Manipulatives Benefit Math Instruction!

Hi there! Welcome to my new blog post!

Thanks for checking out my blog! I am Julia Park and I go to Millersville University. I am in my senior year of studying as an Early Childhood Education major! If you have a moment, feel free to check out my previous posts! 

In my last post, I explained how technology can strengthen mathematics instruction. In this post, I will be providing information about using manipulatives in math class!


Are Math Manipulatives Useful?

Manipulatives are very useful tools that children can use to learn or practice math skills in a hands-on way. These tools can include objects like two-color counters, dice, hundreds charts, pattern blocks, place value blocks, and so many more.

Math manipulatives allow children to extend their learning by having fun and memorable experiences with physical, and sometimes virtual, objects. Many learners need different ways to visualize or discover how a new concept works. Students are able to explore and manipulate objects themselves, in a safe and low-stress environment, to make sense of the information that they are learning. 

When children have fun, personal, and memorable experiences in school, they are more focused and engaged in class. Increased focus and engagement will deepen students’ understanding of mathematical concepts. 


Ways to Use Math Manipulatives

Math manipulatives are often used to introduce a skill or as tools for children to practice their new skills with. These tools are typically used at the start of a lesson or for an activity after the teaching of a new concept. 

There are many strategies teachers can use to successfully incorporate manipulatives into the classroom. One of these strategies is modeling. Teachers can model using math tools for the students before they try to use them independently. The students can then practice using the tools on their own, with guidance from the teacher when necessary. 

Students can also explore manipulatives to extend their learning. Like I stated in the previous section, manipulatives can make math fun for children! Let them explore and come up with new ideas through the use of math tools. This can occur when trying to solve a problem, reviewing a new concept, or any other idea related to math! 

For information on how to use specific manipulatives in the classroom, click the image in this section! Elyse Rycroft does an amazing job at taking an in-depth look at implementing manipulatives into mathematics instruction! 


Tips for Organizing and Assembling Math Tools!

Having materials organized is crucial when implementing the use of manipulatives. If the classroom is disorganized, there is a chance that valuable time that could be used for learning will be wasted on finding specific materials or cleaning up unnecessary clutter. 

Teachers can use bins or different kinds of containers with labels to neatly organize manipulatives. Labels with pictures are super helpful for students, especially when they are still developing their reading skills. There should be a specific spot in the classroom for these materials that is easily accessible to the students. 

Another helpful tip to prevent time from being wasted is to have all manipulatives prepared and ready to go before it is time to teach or transition into an activity with the children. 

Click on the image above for Jillian Starr’s 10 tips for organizing math materials! I found these tips to be incredibly helpful!


Using Manipulatives at Home

It has been a challenging time since the pandemic started, especially with the transition to online learning. Children studying at home do not have access to many of the materials that are available at school.

I mentioned this in my previous blog post, but there are many websites that include virtual manipulatives for students to use. Children can engage in online activities to extend their learning even at home!

If you click on the image above, you will be taken to a blog all about using items from home as manipulatives. In times like these, we have to get creative! We have a lot more useful items to help us with math than we often realize. The blog linked above will show plenty of examples of that! 


Thanks for reading!

I always loved using manipulatives when I was learning math growing up. Math was never my strong suit, but manipulatives really helped me visualize certain concepts in a clearer way. I hope you learned more about manipulatives in this blog post!

Thanks for stopping by. See you later!

-Julia 🙂

Technology Can Strengthen Mathematical Learning!

Hi everyone! Hope you are doing well!

Blog Author- Julia Park

Welcome to my new blog post! My name is Julia Park and I am a senior Early Childhood Education major at Millersville University. I would love it if you could check out my other blog posts to get to know me a bit more! 

In my last post, I focused on the use of interactive notebooks in math class! In this post, I will be providing information on how technology can be another tool to benefit mathematical instruction. 


How Does Technology Support our Students?

Technology supports students’ experiences in math by providing them with different ways to learn and review mathematical concepts taught in class. The following are some examples of how technology can support the learning of our students in math:

      • Students can practice their math skills through virtual activities, apps, and games. Children can feel much more involved in and responsible for their learning when participating in fun, interactive activities. This feeling of being involved will increase their engagement in class and their understanding of the material. 
      • Children can utilize online manipulatives to develop skills they are working on. Many manipulatives like number lines, color tiles, and more are offered online!
      • Students can watch videos or presentations that further illustrate specific skills to provide them with another way of learning a new concept.   
      • Experiences online can be individualized, which can meet the needs of many students.

Click on the image above for four awesome ways technology can be used in the classroom to support teachers and students! These ways are discussed in this section and in the next, but this article provides a bit more detail for each one and I wanted to share it with you all! 


Technology Can Benefit Teachers Too!

Teachers can use technology to assist them in the classroom in a variety of ways. One major benefit is that technology extends our students’ learning, which we have discussed in the previous section. Those benefits support teachers because, through the use of technology, we can provide our students with resources to help them improve on their math skills. 

The use of technology provides teachers with computers to research concepts, find or create materials, organize and store lesson plans, create presentations for students, find mathematical videos, and so much more. SMART Boards or projectors are also useful for showing presentations or videos to provide visual representations of math skills when needed. 

With the range of materials available online, one benefit for teachers and students is that we can differentiate the learning experiences for each child. If needed, we are able to assemble activities for each student that meets their specific needs to help them grow in certain areas. 

Along with being able to differentiate for each child, teachers can use online activities or games to monitor student work and track their progress. Teachers can use the information they gain from monitoring their progress to modify their teaching strategies for in-person and online instruction! My cooperating teacher in my fourth-grade classroom has been using Google Classroom, especially during the pandemic, to assign work from home. This is just one example of how teachers can review the work students do online! 

One more really important benefit that is actually connected to both the student and teacher is that technology often allows teachers to stay in touch with families. Strengthening the relationship between the school and families will provide more support for the child. Teachers can keep in contact with families through emails, phone calls, and video chats. Educators can also allow families to be updated on their students’ progress by seeing their online work. 


Useful Mathematical Resources

Throughout my time at Millersville and out in the field, I have come across many mathematical resources that benefit students’ learning. The following are just a few examples that I have learned about so far: 

      • Students can access online manipulatives on many different websites. Click on the image in this section to explore one website that offers some great virtual manipulatives!
      • There is a website students can use to practice creating all kinds of graphs called “Create a Graph.” 
      • In my field placement, my fourth graders use a math app called Prodigy! This app lets students participate in battle games while practicing their math skills throughout their battles! My fourth graders love it!
      • Sumdog is another program where students can play games while strengthening their mathematical skills. 
      • BrainPOP offers a wide range of animated movies, games, and activities for a variety of math concepts to provide children with fun experiences while building upon their mathematical skill sets. 

Thanks so much for checking out my blog!

I hope you learned a lot about why technology is beneficial for teachers and children and how to utilize it in the classroom! During this pandemic, we have had to rely on technology a great deal. I have found it very helpful to embrace this new world of technology so that I can take advantage of all its benefits! Maybe this post will inspire you to do the same! Thanks again for reading! Check out my blog again soon. 

-Julia 🙂

Using Interactive Notebooks in Math Class!

Welcome to my blog! I am so happy you are here.

Hi everyone! If you are a new visitor here, feel free to check out my previous blog posts to get to know me a little more! I am Julia Park and I am currently in my senior year as an Early Childhood Education major at Millersville University. I am eager to continue sharing what I learn with everyone! 

In my last post, I discussed the importance of having a growth mindset when learning in school, especially when it comes to the subject of mathematics. Today, I will be discussing the use of interactive notebooks for math instruction! 


What is an “Interactive Notebook?”

I actually hadn’t heard of an interactive notebook until this semester at Millersville! I am really thankful I know about them now because they can be used as a tool to increase student engagement and organize their learning of math.

Interactive notebooks extend children’s learning by offering opportunities for guided notes and practice with skills students learn in class. If they are kept organized, interactive notebooks can greatly benefit mathematics instruction!


Ways to Organize an Interactive Notebook

It is super important that interactive notebooks are kept neat so that their learning can be organized. There are a few ways to organize interactive notebooks to benefit the instruction of math!

Interactive notebooks often have paper cutouts that are glued onto the pages of the book. These cutouts have guided notes, visuals, activities, and games for the children to support their learning in math. Some of the activities and games might have extra pieces that can be stored in bags that can be paper clipped or taped to the notebook!

Along with the cutouts that educators can use, teachers can include a table of contents at the beginning of the notebooks. The children number their pages and record each section in the front of the book to make their work and notes easily accessible. Click the image above to see an example of how teachers can organize their table of contents! Sarah Carter is a high school math teacher in Coweta, Oklahoma, but her example is helpful for younger grades as well! 

Another way to set up the children’s notebooks is by having them assemble their cutouts or contents of the books in the order of units and/or chapters of the units. This method can allow children to revisit each section of skills that they learned to review and build upon them as time goes on.

To make sure content is arranged in the notebooks to support students’ learning, the cutouts or information included can be structured based on standards. Rebecca Rojas does an awesome job at incorporating the standards in each of her interactive notebooks for her fourth graders! Check out her blog to see examples of some of her notebook pages!


The Benefits of Using Interactive Notebooks

For reasons discussed above, the organization involved in implementing interactive notebooks is one major benefit for students studying new mathematical concepts. 

Another benefit of interactive notebooks is that they can provide children with a range of visuals and fun activities to further their understanding of the concepts they are learning in class. 

While implementing interactive notebooks, teachers can provide students with scaffolding to help them practice skills until they are prepared to be independent and work on their own. Teachers can also differentiate learning through the contents of the book by making each notebook individualized based on the students’ needs. 

In relation to the benefit of differentiation, teachers can monitor student work through their use of the notebooks. This is a major benefit for teachers because they can track the progress of the students and can modify their instruction when necessary. 

One more benefit of using interactive notebooks is that they can connect parents to their children’s education. Parents can gain a deeper understanding of what their child is learning in math class by looking at their interactive notebooks. This will build the relationship between the teacher, parent, and student, creating a supportive community for the child. 

All of these benefits increase the engagement of the students when learning math. When students are engaged in class, they are more motivated and focused, which creates memorable learning experiences! 

Check out this blog post to learn even more about the benefits of using interactive notebooks for math instruction! 


Organization is Important!

In order to have a successful experience with interactive notebooks, it is crucial that they are kept organized and are developmentally appropriate for your class. There so many resources out there, including ones that I have not mentioned thus far, that can help you organize your own interactive notebooks!

I want to leave you all with just one example of a great resource I have found to help inspire what I would love to do for my fourth graders in the future. Fabie Lozano does an excellent job of displaying her resources and explaining how she organizes her notebooks. This format can be modified for lower grades as well!

Interactive Math Notebook for 4th Grade

Your 4th graders will love these interactive math notebook resources that address all 4th grade math content. These NO PREP resources make introducing new ma…


Thanks for stopping by!

I hope this blog post and the resources I have shared motivate you to explore the idea of implementing interactive notebooks into your classroom! Thanks again for checking out this post. Stay safe out there! 

-Julia 🙂

 

Let’s Talk Math!

Hi! Long time, no see!

Blog Author- Julia Park

Welcome to my blog! I am Julia Park and I am an Early Childhood Education major at Millersville University. It is my senior year here at MU and wow, it has been quite the journey! Although the pandemic has made life difficult, I am absolutely loving my field placement experience with my wonderful fourth graders thus far! The busy semester has limited the time that I would have dedicated to blogging, which has been a huge bummer for me. I am so excited to get back into sharing information I am learning with you all!

In this post, along with many future posts, I will be focusing on the instruction of mathematics. Let’s dive in!


Growth Mindset Matters

You might be wondering, what does the phrase “growth mindset” mean? When a person has a growth mindset, they believe that they can improve in their ability to do something. This is the opposite of having a fixed mindset. A fixed mindset is when a person believes that their qualities are fixed traits and focus on documenting these traits rather than improving on them.

Having a growth mindset is important in any subject because we want our students to believe that it is possible to grow in their own abilities. When children believe that their abilities can improve, they are more motivated to try new skills and activities. This motivation leads children into a world of endless, invaluable learning opportunities.


How do Fixed Mindsets Form in Math Class?

It is important to acknowledge how fixed mindsets might have formed to prevent them from forming in our own classrooms! It is also beneficial because it can allow us to understand why a student is lacking motivation in math.

There are so many ways fixed mindsets are established in the minds of children. The following are just a few examples that I have learned about or experienced out in the field:

  • Children often hear the idea that you have to be a “math person” in order to excel in mathematics. A “math person” does not exist! Students of all kinds can improve their math skills with hard work and practice. 
  • Students might have attended a class where only accuracy was appreciated. Having a teacher who does not value effort can create a fear of failure in children.
  • There is a possibility that teachers do not provide children with enough opportunities to challenge themselves. Without these opportunities, children are unable to practice the skills they are in the midst of developing.

If teachers are more aware of the possible reasons that students are lacking in motivation, we are able to problem-solve in a mindful way!


Encouraging Students to have a Growth Mindset

As teachers, we can do so much to encourage our students to have growth mindsets in math class. The following is a list of ways teachers can promote growth mindsets in their students:

  • Teachers can remind students that everyone learns in different ways and at different paces. This is why we must praise effort, not just accuracy. When effort is praised, students are better able to recognize that the process is just as important as the result. 
  • Educators should provide children with challenging opportunities so that students can practice using their problem-solving and critical thinking skills in a safe, low-stress environment. 
  • Teachers can model having a growth mindset by participating in think-alouds. In a think-aloud, teachers can demonstrate positive reactions when mistakes are made. By doing this, the teacher can work through the mistake aloud and show that mistakes are learning opportunities.
  • Educators should emphasize the power of “yet!” We need to remind students that they might not be able to do something yet, but with determination and practice, they will be able to work towards many goals! 

Check out this awesome blog for more ways on how to encourage our students to have a growth mindset in math! You can also click on the image seen above for another great resource on this topic!

In the TED Talk video below, Rita Pierson sets a great example for teachers to build trust with our students, show our students that making mistakes is okay, praise students for their effort, and encourage students to do better because we know they can!

Every kid needs a champion | Rita Pierson

Rita Pierson, a teacher for 40 years, once heard a colleague say, “They don’t pay me to like the kids.” Her response: “Kids don’t learn from people they don’…

I love this video so much and I think it represents beautiful ways we as teachers can model having a growth mindset for our own students! 


“It is hard to fail, but it is worse never to have tried to succeed.”Theodore Roosevelt

The fear of failure often limits the exploration and risk taking done by individuals, which is really detrimental to a person’s development. As you have just read in my previous sections, children have experiences that can lead to this fear, which is a major problem that we need to be aware of. 

We need to encourage children to recognize that so much can come out of trying something new, even if it results in failure. It is best that we treat failure and the process of making mistakes as learning opportunities because that is what they are! 


Thank you very much for reading this post!

I really appreciate you stopping by! Having a growth mindset is so important for our learners and I really enjoyed sharing this information with you all! Thanks so much for reading!

-Julia 🙂