Making The Most Of Math Centers

1. Making The Most Of Math Centers Brenda Loyd NBCT, Park Forest Elementary Chris Rollins NBCT, Woodlawn Elementary

2. Why Are you Here? Shoulder Partner Activity Rally Pair Share- 2 rounds • Share two things you think you know about Math Centers. • Partner listens. • Change roles. • Then share 2 things you want to learn about Math Centers. • Thank your partner for sharing.

3. When Its Time For Math Centers: Do your kids look like this………..

4. Or like this?

5. When I Say Math Centers ….. Do you think of: C h a o s Not enough time to make centers Materials and students every Too many skills & Too much content to teach Kids playing Noise Confusion w h e r e

6. Is This Your Reaction?

7. Or these words? Stations / Centers Activities Groups Differentiation Frequency Observation Small group Whole Group Materials Management Standards Organization

8. This is how you will look after our Presentation today!

9. Objectives: To understand why we use Math Centers. To define what Math Centers are and how to set them up. To learn about the organization and management of Math Centers. To examine how we can differentiate a Math Center. To share ideas about how to use them.

10. Why Math Centers? • For practice. • Manipulating materials to • build understanding. • For using the language of math • to build mathematical thinking. • For allowing time for small group • instruction and reteaching. • They are required in the curriculum.

11. Math Centers are… • Places where students can practice concepts. • For building Mathematical thinking beginning • with the use of concrete manipulatives. • Students practicing basic math facts. • Varieties of leveled activities. • For the use in observation and formative assessment .

12. Setting Up Centers Create a classroom Math Center.

13. Label materials. Muffin Counting Box

15. 2. Set up a management / rotation chart for centers.

16. Grouping • Group students heterogeneously to be sure there is someone who can help other students. • Change students within groups when conflicts arise. • Change students within groups at least 4 times during the year to provide opportunities for students to work with and learn from others.

17. Teach Your Students:

18. Your turn Create a group of three or four. Round Table- • Share what you want Math Centers to look like. • Go around your group- each person shares- no discussion. • Share next what you want Math Stations to sound like. • Thank each other for sharing.

19. First Steps- This Is The Key! • Set rules and procedures for Math Centers. • Establish that this is not play –they are doing Mathematical work. • Be very specific about how to use the materials and what to do with them.

20. Teach: What to do if: Materials are missing. You don’t know how to do the center work. You have a conflict with classmates. Teach: How to: Locate the materials. Put them away.

21. When problems arise, stop the centers. Think about why the problems arose and discuss this with the students. Then reteach the center with this new information.

22. Limit the number of different manipulatives. Start with 1 or 2 different types. • Allow the students free exploration time. Formula: The younger the student, the more free exploration time. • Create an “I Can” list for each station, that includes multiple activities students can do.

23. I Can….. • Roll the dice. • Put that many birds in a tree. • Talk with your partner. • Write and draw a story.

24. I Can….. • Make arrays to show multiplication facts. • Complete a chart for basic math facts. • Play a game of Compare with a partner. • Play a game of Double Compare with a partner. • Using a timer, time how many math facts I can answer.

25. Differentiation • Students begin working on skills that they need to master, regardless of grade level requirements. • Requires that the teacher KNOWS what skills each student needs. • Each center has multiple activities as a choice and the activities progress from easy to difficult.

26. Math Strands Stations can include these strands: • Numbers and Number Relationships • Algebra • Measurement • Geometry • Data Analysis, Probability, and Discrete Math • Patterns, Relations, and Functions

27. Frequency: Every day as part of Math block. But at least 3 days a week. Centers follow whole group instruction of a new concept or reteaching from previous day. Students are responsible for doing the work. Use recording sheets , Math journals, and /or constructed models as evidence that students are doing the work.

28. Monitoring Centers • The teacher keeps anecdotal records of center observations. • Several ways to keep track of student understandings.

34. Gallery Walk Its now time to experience centers. Take sticky notes, and move around the room clockwise. Make comments on sticky notes about other ways to expand this center.

35. Discussion Thoughts or comments about Gallery Walk. Final Activity- Complete KWL . Complete evaluation.

36. Contact Us Brenda Loyd- Bloyd@ebrschools.org Math Coach Chris Rollins- crollins@ebrschools.org First Grade Teacher

37. Enjoy Math Centers!

38. Current Resources • Math Work Stations, Debbie Diller, Stenhouse, 2011; ISBN 978 1 57110 7930 • Number Sense Routines, Jessica Shumway, Stenhouse, 2011 ISBN 978 1 57110 790 9 • Mastering the Basic Math Facts, Susan O’Connell, Heinemann, 2011 ISBN 13- 978-0-325-02963-4 • Guided Math, A Framework For Math Instruction, Laney Sammons, Shell Education, 2010 ISBN978-1-4258-0534-0