The ABC’s of Algebra: Alignment, Buy-in, and Classroom Activities

1. The ABC’s of Algebra:Alignment, Buy-in, and Classroom Activities PRESENTED BY Leslie A. Texas November 16, 2007

2. Keeping in Touch E-mail address: texasconsulting@bellsouth.net Phone: 502-253-1844 (office) 502-777-5312 (cell)

3. Session Objectives • Participate in a variety of classroom activities that model best practice • Determine how to design assignments that are engaging and require students to develop higher order thinking skills

4. Southern Regional Educational Board

5. Identifying Gaps and Overlaps Questions to address: • Which readiness indicators are not being addressed (gaps)? • Which readiness indicators are addressed by multiple grade levels (overlaps)?

6. Engaging Activity Traffic Jam

7. Questions: What process skills were required in the activity? What content knowledge was required?

8. Cooperative Learning Activity • Match your puzzle-piece with other similar pieces to form a problem to solve. • As a learning group team, select a strategy to solve the problem. • Solve the problem as a team then submit a solution to the class. Your team must be able to justify the solution!!!

9. 13 A 2 B 3 C 7 D 11 E 5 F 15 I 17 H 2 G Enter Exit Problem #5 Find a path through the maze of numbers, starting at “Enter” and ending at “Exit.” The value of the path is determined by multiplying each number along the path. You may move up, down, or right but not diagonally. You can only cross a number once. Try to find a path through the maze that results in 13,090. List the letters in order for each box you cross to reach the exit. An example, 7 x 13 x 2 would be DAB. DGHEF (prime factorization of 13,090 or 2 · 5 · 7 · 11 · 17 )

10. Problem #9 Which set of factors of the number 420 has the least possible sum? Which set of factors of the number 420 has the greatest possible sum? Be sure that the two sets of factors both have a product of 420. Answers: 19 and 421

11. 32 + 4 2 x (8 – 5) + 12 4 = 41 Problem #11 Place one set of parentheses on the left side of the equals sign to make the equation true. 32 + 4 2 x 8 – 5 + 12 4 =41

12. Problem #12 Find the greatest whole number that meets all of the following conditions: > It is greater than 100. > It is less than 200. > It is 20 greater when rounded to the nearest 100 than when rounded to the nearest 10. Answer: 184

13. Problem #13 Robin uses a rule to create the input/output table shown. If Robin uses her rule with an input of 56, what will be her output? Answer: 171 y = 3x + 3

14. A Menu of Fun Math ProblemsSource: Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School (NCTM) February 2007 Issue

15. Possible Uses • Pre-Assessment Exercise • Introduce classroom procedures (cooperative learning, word problems, no “I don’t know’s accepted) • Hook for new unit • Review • Exit Slip

16. Engaging Activity Are you a Solution?

17. Literacy Strategies and Assessment Practices

18. Improving Student Vocabulary Write a math vocabulary word on one side of the index card.

19. Improving Student Vocabulary- Word Illustrations On the other side, illustrate the concept (meaning) of your word…using NO numbers or letters.

20. What Math Words are Illustrated Below?

21. Frayer Model Concept

22. Frayer Model RHOMBUS Trapezoid Triangle Square Parallelogram with 4 equal sides Rectangle

23. Frayer Model

24. R-A-F-T

25. RAFT Examples for Math Choose one item from each column