How to Teach Reading in High School Math Class

There always seems to be a new debate almost the all-time way to teach math or which curriculum is the best. I also hear ofttimes from homeschool moms who beloved and feel confident pedagogy reading, nevertheless feel uncertain and sick-equipped to teach math. Today I am not trying to put any debates to rest or say that I have the final answer to math education questions, I simply want to share some ideas to help y'all wherever you are, and hopefully testify that teaching math doesn't have to be difficult or scary. You may besides exist surprised to hear it isn't as far away from educational activity reading as it seems. Because you can actually utilize helpful and recognized literacy strategies to teach math!

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I've recently been reading a book by Laney Sammons called, Building Mathematical Comprehension. It is an excellent resource and if you are interested in learning more and seeing more examples and in depth analysis of these strategies, I highly recommend it.

Every bit I've read through and considered various literacy strategies, it has struck me that applying these strategies to math seems and then obvious, and yet, it's not something I have heard or idea of earlier.

For example, she makes the point that the goal of reading educational activity is to comprehend and utilise. The aforementioned is truthful of math! The goal of educational activity and learning math is non to be able to compute or work through algorithms or memorize facts. It is to understand. To comprehend the meaning of all the numbers and their connections to each other and then apply that to real life.

Then if you're familiar with these strategies, I promise this will requite you new insight into how you can apply them to math instruction, and if yous're not familiar with these strategies, I hope this volition be packed full of useful information for you!

5 Ideas for Using Literacy Strategies to Teach Math:

one. Teach Math Vocabulary

In reading, vocabulary (and figuring out unknown words) is an essential component of comprehension. In math, the job of knowing and determining unknown vocabulary is even more challenging because there are words that are specific to math and not used in everyday conversation.

Math is a foreign language and it is of import that we don't take for granted the language used to talk about and describe math problems and situations. The expert matter is, there are lots of different ways you can teach and help kids sympathise math specific vocabulary.

Hither are just a few ideas:

• Have a "word wall" in your home or classroom to expose kids to math specific words and start discussions
• Encourage students to explain their thinking when they solve a problem using math words. If they explain in a way that doesn't incorporate the right vocabulary, rephrase information technology for them using advisable terms
• Utilise "word sorts" to permit students to make connections between various words and mathematical operations (for example, sort words like "add, altogether, in total, plus, etc." under the addition symbol
• Have math talks and encourage (and model yourself) the use of math specific vocabulary
• Contain writing into your lessons to allow students to write nearly mathematical experiences, or explicate a solution in their own words using math vocabulary
• Utilize graphic organizers such every bit a Frayer diagram or Venn diagram to compare words, discover examples, etc.
• Read math stories (this is ane of my favorites!)

Related: The Importance of Math Vocabulary

2. Use Schema (a.yard.a prior knowledge)

Every child has a schema, or ready of cognition, that is unique to them. Each child's schema will be varied in its breadth and depth. Some may overlap, some may take a lot of prior cognition (some may have a much larger vocabulary, for instance) while others may have nearly no prior knowledge.

It'due south important, however, in reading and math, to attempt and start with what they know and build on that knowledge. In fact, according to Marzano, research suggests that "what students already know about the content is one of the strongest indicators of how well they will learn new data relative to the content." (This also ways you may need to spend fourth dimension determining what they know before you lot showtime).

By starting with something familiar, students can and then make a connection from the new concept to what they already know, helping to brand sense of the new ideas, also equally helping with retention.

This is the reason the first few lessons in my introduction to multiplication bundle focus on reinforcing and understanding repeated improver. This allows kids to take something familiar (addition) and recollect about it in a new way (repeated addition) then form a connection from repeated add-on to multiplication.

And then when you are planning math lessons, it is helpful for students if you starting time with the familiar and work towards building a bridge to new content.

But it is also of import to assistance students see how they can practise this on their ain to assist them solve problems. When they look at a math trouble, accept them outset ask themselves, "What do I know?" and then write that downwardly. Wait for things that are familiar (such as known vocabulary words) and see if that provides any insight into how to solve the trouble.

A popular method in reading educational activity is to utilize a KWL nautical chart (What practice I KNOW, what do I Desire to know, and and so what did I LEARN). This could easily be used when learning a new math concept as well, helping kids make those important connections!

Related: Didactics Readers to Employ Their Schema

3. Make Connections

This leads me to the adjacent literacy strategy: making connections. Helping kids use their prior knowledge gives them something to connect a new concept to.

Just students tin brand connections in other ways as well, and this is a very useful strategy to help them larn, apply and call back new math concepts.

Types of math connections:

• Math to math
• Math to self
• Math to world

All of math is interconnected, and information technology'southward important to aid kids see the connections between one math concept and some other. We also then, have to find means to make connections between the math they're learning and their life, and aid them see math in the globe effectually them.

One mode you can help kids form connections is to plan lessons in which connections are abundant. Exist intentional in the mode y'all present new topics. Teach information technology in a way that uses all sorts of other math to see and acquire the new math idea.

Sometimes it is helpful to bespeak out these connections to students, and other times, encourage them to make the connections on their ain. Eventually, you want seeing and making connections to be a habit, natural and automated for kids.

Ideas for helping kids make mathematical connections:

• Have a daily "how did you use math yesterday?" discussion
• Go along math journals documenting math situations or connections
• If you're a classroom instructor, encourage parents to accept "math talks" or go along "math walks" at home
• Read the book Math Expletive and spend time discussing information technology and other ways nosotros run across and use math (go Complimentary resources to utilise with this book hither)

Related: Making connections to help with reading comprehension

4. Make predictions

Making predictions and inferences is an important reading comprehension strategy, and adapting that to math instruction is vital. Every bit Laney Sammons states,

"Students need to know that making predictions that are then proved or disproved is a process mathematicians have used throughout history."

Having an idea about how to solve a trouble and then seeing that that is either a valid method or not is what we practise as mathematicians. It's the crux of the problem solving process. Play around with ideas and numbers and see what happens.

Related: 8 reasons making mistakes in math is a expert thing

The problem is, this is non normally how math is taught. Often, students are told, "Hither is the process. Practise each trouble exactly like this." Students then memorize a procedure without agreement the concept or making whatever connections to prior knowledge or their world.

Instead, encourage exploration. Encourage mistakes, and so have students analyze why a method did or did not work. Then have them try once more.

Assist them wait for patterns and see if they can generalize their observations.

Only every bit students tin can make predictions virtually how to solve problems, they should as well be in the addiction of predicting the solution. This is chosen estimating.

Unfortunately, this is a rarely taught skill, and is usually only seen in the form of, "How many balls do you call up are in this jar?"

Helping kids go far the habit of estimating the solution is important though, because information technology will assistance them to cocky cheque and make sure that the answer makes sense in the context of the problem. They can employ what is given in the problem as well every bit their prior noesis to make predictions near the solution.

For example, in an addition problem, students should know that the final solution must exist larger than the numbers they are adding.

In more challenging bug, they should think most whether the solution should be positive or negative, large or small, a whole number or a fraction, exactly ane solution or more than i solution, etc.

I call up the best fashion to encourage this kind of estimating is to constantly model it for kids. Talk out loud as you solve a trouble and explicate why you remember the answer will be large and positive. Then talk through your thinking as you lot do the math.

Related: Making predictions as you read and Using inferences to aid with comprehension

five. Teach kids to visualize

Just like reading a story creates a visual epitome in our minds, math problems should as well. When using visualizing to help with reading comprehension, it's a good idea to underline or circle visual words (adjectives).

Kids can practice this with math discussion problems equally well. Circle words that pigment a picture and provide of import information, and so use those words to draw a picture.

Visualizing and drawing a moving picture is a helpful strategy because it provides kids with a mental image which volition assist them call up what they've learned.

Information technology can also assistance them interruption down a problem into easier to understand parts to make sense of it. If a trouble seems overwhelming at first glance, spending time circumvoluted visual words then cartoon a moving picture of the trouble tin can help brand it less overwhelming.

Related: Problem solving by drawing a picture

This is by no means an exhaustive list of literacy strategies, or ideas for how you tin apply reading comprehension strategies to math teaching. It is simply meant to give y'all a starting point and hopefully some good ideas for how you can encourage your kids to exist thinkers and trouble solvers who have a deep understanding of math and how it relates to the globe around them.

And if y'all're looking for more strategies to assist kids make sense of math, grab a Costless copy of my ebook, Strategies for Trouble Solving: Equip Kids to Solve Math Problems with Confidence!

Click Here to learn more and request your copy!

References in this post:

• Building Mathematical Comprehension: Using Literacy Strategies to Make Meaning, past Laney Sammons
• Building Background Cognition for Bookish Achievement: Research on What Works in Schools, by R.J. Marzano

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