5 Maths Gems #2

Last calendar week I promised I'd write a weekly postal service summarising the novel teaching ideas I'd seen on Twitter. Afterwards I worried whether I'd receive got plenty fabric to write about, but this calendar week I wasn't disappointed. Plenty of ideas were shared - here's v of them.

1. Revision Whispers. As I've said before, I'm ever on the hold off out for engaging ideas for revision lessons. Billy Adamson (@Billyads_47) shared this fantastic persuasion 'Maths Whispers!' inwards which pupils are given a fact or formula to communicate alongside their classmates, 'Chinese Whispers' style. Billy says that when his students were walking downwardly the corridor afterwards, they were excitedly talking almost what each disputation was initially as well as what it became. I dear this idea. It would function good inwards other subjects too. Check out Billy's resources on TES. Here's a variation I mightiness elbow grease for H5N1 degree revision: separate the course of written report into teams. The teams cast lines from the dorsum of the classroom upwards to the board. The pupils at the dorsum are given a message to read. Here's an example from S2:

All teams receive got the same message. The message is simultaneously passed along the lines inwards whispers. The in conclusion pupil inwards each describe writes the message on the board. The most accurate squad wins! Then shuffle the students as well as elbow grease some other message. My A degree revision cards receive got plenty of ideas for messages - definitions as well as formulae would function well.

2. Post-its. Mr Allan (@mrallanmaths) wrote this blog post almost his role of post-it notes inwards lessons. He displays questions on boards around his classroom. Students (in pairs or teams) function their agency around the room answering the questions on post-it notes. It's a quick as well as tardily agency of assessing agreement as well as finding misconceptions. It's also rattling engaging, fifty-fifty though the questions are exactly from a textbook. The persuasion originated from a tweet past times Chris McGrane (@ChrisMcGrane84) back inwards January. Shelley Smith (@saxsmith27) successfully tried it out this week.

Speaking of post-it notes, I similar this 'What stuck alongside you?' idea, shared past times @RemindHQ. It could hold upwards a overnice plenary activity in i lawsuit a week, or fifty-fifty at the halt of every lesson.

If yous desire to a greater extent than post-it banking concern notation teaching ideas thence banking concern fit out 'fractions weblog post this calendar week I discovered the blog Authentic Inquiry Maths which is total of expert ideas, similar T-charts for highlighting similarities as well as differences. Pupils role ICT to create their charts as well as yous larn a overnice mix of presentation styles, similar the example below.

Ed Southall's (@edsouthall) tricky maths problems on his website solvemymaths.com are also actually visually appealing as well as I hold off frontward to using them to challenge as well as extend my students adjacent year.

Area occupation #2 - solvemymaths.com

Here's some other 'attractive' activity I spotted on Twitter this week. This i was shared past times Khan Academy (@khanacademy).  It's an engaging activity because it's visually striking, accessible as well as has a expert degree of challenge for pupils who've studied Pythagoras' Theorem. Shame I don't receive got the budget for coloring photocopying!

4. Starting a novel schoolhouse year. With solely 2 weeks left inwards the summertime holidays, I've started to run into weblog posts almost things to exercise inwards outset lessons of the schoolhouse year. I wrote a brace myself a few weeks agone - i on your outset lesson alongside Year 7 as well as i on kicking off Year 12.  Here's a few to a greater extent than I've spotted lately that are worth a read:

• This 'Deliberate Mistakes, Jo Boaler (@joboaler) talked this calendar week almost the value of mistakes inwards ‘Setting upwards Positive Norms inwards Maths Class'. In this document, she suggests that nosotros brand a habit of inviting pupils to the board to portion their conceptual mistakes. She also suggests that pupils crumple a slice of newspaper as well as throw it at the board - exactly once, inwards a symbolic form of agency - non every fourth dimension they brand a mistake... Though I wonder if that would hold upwards worth trying too, to found a classroom civilisation of ‘everyone makes mistakes’ as well as to encourage risk-taking. Can yous imagine if your pupils threw all their mistakes at the board? It mightiness larn a flake messy. Fun though.
  
  Jo makes a give away of other useful suggestions inwards her article, such equally writing students' expert questions on posters around the room. She also talks almost the importance of valuing depth over speed. Many of my students brand it inwards secondary schoolhouse alongside the impression that it’s of import to exercise maths quickly. ‘Beat the clock’ type activities encourage this. What’s the rush?
  
  So, some helpful thoughts from Jo Boaler. Shame almost the negative article she wrote this calendar week almost maths teaching inwards the UK, but yay to the NCETM for defending us! It’s overnice to know individual has our backs.
  
  And finally...
  I'll destination off today's postal service alongside 3 recommended reads:
  
  • Interactive Bulletin Boards for Secondary School Mathematics
  • here). By the way, all my weekly Maths Gems posts volition hold upwards filed on this page, which yous tin access from the 'Extras' card on my blog. Thanks for reading.