Number Talks
Daily Strategy for Success
Do your teachers really understand "WHY" standards based math is important?
The truth is that students are still being taught math the way we have always learned it. That hasn’t changed. However, in addition to the traditional way of learning math, students are being taught another approach to help them understand how and why math problems work—called "number sense". This new way shows students that numbers are just flexible things made up of other numbers and makes solving math problems that much easier.
View the video below to hear how this all makes sense.
Goals for this session:
Marilyn Burns on Number Sense: http://mathsolutions.com/making-sense-of-math/number-sense/understanding-number-sense/
What Is Number Sense?
Number sense essentially refers to a student’s “fluidity and flexibility with numbers,” (Gersten & Chard, 2001). He/She has sense of what numbers mean, understands their relationship to one another, is able to perform mental math, understands symbolic representations, and can use those numbers in real world situations. In her book, About Teaching Mathematics, Marilyn Burns describes students with a strong number sense in the following way: “[They] can think and reason flexibly with numbers, use numbers to solve problems, spot unreasonable answers, understand how numbers can be taken apart and put together in different ways, see connections among operations, figure mentally, and make reasonable estimates.”
Essential Teaching Strategies to build Number Sense:
2. Ask students to calculate mentally
3. Have class discussions about strategies for computing
4. Make estimation an integral part of computing
5. Pose numerical problems that have more than one answer
6. Question students about their thinking
How to manage Number Talks
2. Do it every day
3. Give students lots of practice with the same kinds of problems
4. Teach with intention. Start with your current topic and/or build toward your next.
5. Chart student thinking without judgement. Accept all answers without praise or criticism.
6. Encourage students to listen and ask questions of each other
7. Encourage students to self correct
Teacher models questions so students can talk about their thinking during number talks:
Who would like to share their thinking today?
How did you figure it out?
What did you do next?
Who else used this strategy?
Who saw it another way?
Which strategy seems to be the most efficient/ easy to use? Why do you think so?
Norms to Support Deeper Mathematical Thinking:
Scaffolds to help build student collaboration
Number Talk Blogs: Primary and intermediate grades
Number Talk Videos gr. K to 7:
Number Talk Toolkit
Check out Yummy Math an Excellent Problem Solving resources for grades 3-8:
Resources for Middle School Number Talks:
Follow this Action Plan to get started, and then practice to get better!
gr. 3 - 12 Math Talk Rubric
Math Talk = Number Talk
Math Talk can be about anything related to math such as measurement, geometry, space and distance etc.... but remember, you will hear both terms used interchangeably.
The Wismath resource document in the link below differentiates number talk as "mental math" and math talk as learning about math. THE IMPORTANT INGREDIENT IS "TALK!"
Here is how Jessica Silver, Lead Literacy Teacher in CA. Calvine # 1037, shares with her teachers!
Here is a link to my Pinterest Board with all types of Math Resources:
Lots of ideas from our Lead Literacy Teachers across the country!
HOMEWORK:
Be brave and video yourself conducting a number talk. No need to send it but review the procedure as you view yourself and see if you need to adjust anything.
Read Chapter 3 and 4 in our Text: Putting the Practices into Action, to understand how to support Mathematical Reasoning. Each of these practices will deepen your background knowledge so you can deepen your Number Talks.