October Math Minute
Every Child. Every Day. For a Better Tomorrow.
Happy October!!!
Welcome to the third edition of Elementary Math Minute. As you embark on the start of a new Learning Cycle and analyze ways to build mathematical literacy, we hope you find the content of this newsletter helpful. If you missed the August or September edition, please click on the links below:
- August - https://www.smore.com/5kbug
- September - https://www.smore.com/9n0xw
Gabr'l Stackhouse & Kaneka Turner
CMS Elementary Math Specialists
A Closer Look at the Standards for Mathematical Practice
Standards for Mathematical Practice address thinking and acting like a mathematician and opens up teaching practices that provide students with learning opportunities that will help them develop into mathematically proficient students. As you engage students in effective mathematics instruction, it is important for students to model the behaviors as they learn mathematics. Click on the resources below to learn more about how to build mathematically proficient students.
- Teacher Guide for Implementing the Standards for Mathematical Practice: http://bit.ly/1h6PeiG
- Standards for Mathematical Practice: Commentary and Elaborations for K–5: http://bit.ly/1j3tUBF
Promoting Reasoning and Problem Solving During Mathematics Instruction
While implementing tasks in your classroom it is important to note that not all tasks are created equal. Some tasks require students to perform a memorized procedure and others demand student engagement with concepts and stimulate them to make purposeful connections to mathematical ideas. As you research and select tasks for your classroom, National Council for Supervisors of Mathematics (NCSM, 2013) identified the following characteristics of a great task:
- resolves around an interesting problem.
- is directed at essential mathematical content as specified in the standards
- requires examination and perseverance
- begs for discussion
- builds student understanding
- warrants a summary look back
Please click on the links below for tasks that are aligned to the Common Core State Standards:
- NCPDI K-2 Instructional and Assessment Tasks: http://commoncoretasks.ncdpi.wikispaces.net/home
- NCDPI 3-5 Instructional and Assessment Tasks:
- http://3-5cctask.ncdpi.wikispaces.net/home
- Illustrative Mathematics: https://www.illustrativemathematics.org/
- Achieve the Core: http://achievethecore.org/
Locating Curriculum Resources
Thank you for your patience as we work to share curriculum documents in Canvas. We realize many of you have not been trained and want to ensure you know how to locate the curriculum maps, Scope and Sequence, and Cycle Assessments (K-2) for your grade level. Each of the aforementioned documents are located in grade specific Google folders that is only accessible using your CMS Google account. Click on your grade level link below to access the materials:
- Kindergarten - http://tinyurl.com/ozagn8u
- Grade 1 - http://tinyurl.com/qbpvlpm
- Grade 2 - http://tinyurl.com/nhvxwsu
- Grade 3 - http://tinyurl.com/nelnm3n
- Grade 4 - http://tinyurl.com/psfneow
- Grade 5 - http://tinyurl.com/qdeep7u
Please ensure you are planning using the most updated version of the map for your grade level. As we receive feedback about broken links for assessments, activities, etc. updates will be made and reloaded in Google. The following maps were updated during the month of September:
- Grade 3 Unit C - Link to Geometry assessment added
- Grade 5 Unit C - Appendix was deleted
Join Your Grade Level Listserv To Stay Up to Date on Learning and Teaching News from the Elementary Math Department
To ensure you receive communication from our office, please sign up for your grade level listserv today. Click on your grade level link and enter your name and email address.
- Kindergarten - http://bit.ly/1M4nmt7
- Grade 1 - http://bit.ly/1VswLzI
- Grade 2 - http://bit.ly/1iOPCbO
- Grade 3 - http://bit.ly/1FILDbD
- Grade 4 - http://bit.ly/1KXkwFq
- Grade 5 - http://bit.ly/1QNixIe
Contact Us
Gabr'l Stackhouse - gabrlc.stackhouse@cms.k12.nc.us
Kaneka Turner - k.turner@cms.k12.nc.us