We really need to make some progress in the area of problem solving. I need to get students to toe the line when approaching Math problems. I've found some information about ways to provide structure to students without revealing procedures or solutions along the way. After some study, I decided to develop my own worksheet to facilitate the process (three pages actually). These three sheets have numbers on them that indicate starting and stopping points along the way. Traveling through a single set of the sheets may require some time, so I do not expect to work through the entire problem in a single sitting. Numbered from one to four, the process of a single lesson could take as many days. And that's OK. We're going to learn to be patient. We're going to learn to be thorough. We're going to learn to talk about numbers, to communicate about processes. We're going to learn to build upon each other, learn from mistakes, and solve whatever problem we face, whether on a test or in life. The sheets start with students asking questions about a given picture, item, or video. Getting kids talking, right out of the gate, will help them when the conversation turns to Math. It allows students to enter the conversation with little risk. At some point, perhaps with some nudging from the teacher, a single question will emerge as the one we need to address, though others may come along for the ride. Once a central question is identified, students will make courageous high and low parameters and guesses to address the problem at hand. |
Finally, I ask the class to identify errors and find ways to avoid the same errors in their next attempts. The last sheet, though not always needed, serves as a kind of debriefing for the project.
I attempted to make the worksheets somewhat attractive, while at the same time spacious and practical.
I would like to take the sheets to another level by requiring groups to share their solutions. Afterward, they will attempt to explain the method used by another group.
The entire process capitalizes on curiosity and challenges all to make progress and is designed to keep me on my toes and on the right track as a facilitator.
Dan Meyer, Robert Kaplinsky, Dane Ehlert, and Andrew Stadel.