Infusing Technology Into The Math Curriculum

Here is what the technology teacher at my school is doing with the boy's explanations on how to solve different math problems. We felt this was a great idea. They are now taking their writings and making quick videos for their peers to watch.

Infusing Technology Into The Math Curriculum --- Here is a blog about how to make the videos. This is written by our technology teacher.

5th Grade Math Videos ---- Here are some examples of what we have done so far. We are hoping to make many more videos like this in the future.

Math In The Reading Classroom

I wanted to share some examples of what two boys did in their Reading class yesterday. I was excited to see them pulling their definitions into their Reading class.

Thoughts .......

So far this year I feel I have grown as a teacher so much! I am becoming a better teacher. Making the boys dig deep and immerse themselves in the content has given them and me a chance to look at math in so many different ways. The boys have made connections that I could have never imagined. I am able to show the boys that what they are learning now will be used in their other other classes and why. For example knowing exactly why the units are cubed in Volume, lead to the question, "How and Why" This lead into how to multiply exponents. Some of the boys are learning about Laws of Exponents now because the questions they were asking. I am very excited to see where this will lead the boys in their future math classes.

I would love to hear your thoughts.

Geometry Projects

The boys have put themselves in the role of a Creator. They were given the assignment to create their dream club house, play house, or hunting blind. They could build it from things around their house, Sketch-Up, or legos. We have been talking about how Geometry is all around us. I wanted to end this unit with them taking on a role where they could experience hands on Geometry. I will be showing you their projects soon.

"I used to think, but now I think" --- Geometry

I asked the boys to type or write out a "I used to think, but now I think" on Geometry. I wanted to share a few with you.




I use to think Geometry was just shapes and sides. Now I think Geometry it more complex than J.K. Rowling's writing style.

I use to think Geometry was just a bunch of shapes. Now I think it is mathematical term like multiplication or division.

I used to think Geometry was useless. Now I think Geometry is in our everyday life.

I use to think Geometry was just a bunch of Shapes. Now I think Geometry is something we use everyday.

I use to think that Geometry does not involve anything in real life. Now I think that you can find Geometry everywhere.

Geometry Unit

I am so excited about what has come out of this unit. I will continue to teach Geometry this way in the future. The boys have really immersed themselves in geometry and want to learn more. They could not believe that we have only touched the surface of what geometry is all about. They keep wanting to learn more. The classes were run by what questions the boys wanted to learn about and the tests were based on their questions.

As we got into the unit and started to learn about the formulas the boys were able to figure out some of the formulas because of the definitions that they have learned. For example, I had them figure out the area of a triangle on their own. They knew that a triangle was half of a parallelogram and the formula for a parallelogram was base x height. Knowing this information they were able to come up with the formula for a triangle and explain why. ((base x height)/2) This was exciting for them. They also figured out that circumference has two different formulas and can explain why. They knew that a diameter was made up of two radii.

The boys also started to ask questions about volume and why the formula changed depending on the bases of the 3D object. When we got into these questions the boys realized that you can write volume as Area of the base x Height of the whole object. This then lead into what happens if you have something inside the 3D object taking up space in the object.

This lead to the questions, "What does a 4D shape look like?" and "Do they exist?" These question lead into some great debates. The boy continue to research and ask questions.

Random Guy

We have brought Random guy back into the classroom. The boys are now teaching him about geometry. The boys are having so much fun with Random Guy. Over the year, the boys have found this exercise is a great way to check their work. I would love to share some of their Random Guy writings with you. As they write to Random Guy they are told to write their thoughts and not worry about all the grammar. I feel that if they are not as concerned about their grammar, their explanations will be more complete.

I have provided some examples below. In some of the examples the boys left out why they had to subtract. We talked about why that was important to put into to the explanation. I am very proud of the boys for what they came up with. This was given to them with only one measurement and they had to find out the other measurements and the formulas. Not all of the following examples are perfect scores. I wanted to show different examples of the progress the boys are making. I have discovered during this process that the boys are better able to see their errors and I am better able to assess their needs so that they can fully understand what they are doing.

In some of the following examples the boys and I talked about how some of the details were left out. For Example, "Why subtract the area of the circle from the area of the square?" or "How did you get 8 units as the length of one side of the square?" I feel the boys are doing a great job. The boys that wrote this knew the answers to the questions I asked, he just forgot to put it into the explanation. This is another great learning tool. The boys are able to use peer editing and teaching each other at the same time.

Here is the question that the following boys wrote about.