Guided Maths Chapter 5 Guided Maths

I found this quite a hard chapter to read with parts of it interesting and others quite boring. I also think that as teachers in NZ we mostly teach needs based groups. So my reflection may be a little hard to read/understand.

Maths is my major focus area this term so I am really trying to emerge myself into different books and other teachers ways of teaching.

1. How does using flexible, needs based grouping affect student learning? Can it affect teaching strategies employed by teachers?

It allows teachers to aim the content at the individual student/s and their needs rather than teaching the whole class and hoping the lower groups will understand and having the higher students practice the strategies.

Because I use needs based grouping in my class I do think it affects the strategies that I employ in a positive way. If I was teaching whole class all the time then I know a large portion of my class either wouldn’t understand or wouldn’t be extended.

2. Do you use Guided Reading in your classroom? If so, how can you adapt it to accommodate mathematics instruction? What about it is easily modified for teaching mathematics? What may be more difficult to adapt?

Yes, I also use Guided Math. I run the Daily 5 programme in reading and I want to adapt the same approach to my Maths.  For this I will be doing my normal guided session but then children will then have the choice of Math Technology, Math Writing, Math with Someone or Math by Myself. I think it will be easily modified to suit the learners in my class.

3. What data do you have that can guide you as you create small groups of students of Guided Math instructions?

In my class at the moment I am using data created from the Gloss test I am also wanting to use more formative assessment in my guided groups to help me gain more understanding of where students are at and where the areas are that I need to address.

A quote from the book I found relevant to me and I’m not sure if this is something I do because I am a beginning teacher or not. “of ‘finishing’ becoming more important than ‘figuring out’” -  (Sammons, 2013). Which is something I can find myself guilty of so I will be taking a look at this and whether they are ‘figuring out’ or wasting time and not.

Reference

Sammons, L. (2013). Guided Math. Shell Education.