Gabr’l Stackhouse April 25, 2015

 To strengthen the teaching and learning of addition and subtraction word problems in kindergarten, first, and second grade classrooms.

 To understand why students think addition means “join together” and subtraction means “take away.”

 Actively engage  Openly share  Provide honest, constructive feedback  Have fun

 Name  Position  Number of years as an educator

 Discuss in your groups how you teach students how to solve addition and subtraction word problems.  What do you know ?  What do you wonder?  Use a piece of chart in the middle of your table to create a T-chart and express your thoughts. I Know....I Wonder....

 Select a math problem from the middle of your table.  Solve the problem using a piece of white paper.

Grade K

Grade 1

Grade 2

 Understanding addition and subtractions sets the stage for understanding all other operations students will encounter throughout school.  Multiplication  Division How is addition and subtraction related to multiplication and division? NCTM. (2011). Developing and essential understanding of addition and subtraction: Pre-k-grade2. Reston, VA: National Council for Teachers of Mathematics.

 Many different problem situations can be represented by part-part whole relationships and addition or subtraction.  To develop flexible thinking about part- part-whole relationships, students need to understand that numbers can be represented in many ways.  Pictures  Words  Symbols NCTM. (2011). Developing and essential understanding of addition and subtraction: Pre-k-grade2. Reston, VA: National Council for Teachers of Mathematics.

 Part-part whole relationships show how two numbers are related to the whole. Whole Part? ? Whole ?Part Whole ?? NCTM. (2011). Developing and essential understanding of addition and subtraction: Pre-k-grade2. Reston, VA: National Council for Teachers of Mathematics.

 Students demonstrate many misunderstandings about when to add and when to subtract in contextual situations.  Problem solving is more complex than extracting numbers from given problems.  Thinking is different from applying a “key word”. NCTM. (2011). Developing and essential understanding of addition and subtraction: Pre-k-grade2. Reston, VA: National Council for Teachers of Mathematics.

 The “key words” approach does not support students in the process of sense making  Students need to analyze the full problem, taking every word and the contextual information into consideration to build their understanding of the problem’s meaning NCTM. (2011). Developing and essential understanding of addition and subtraction: Pre-k-grade2. Reston, VA: National Council for Teachers of Mathematics.

 The context of a problem situation and its interpretation can lead to different representations.  Many children think the equal sign always comes before the answer = + 4 How might a child complete the number sentence?

 According to Fosnot and Dolk (2000), context is essential to the development of understanding and should be used from the start as a means of “construction” rather than as a culminating or extending activity for application at the end of a unit. Fosnot, C., Dolk, M. (2001). Young mathematicians at work: constructing number sense, addition, and subtraction. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

 Presenting students with a situation provides the following:  An opportunity for them to chart their own path to a solution  A n opportunity for them to construct mathematical ideas rather than apply an algorithm  An opportunity for them to discuss and make sense of the situation rather than focusing on rules and procedures NCTM. (2011). Developing and essential understanding of addition and subtraction: Pre-k-grade2. Reston, VA: National Council for Teachers of Mathematics.

 In your groups, read through each of word problems in the Problem Type envelope.  Sort each word problem on the Problem Type sorting mat.  Select one person from your group to share.

Which problem types should students master at the end of kindergarten, grade 1, and grade 2?

K K K 1 1 K

 Read through the standards for kindergarten, grade 1, and grade 2.  What is the major work for each grade level? How does the major work guide your instruction? Planning? Assessment?  What are students expected to know, understand, and do with addition and subtraction word problems for each grade level?

Common Core Standards Writing Team (2015, April 4). Progressions for the common core state standards in mathematics: K-5, Number and operations in base ten. Retrieved from: Fosnot, C., Dolk, M. (2001). Young mathematicians at work: constructing number sense, addition, and subtraction. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann. NCTM. (2015, March 31). Position Statements. Retrieved from: Statements/ NCTM. (2000). Principles and standards for school mathematics. Reston, VA: National Council for Teachers of Mathematics. NCTM. (2014). Putting essential understanding of addition and subtraction into practice. Reston, VA: National Council for Teachers of Mathematics.

 Reflect on the session today.  What is your biggest “ah-ha?”  What validated your current practice?  What do you know you will work on moving forward?  What support do you need?

Gabr’l Stackhouse Math Consultant Creative Minds Consulting Phone:

“I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.” ~ Chinese Proverb ~