not learning, an outstanding teacher is going to question her practice and reflect on her teaching. She will examine the curricula, her own teaching, the teaching programs, and see what needs to be modified and adjusted. An outstanding teacher does not give up and find alternate and innovative ways to help her students reach their full potentials.

2) Caring: An outstanding teacher takes the time to establish a culture of care, respect, and appreciation for each other. She creates a learning environment where students feel comfortable and secure to actively participate, express their opinions, and enjoy learning. An outstanding teacher knows her students’ well. She is aware of their talents, interests, backgrounds, and families. She designs lessons that are culturally relevant and which build upon the strengths her students come with.

3) Starts with the objective in mind: An outstanding teacher knows what she wants her students to learn. She begins the teaching and learning process with an end in mind and all instructional strategies are carefully and skillfully selected to help her students reach the lesson’s objective. An outstanding teacher is clear about what her students need to learn. She is familiar with the CCSS and the school and district expectations. She designs student centered lessons which promote active student involvement and interaction among each other. Teaching becomes a purposeful exercise that is goal oriented, relevant to student lives, and differentiated to meet students’ needs.

4) Life-long learner: An outstanding teacher never stops learning about teaching strategies and techniques. She never stops researching, asking questions, talking with colleagues and asking for help if needed. An outstanding teacher is proactive, energetic, and has a contagious passion for learning. 

Literacy Centers

Literacy Centers are effective instructional practices that include meaningful and productive activities for students to do while you as a teacher work with your guided reading groups. At the beginning of the year I have a few activities that I use in my non-negotiable centers: Library, Independent Reading, Technology (Computers and Listening) and Word Study. During the school year, I constantly change the activities in these centers as I see fit. These are the templates I use. Center Directions
Center Cards

I encourage my students to take responsibility for their assignments and to demonstrate progress by using this center assignment page. I check their completed work every Friday and they receive prizes for completing their work. If their work is incomplete they have to complete it during the weekend and their parents have to sign the assignment page. I also complete their Parent Report on Friday and their parents have to sign the page. All these expectations are set at the beginning of the year. I have the same system for my math workshop block and centers. I will talk about math at another time.

Differentiated Instruction

Students bring to the classroom a wide range of skills and abilities. As a responsive teacher, I make sure that all my students’ needs and different learning skills and abilities are addressed effectively by differentiating instruction, providing students with choice, selecting activities that are interesting and engaging, and monitoring student learning by continuously assessing students formally and informally.

To begin with, differentiating instruction is a very effective way to make sure all students have access to a challenging curriculum at their level of academic performance. In other words differentiated instruction allows my students to learn at their own pace without watering down the curriculum or lowering expectations. In this way, all my students will be able to learn through multiple assignments tailored to their individual needs and their own level of achievement. I always plan learning center activities that are geared to diverse learning styles, readiness, and levels of interest. Also, I make sure that my students have the opportunity to meet with me daily to conference about their learning progress, reading, and writing. I achieve this through guided reading, center work, math workshop, and conferences during writing workshop.

Second, all students should be able to choose activities and assignments. I make sure that I have a student-centered classroom where students are not only able to choose their assignments but also they are able to choose how they want to demonstrate what they have learned. For example, at the reading center my students can choose books that they want to read and they can also choose how they want to show what they learned -completing a graphic organizer, writing a book review, writing a letter to the author, etc. Providing students with choices and opportunities to explore topics in which they have a strong interest makes learning more exciting. 

Third, I always select activities that are motivating and engaging for my students. Cooperative learning strategies, involving students in asking and answering their own questions, think pair share, one minute papers, learning centers, individual and group projects, are some of the strategies that effectively engage my students. 

Finally, I make sure that I continuously assess my students, whether it is a formal or informal assessment, they both provide data that allows me to identify students’ strengths and weaknesses. It allows me to provide feedback, monitor progress, and narrow gaps in learning. Ongoing assessment allows me to make educated instructional decisions to support my student learning and progress.

All these strategies help me to address the wide range of skills, abilities, and learning styles that my students bring to the classroom.