How to look at Math Problems and Tech in the Class

Welcome back to my blog!

How to look at a math problem

This week, we covered intuition and thinking like a mathematician. Math is so much more than plugging a number into a formula. We need to understand math problems and be able to explain and justify our thinking in words instead of a formula. What does that formula really tell us? We need to know how to apply our mathematical thinking in other settings, so a formula is not always going to help out especially when dealing with something new or unknown.

Too often, we give up too soon. Even brilliant people, such as Sebastian Thrun, an accomplished inventor and Google executive, admitted to taking weeks to be develop an intuitive understanding of a math concept. I also liked his comment about taking away the fear of math in our students. The struggle and frustration experienced by students is actually an excellent indicator of brain growth and learning.

Drawing in Math

In his blog, Ryan discussed the pencil as a powerful manipulative – I couldn’t agree more! It’s a low-cost everyday item, therefore easily accessible for everyone. In his TED talk, Tom Wujec explained that illustrations let you break down a problem step by step and visualize scenarios – this approach is used in the design process for new or improved products.

I really liked the 9-year old student’s visual representation in one of our math mindset modules, in which the student drew 3 circles to represent 1/3 of a pound of slices. From there, the student reasoned that 1 pound is equal to 9 slices. If only ¼ of the slices was needed, dividing the grouping into 4 parts by drawing a horizontal and vertical line to determine that ¼ was only needed gives us a clear idea as to how much was needed – just count the contents of 1 quadrant! 

It is commonly known that young children enjoy drawing and are very creative – unfortunately, this creativity declines as students get older. I will definitely encourage my students to use drawings to help understand math problems!  

Technology in the Math classroom

This week, we also looked at technology in the math classroom. I think that technology is something that can greatly enhance teaching in math and help our students to become 21^st Century learners. There is a wealth of wonderful resources but we have to make sure that the resource is appropriate and not being overused. Is it relevant? Does it assist in differentiation? Does it provide cross-curricular connections and feedback to students?

In her MRP (Major Research Paper) Evaluating and Integrating Educational Technology in the Elementary Mathematics Classroom, Rebecca Bunz has identified characteristics of effective digital tools. (MRP is available at  http://bit.ly/2EBaQKh)

“In terms of functionality, studies found a positive effect on some aspect of student achievement or other factor of learning if the digital tool

• was adaptive,

• allowed for collaboration,

• allowed the use of an avatar,

• used blogging tools,

• provided the opportunity to draw, write, or highlight,

• used a game-based environment,

• had graphics and visuals,

• provided hints or help,

• provided instructions through a virtual guide,

• used presentation software,

• provided awards or incentives,

• used robotics,

• used spreadsheets,

• allowed users to create content,

• provided a teacher dashboard,

• linked to curriculum standards,

• provided tutorials on the concepts,

• was user-friendly,

• used a virtual world or classroom, or

• used word processing software”

Some Popular Technology Solutions I’ve come across

During my placement, Kahoots were used with great success! Even the most reluctant and disengaged students enjoyed participating in Kahoots with the rest of the class! Check this out to learn more about Kahoot: https://binged.it/2CVYAT1.

Class Dojo is another great tool that I saw being used for behaviour management. Its points and reward system truly did motivate students to be on task and complete their work. Watch this to learn about Class Dojo:   https://binged.it/2EA2W43.

One Tool I’d like to try out – Scratch

Students use Scratch to code their own animations, projects, stories and games and share them with an online global community. Check out this video! 

Scratch Overview from ScratchEd on Vimeo.


In the end, people are still the most important part of any classroom. Technology cannot replace a great teacher. Technology is a tool that enables teachers and students to create personalized, accessible, creative learning experiences. We just have to be careful to consider it as a means to this end, rather than an end unto itself.