I think the idea of having six mini-math questions of review is such an effective way to get the students engaged from the start of class. It is a great way to check in with students and assess them on a daily basis. It also enables the teacher to find out what areas of study need more focus on. Even though I teach preschool, I think taking a few minutes to review shape identifications, one to one correspondence, as well as numeral names could be done in the same fashion.
I agree with you that designing mini lessons can be a helpful strategy for students to review material. I believe checking in with students at all ages is a great way for teachers to connect with students and show them that they are there for them. As teachers it is our responsibility to assess students progress and what a better way to do that then have the beginning of class as a mini review session.
I definitely believe that Leinwand's first instructional shift is an important, but also forgotten practice teachers need to get in the habit of. I remember when I was in elementary school I would study my heart out for a test and then instantly forget the information after I no longer "needed" it. Incorporating ongoing cumulative review into every day's lesson will make life much easier on you as a teacher and for your students. Wether it's including a math problem from the day before on the morning message or giving your students a set of practice problems before starting a new topic/unit, every little bit helps. I liked how Leinwand developed only six questions that covered a variety of different key understandings. Instantly the teacher has data and you haven't taken much time out of the school day to do so.
I agree. Not only does incorporating ongoing cumulative review holds the students accountable for the information they have already learned, it also prepares students for higher levels of education that require cumulative finals. The six questions do a good job of synthesizing all the information under the umbrella of cumulative review.
I was just substituting in a 4th grade class this week and the teacher spent the first 10 minutes of math going over the review sheet the kids had done as morning work. It was very similar to what Leinwand talked about regarding the first shift. The questions covered a range of math concepts the students had previously learned. I believe these quick reviews are vital for helping students reinforce what they have learned. In the beginning of the school year they are also helpful for teachers to assess what students remember after the summer and where they may need to spend some additional time before they get into the new curriculum. As the year goes on a teacher can also get a feel for where her students continue to struggle through use of the quick reviews. I also liked how Leinwand read the questions aloud so the students had to pay attention and focus immediately. Questions on a piece of paper allow students to lose focus a bit faster. When I have a classroom this is definitely something I would like to do with my students.
Lyanne, I agree with you that teachers need to do quick reviews with their students, especially at the beginning of the school year. Lots of teachers forget to do this and automatically assume their students remember everything from the year before. I also like how you shared what you did in fourth grade earlier this week. Very insightful.
I agree that interaction with students is key to make any review effective. A simple paper and pencil task won't be effective if there isn't some communication around it, even if the teacher is forming a question. Projects similar to what we did last class could also be helpful because they cover multiple topics, and could act as a review while still focusing on a new skill.
I agree Lyanne, I think that it makes things more interesting, especially in math, when students are not just working on a piece of paper but have to listen and mentally compute some problems. In my new classroom, my team and I began the year with an assessment that didn't count to see what had stuck and what had been lost over the summer. It was surprising to see how much material kids can actually forget during the summer months!
I may even have a different number of questions each day so that the students do not get into a rut. I think this is so much more effective than what many teachers do in my children's classrooms. So many times a math topic is taught for a number of days and/or weeks, only to never be revisited again, yet the students are expected to perform well on an assessment 4 months later.
Jeanne, I think you really hit the nail on the head with your last point. It is absolutely ridiculous for us, as teachers, to teach a concept to a class and then in four months expect that they remember that now very fuzzy concept in order to score well on a standardized test! That is something that this shift really helps both teachers and students with, as well as creating less of an anxiety on both ends for remembering math concepts and lessons.
I have seen this many times where students learn about a topic in September and by January have already forgotten about it if they have never used it again. This quick daily review is effective and not time-consuming either.
Like everyone who has posted before me, I do believe that this first shift Leinwand describes is a very important practice that not all teachers are in the habit of doing, but should be. I taught in a fourth grade classroom as part of my student teaching and found that something simple like a mini-math lesson as a morning warm up was a great start to the day. Not only did it get the students prepared for math but for the day in general, and it made them feel really proud to know they had gotten answers correct, or even tried their best to come up with a solution. I also worked in a fourth grade classroom that had a very similar "mental math" period to the example lesson given in this chapter. It was very quick, with two repetitions of each question, different types of questions each day, and with a little banter from the teacher to make the students think about the problem harder. However, I have to say that I do not agree this "mental math" or mini-math is the best method for every age group, or even every individual. Some students may need a different method of incorporating the ongoing curriculum based on their age group, or any anxieties or learning disabilities. Those strategies aren't really provided in the text. As for someone working in early childhood and elementary grades, it would be easy to ask the students questions while they are playing with different shaped blocks, playing a math game, or counting with friends. Personally because I would be working with this younger age group more often I would more than likely use more informal way of reviewing the ongoing curriculum, but I love the idea of older students having a mental math book for these daily reviews and being able to go back to review concepts that will help them along the way.
I have effectively used the techniques described by Leinwand during my student teaching and my teaching today. Usually the first 10 minutes of class were devoted to a review topic from a previous unit, and the students would complete the work independently. The teacher would look at the work to see who needed more review in a specific area. I also do that in my classroom now with a "math warm-up" each day. I do not focus on more than one skill, though, mostly because I am working with Special Education and it may be too much to remember multiple previous units. I would instead switch up the questioning on a day-to-day basis. This is a strategy that is applicable in any classroom, whether it is General Education or Special Education. The repetitive review ensures that students are continuing to apply different skills in the classroom.
Similarly to my classmates, I do believe that reviewing prior topics covered in class is important to include in one's everyday routine. It helps students store information easier in their long term memory. In addition, it keeps important basic skills that can be used as a building block to more complex material fresh in students minds. I find in a lot of my observations that teachers fail to revisit and cover material after a unit assessment until it is need for a lesson. I have worked with an increasing number of teachers who have began to use "math minutes" in their classrooms which serve as a one-minute review of different topics in different concepts of math at the beginning of every class. I personally, use mental math in my classroom at the beginning of each class. The students do not use paper or pencil, some use whiteboard markers on their desks to help processing speed and visualization, but it is a quick five-minute exercise that wakes students up, get their minds ready to work and grabs the students excitement. Students enjoy the chance to shout out answers and get the answer before anyone else can. It gets the students excited and looking forward to math.
A couple of years ago, I used this book for a book study with the 4th grade teachers at my school. Of all the shifts discussed in the book, they found daily reviews to be one of the most powerful of all the shifts. Last year teachers even used these reviews to help form smaller work groups for RTI interventions.
I think the idea of having six mini-math questions of review is such an effective way to get the students engaged from the start of class. It is a great way to check in with students and assess them on a daily basis. It also enables the teacher to find out what areas of study need more focus on. Even though I teach preschool, I think taking a few minutes to review shape identifications, one to one correspondence, as well as numeral names could be done in the same fashion.
ReplyDeleteJeanne,
DeleteI agree with you that designing mini lessons can be a helpful strategy for students to review material. I believe checking in with students at all ages is a great way for teachers to connect with students and show them that they are there for them. As teachers it is our responsibility to assess students progress and what a better way to do that then have the beginning of class as a mini review session.
I definitely believe that Leinwand's first instructional shift is an important, but also forgotten practice teachers need to get in the habit of. I remember when I was in elementary school I would study my heart out for a test and then instantly forget the information after I no longer "needed" it. Incorporating ongoing cumulative review into every day's lesson will make life much easier on you as a teacher and for your students. Wether it's including a math problem from the day before on the morning message or giving your students a set of practice problems before starting a new topic/unit, every little bit helps. I liked how Leinwand developed only six questions that covered a variety of different key understandings. Instantly the teacher has data and you haven't taken much time out of the school day to do so.
ReplyDeleteI agree. Not only does incorporating ongoing cumulative review holds the students accountable for the information they have already learned, it also prepares students for higher levels of education that require cumulative finals. The six questions do a good job of synthesizing all the information under the umbrella of cumulative review.
DeleteI was just substituting in a 4th grade class this week and the teacher spent the first 10 minutes of math going over the review sheet the kids had done as morning work. It was very similar to what Leinwand talked about regarding the first shift. The questions covered a range of math concepts the students had previously learned. I believe these quick reviews are vital for helping students reinforce what they have learned. In the beginning of the school year they are also helpful for teachers to assess what students remember after the summer and where they may need to spend some additional time before they get into the new curriculum. As the year goes on a teacher can also get a feel for where her students continue to struggle through use of the quick reviews. I also liked how Leinwand read the questions aloud so the students had to pay attention and focus immediately. Questions on a piece of paper allow students to lose focus a bit faster. When I have a classroom this is definitely something I would like to do with my students.
ReplyDeleteLyanne, I agree with you that teachers need to do quick reviews with their students, especially at the beginning of the school year. Lots of teachers forget to do this and automatically assume their students remember everything from the year before. I also like how you shared what you did in fourth grade earlier this week. Very insightful.
DeleteI agree that interaction with students is key to make any review effective. A simple paper and pencil task won't be effective if there isn't some communication around it, even if the teacher is forming a question. Projects similar to what we did last class could also be helpful because they cover multiple topics, and could act as a review while still focusing on a new skill.
DeleteI agree Lyanne, I think that it makes things more interesting, especially in math, when students are not just working on a piece of paper but have to listen and mentally compute some problems. In my new classroom, my team and I began the year with an assessment that didn't count to see what had stuck and what had been lost over the summer. It was surprising to see how much material kids can actually forget during the summer months!
DeleteI may even have a different number of questions each day so that the students do not get into a rut. I think this is so much more effective than what many teachers do in my children's classrooms. So many times a math topic is taught for a number of days and/or weeks, only to never be revisited again, yet the students are expected to perform well on an assessment 4 months later.
ReplyDeleteJeanne,
DeleteI think you really hit the nail on the head with your last point. It is absolutely ridiculous for us, as teachers, to teach a concept to a class and then in four months expect that they remember that now very fuzzy concept in order to score well on a standardized test! That is something that this shift really helps both teachers and students with, as well as creating less of an anxiety on both ends for remembering math concepts and lessons.
I have seen this many times where students learn about a topic in September and by January have already forgotten about it if they have never used it again. This quick daily review is effective and not time-consuming either.
DeleteLike everyone who has posted before me, I do believe that this first shift Leinwand describes is a very important practice that not all teachers are in the habit of doing, but should be. I taught in a fourth grade classroom as part of my student teaching and found that something simple like a mini-math lesson as a morning warm up was a great start to the day. Not only did it get the students prepared for math but for the day in general, and it made them feel really proud to know they had gotten answers correct, or even tried their best to come up with a solution. I also worked in a fourth grade classroom that had a very similar "mental math" period to the example lesson given in this chapter. It was very quick, with two repetitions of each question, different types of questions each day, and with a little banter from the teacher to make the students think about the problem harder. However, I have to say that I do not agree this "mental math" or mini-math is the best method for every age group, or even every individual. Some students may need a different method of incorporating the ongoing curriculum based on their age group, or any anxieties or learning disabilities. Those strategies aren't really provided in the text. As for someone working in early childhood and elementary grades, it would be easy to ask the students questions while they are playing with different shaped blocks, playing a math game, or counting with friends. Personally because I would be working with this younger age group more often I would more than likely use more informal way of reviewing the ongoing curriculum, but I love the idea of older students having a mental math book for these daily reviews and being able to go back to review concepts that will help them along the way.
ReplyDeleteI have effectively used the techniques described by Leinwand during my student teaching and my teaching today. Usually the first 10 minutes of class were devoted to a review topic from a previous unit, and the students would complete the work independently. The teacher would look at the work to see who needed more review in a specific area. I also do that in my classroom now with a "math warm-up" each day. I do not focus on more than one skill, though, mostly because I am working with Special Education and it may be too much to remember multiple previous units. I would instead switch up the questioning on a day-to-day basis. This is a strategy that is applicable in any classroom, whether it is General Education or Special Education. The repetitive review ensures that students are continuing to apply different skills in the classroom.
ReplyDeleteSimilarly to my classmates, I do believe that reviewing prior topics covered in class is important to include in one's everyday routine. It helps students store information easier in their long term memory. In addition, it keeps important basic skills that can be used as a building block to more complex material fresh in students minds. I find in a lot of my observations that teachers fail to revisit and cover material after a unit assessment until it is need for a lesson. I have worked with an increasing number of teachers who have began to use "math minutes" in their classrooms which serve as a one-minute review of different topics in different concepts of math at the beginning of every class. I personally, use mental math in my classroom at the beginning of each class. The students do not use paper or pencil, some use whiteboard markers on their desks to help processing speed and visualization, but it is a quick five-minute exercise that wakes students up, get their minds ready to work and grabs the students excitement. Students enjoy the chance to shout out answers and get the answer before anyone else can. It gets the students excited and looking forward to math.
ReplyDeleteA couple of years ago, I used this book for a book study with the 4th grade teachers at my school. Of all the shifts discussed in the book, they found daily reviews to be one of the most powerful of all the shifts. Last year teachers even used these reviews to help form smaller work groups for RTI interventions.
ReplyDelete