Math Intervention Time

I liked to look at the What Works Clearinghouse. It's a good refresher before going back to school on what really makes a good math intervention, and what doesn't.

If you have time, take a look at the recommendations behind the research:

Teaching Math To Young Children

If you do not have the time, here are my "ah ha" moments from the reading:

1. There is moderate evidence behind teaching numbers and operations in developmental progression. If you have the flexibility to teach math skills in a sequence that makes sense to the child, do it! If you are following a math progam that is not so skillful at doing this, think about how you can scaffold the activities for the students to make the program flow better.

Example that I am working on with my 2nd graders on:

1st: Place value

2nd: Adding and subtracting number up to 3 digits

3rd: Quanitity discrimination

4th: Regrouping

Regrouping isn't going to make sense if the students do not have the other three skills mastered. Remember that students learn at their own pace, and that pushing regrouping before they have the other skills mastered first.

2. There is minimal evidence saying that geometry, patterns, measurement, and data need to be taught in a developmental sequence.

Interesting.

My student really struggle with applied problems. It is good to know that really, the important thing when teaching these skills is that they are taught, not in what order they are taught in.

So, if my 1st graders want to do money flashcards (which they are currently in love with) I should let them.

3. Progress monitoring has minimal evidence supporting it, mainly because the studies done with it are always coupled with other interventions. Progress monitoring alone is not going to make a difference, you do actually have to teach.

But, using progress monitoring data to guide instruction is always a good idea. I was once told to use the student's faces as a guide to if they understand a concept or not. That was terrible advise. Use data! If students know something, they are going to be able to show that they know it. 

4. Vocabulary building is important. Knowing how to talk about math is just as important as knowing how to do math. Intergrate math language into your classroom. Encourage students to recognize and talk about when math is being used in everyday situations. Don't be scared to sound like a nerd.

5. Dedicate time every day to teaching math and integrate math activities into the classroom.

The great thing about math is that it's fun and kids generally like to count. There are so many math games that can be easily integrated into the school day. Plus, math is easy to incorporate into morning work, calendar time, and center times. 

Something that teachers need to be especially aware of making sure there classroom is a "math rich" environment. I have taken a lot of training on creating a classroom that is "literacy rich". I have objects labeled with words, books set out in the shelves, and posters with words on them on the walls. Being "math rich" is something that I haven't given as much thought to.

Math rich classrooms have math tools available and at eye-level to the students. They display charts with sequenced directions and use numeric systems. 

The good news is, my classroom already has a numeric system, where each student's things are labeled according to there student number. Who knew that organization was mathematical!

Also, I have math tools all around my room. I just need to work on having them prominently displayed. I'll look at if that makes a difference in my student's ability to do applied problems or not. It will be an interesting experiment.