2023-2025 Making Sense of Mathematics – The Workshops
Four 2-Day Workshops in Hong Kong
Workshop 1 : “The importance of number sense to be proficient in mathematics”
Participants will have opportunities to:
- Explore Number Talks as a daily practice to build flexibility in numbers and communicating reasoning.
- Build a shared understanding of a student-centered approach to teaching and learning, using a math workshop structure of a lesson (number talk, mini lesson, active engagement, share)
- Explore and practice a variety of concrete, pictorial and abstract strategies to build conceptual understanding and the scope and sequence of them.
- Understand the importance of incorporating The Math Practices in the development of learning experiences and assessments.
Workshop 2 : “Digging deep into modeling and problem solving”
Participants will have opportunities to:
- Cultivate a Growth Mindset by understanding and implementing strategies that foster a growth mindset among students, encouraging active engagement in both curricular and non-curricular tasks.
- Utilize Modeling and Problem Solving Strategies by applying CPA strategies to enhance students’ conceptual understanding, integrating these approaches into lesson plans for effective teaching.
- Implement Effective Assessment for Learning by making informed decisions about assessment methodologies in both both formative and summative assessments.
- Integrate Math Practices by understanding that they are the tool for doing mathematics.
- Engage in Conferring and Data Collection by developing the ability to engage in meaningful conversations with students to understand their thought processesand collect and analyze data on students’ thinking.
Workshop 3 : “The 8 Effective Teaching Practices”
Participants will have opportunities to:
- Explore the 8 Effective Teaching Practices: Enhance their teaching effectiveness in mathematics.
- Examine Fluency in Mathematics, Effective Practices, and Myths: Understand what true mathematical fluency entails, debunk common myths, and discuss best practices.
- Integrate Rich Tasks and Transdisciplinary Tasks: Apply mathematics through engaging, real-world tasks that connect various disciplines.
- Understand the Importance of Fluid Grouping in Math Class: Learn the benefits of flexible student grouping to enhance learning.
- Discover Differentiation Strategies for All Learners: Implement techniques to meet the diverse needs of all students.
- Implement Concrete, Pictorial, and Abstract Strategies: Build students’ conceptual understanding through multiple representations.
- Incorporate The Math Practices: Develop effective learning experiences and assessments that integrate The Math Practices.
Workshop 4 : “Visual mathematics: Geometry and measurement”
Participants will have opportunities to:
- Engage with Visual Mathematics: Develop skills in teaching geometry and measurement.
- Effectively Assign Homework, Extra Practice, and Challenges: Learn strategies to provide meaningful assignments that reinforce learning.
- Create Rubrics for Students and Teachers: Design effective rubrics that enhance assessment and feedback.
- Analyze Student Work and Use Data to Guide Instruction: Utilize student data to inform and improve instructional practices.
- Implement Concrete, Pictorial, and Abstract Strategies: Build students’ conceptual understanding through a variety of representations.
- Integrate The Math Practices: Develop learning experiences and assessments that incorporate The Math Practices.
2022-2023 Making Sense of Mathematics – The Series
Three 1-Day Workshops in Bangkok, Thailand
Host: MYIS Magic Years International School, Pakkret, Nonthaburi, Bangkok Thailand
Dates: December 2nd or 3rd 2022, February 3rd or 4th 2023, and April 21st or 22nd 2023
Time 8:30 am – 3:30 am (7 hours per session)
Snack and lunch are provided
Cost per session – 3000 baht
Certificate of Completion of the 3 sessions will be Provided at Last Session (21 professional learning hours total)
Session 1: Making Sense of Mathematics
This full day session will provide participants with the knowledge, tools, resources and strategies to implement a balanced approach to teaching and learning math in a K-12 math program. Using current research-based approaches to learning math, participants explore the essential components of student-centered approach where students demonstrate proficiency in mathematics through essential math practices including problem solving, modeling, and communicating & reasoning.
Participants will explore student-centered approaches which provide students with learning experiences that allow them to move from the concrete to pictorial representations before moving into more abstract strategies. These strategies are designed for students to solve problems where they choose their solution pathways, engage in productive struggle, and connect mathematical ideas. These approaches ensure mathematics is taught in relevant, realistic contexts that make sense.
Special guest Ian Galbraith, will share his experience about how students that are familiar with using numbers flexibly and visual strategies to make sense of math in elementary and middle school, are able to make connections and use similar strategies and feel confident in their approach to solving complex problems in higher level mathematics in high school classes, college courses, and future careers.
Session 2: Making Sense of Fractions and Algebraic Thinking
In this full day session, participants will have opportunities to develop a shared understanding of the learning progressions of fractions with the mathematical practices embedded, with the intention to become more skilled in creating learning experiences, mathematics tasks, and assessments where students can proficiently solve problems involving fractions.
Participants will continue to use a student centered approach to provide students enough experiences using concrete manipulatives such as unifix cubes and fraction tiles to fully understand what it is to add, subtract, multiply and divide fractions, instead of teaching procedures or tricks to find answers quickly. Understanding that accuracy is as important as using efficient strategies to solve problems involving fractions.
Some of these strategies might surprise you, and some will validate your thinking, but they will all improve your students performance,
Participants will explore solving algebra problems using visual models to understand that algebra is more than manipulating symbols or a set of rules, it is a way of thinking. They will be able to see how a concrete and visual strategy used to solve a 2 digit by 2 digit multiplication (4th grade) is the exact same strategy to solve multiplying binomials (grade 9/10).
Session 3: Making Sense of Assessing Mathematics
During this final session, participants will develop high quality assessment tasks that allow students to demonstrate number sense, computational thinking, and innovative tools which allow them to problem solve, model their thinking, and communicate and reason with their solutions.
They will be able to share ideas and resources using different types of assessments to evaluate what are the essential elements that should be part of an assessment to allow students to show proficiency of mathematics.
Participants will dive deep into a variety of resources to develop a shared understanding about assessment, and how to make a shift from formative/summative assessment into assessment FOR learning.
Lastly, participants will have the opportunity to look at assessments through the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) framework.
Making Sense of Mathematics 