We have all been there. It was an AMAZING math lesson! Students were engaged, correctly answered questions
and explained their steps they took to solve it, were able to give alternative
ways to solve problems... and you feel confident that you can now assign
practice problems.
And
then... BAM! It happens. You know what I am talking about! It's that exact moment your students realize that there are *gasp* word
problems for them to solve! Before you even have a moment to take a sip
of water or just gather your thoughts you hear something like...
"I
don't get it."
or (and this statement makes me cringe
every single time)
"What am I supposed to do?"
In most classrooms, there are students
who are below grade level in reading. So they have difficulty determining
what the problem is asking. Then there are other students who struggle with
word problems because they do not understand which part of the text is
relevant. And of course, some students struggle with reading AND figuring
out which information is needed to solve the problem.
I have a few strategies that I find useful. Let me know what you think!
1.) I read the math problem to the students. Sometimes this is done whole group, while other times I do this in small group. I use this strategy every single day! I have students in my class who are English Language Learners and/or below grade level in reading. By taking the "stress" out of reading the word problem, students can focus on the math piece.
2.) Students are quite familiar with the concept of "Close Reading." After all, they dig deeper to analyze the text daily during Reading, Science, and Social Studies. So why not have students 'close read' their math problems? I have students rereading math problems a minimum of four times, and doing something different EACH time with the information. By the last step, students have a better understanding of how to solve the problem. Some of my students are able to memorize the steps and use it without me reminding them.
"It's your birthday and you and all 15 of your guests want a piece of birthday cake. How many pieces do need to be cut?" (Answer:16)
Or "before you pass out the pieces of cake, your mom puts birthday candles on half of your cake. How much of your cake has candles?" (Answer 1/2, and then you can start developing the understanding that 8 pieces out of 16 is 1/2 of the whole. Equivalent fractions!!!)
4.) One of my favorite strategies to help my students become more successful with word problems doesn't involve me speaking a lot. At least two times a week (when my schedule allows it), I have students take their homework up to my document camera and explain how they solved the problem. This involves students rereading the problem, circling any numbers needed to solve, underlining key words, and then explaining the steps as well as doing the math. During this time we discuss misconceptions, strategies, and new ways of thinking. I love when students show me a new way to solve a problem!
I hope you are enjoyed reading this post. Please leave a comment below to let me know if any of these strategies help you!
Happy Teaching!
:-) Sandra @The Happy Learning Den
I enjoyed this post very much. This is my second year in third grade after being out of the classroom for ten years. Everything is so new, so I am doing a lot to catch up. We are on this exact problem: word problems. So thanks a lot.
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