Numerous math teaching strategies are there that can help teachers to connect students with mathematics and be effective problem-solving techniques for students also. The core of these strategies lies in only one thing, training students with practical problem-solving skills, even though the instructional strategies list is long and might use different and varied methods.
Indeed, using calculators can ease the process of solving mathematical problems; the students’ mental exercise and problem-solving practices can not be replaced, as quoted by NCTM.
Also, Mathematics Specialists for elementary kids can be more beneficial for effective math teaching for teachers and seamless learning for students.
General Math Teaching Strategies to help teachers:
Frequent tests, preparing course material, class drills, memorizing formulas, instruction from worksheets, etc., are usually used to teach math. But teachers need to understand that remarkable test scores and quality & sound teaching are mutually exclusive. Quality and sound teaching requires effective teaching strategies, especially for math.
1. Higher expectations for all students
Teachers should keep equal higher expectations from all the students to encourage them for better growth.
For instance, female students from as early as the second standard tend to adopt the idea that subjects like mathematics are not for them. And it can be pretty challenging to downtrodden socially conventional thoughts like “math is not for me” or “I am not good at solving math,” etc.
Teachers need to explain to students that success in math depends on hard work rather than having a math talent. And Higher expectations idea is among the top excellent examples of teaching strategies encouraging students with growth mindsets.
2. Don’t leave essential concepts on schedule.
Teachers should focus on students’ foundational skills for teaching any concept instead of holding it for later. Teachers must teach foundational math concepts irrespective of scheduled-test when they need them.
Teachers only need to understand the specific standards and back-map their teachings from the beginning to prepare students for their end terms.
3. Follow a testing path.
Teachers might not even perceive the results of systematized tests until the following school year; however, they have to teach students now. Teachers can use one of the most praised approaches from the instructional strategies list. The approach is formative assessments, which help teachers ensure whether their students understand the concepts.
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Additionally, teachers must integrate testing into their teaching plan, such as quick quiz contests in the classroom related to particular concepts or learnings of a specific day.
4. Observe students’ learning
Sometimes teachers get trapped in thinking of one lesson or concept to get through and cover the entire course. However, they must keep the teaching pace flexible; otherwise, the students can fall behind. Teachers should observe the students while they work on the math problems. They should also try talking individually with every student and ask “pivot questions” in their lesson plans to measure students’ understanding.
5. Link math with the outer world
Teachers must try this effective approach of showing their students how the entire world is connected to mathematics whenever they lose focus in math or get bored. This tactic will keep them engaged and more invested in learning math. Also, it will strengthen students’ belief in the contribution of mathematical thinking in other subjects.
6. Let students choose
One of the most powerful teaching strategies is allowing students to choose how they want to learn. It motivates students to participate more in math class and reflect their understanding of concepts. Additionally, it offers students to choose the best learning process and the power of their learning and gives them scope for various math problem-solving methods.
7. Talk about mathematics
Teachers should also prefer talking and discussing the math subject with the students. This strategy helps students process learning techniques. As teachers engage students in math talk and discuss some topics or why a particular problem is solved with that specific method, it will make them curious to know more about math which eventually captivates them to the subject.
8. Play math-related games
Only relying on books, worksheets, problems, and solutions will not keep students engaged in math. Instead, teachers need to make this learning and teaching process fun and engaging with some math-based fun classroom games. These games engage and promote strategic mathematical thinking, computational fluency, an understanding of mathematical operations, and much more.
9. Focus on Practical learning
Math teachers should always focus on practical learning above everything because it helps to develop a resilient conceptual foundation in students. Teachers must try to involve math manipulatives in the teaching plan as much as possible.
10. Develop understanding in students
None of the math teaching strategies can work better than developing an excellent understanding of mathematical concepts in students. Sound math teaching is beyond memorizing the formulas, tables, or procedures. Teachers need to focus on creating a better account of concepts and work closely with students to make a reinforced conceptual foundation for math.
11. Assign real-world and meaningful problems
One of the best points in the math instructional strategies list is assigning real-world and meaningful problems to students. This strategy excites students with math problems as they relate numbers, formulas, and mathematical concepts to real life and understand the benefits of learning math.
12. Encourage productive struggle
Math teachers’ priority and responsibility is to allow their students to struggle with authentic problems or big questions to find distinct methods to solve them. Teachers’ duty is limited to making math class exciting and engaging by asking appropriate questions. Teachers might help them find solutions, but taking away their thinking might be the biggest mistake.
13. Create excitement and offer rewards
When students do not experience any success in solving math problems, they become negative about math and lose interest. In such cases, teachers must use reward-based strategies to encourage students. Teachers should reward students with earning points, badges, certificates, etc. when they succeed in a given task or solve a math problem. Recognizing students’ efforts and making them understand that practice will make them better. It will motivate them in the best way.
14. Work on Mental math
Mental math is one of the most powerful teaching strategies for introducing math fluency to students. Solving mental math problems gives confidence to students that they can solve more complex issues. Additionally, it is the best way to recall math concepts and facts quickly.
15. Take help from math puzzles.
Teachers can use math puzzles to develop solid logical thinking in students. Additionally, math puzzles enhance combinative capabilities, reinforce the power of abstract thinking, operate with longitudinal images, impart critical thinking skills and develop mathematical memory. Like mental math problems, math puzzles also improve foundational math skills and enhance math fluency.
16. Go for teamwork
Teachers might not realize all the math teaching strategies independently so that they can team up with other teachers for improved teaching skills. Teachers can discuss the lesson outcomes, teaching plans, and lesson goals to implement any strategies effectively.
Some effective Math Teaching Strategies for elementary kids:
Elementary-level children must learn mathematics and its basic concepts, but it is not a straightforward subject to teach. However, with some strategic approaches, teachers can easily teach math to kids.
1. Clear and Unambiguous Teaching
Kids require clear, unambiguous, direct, and structured instructions that tell them how to solve a problem or make them understand any concept. Teachers can break down things into small portions and teach students bit by bit instead of processing a big idea.
Teachers must keep an eye on whether students understand things; they must recap the things taught in the last class before starting the new class and summarize things at the end of class.
Examples of explicit teaching strategies include precise learning outcomes and teachers showing and modeling behaviors or thinking processes to students so they can also think out of the box.
Explicit teaching methods can be encapsulated in a six-step process. It begins with an orientation by asking pertinent questions to students, the teachers solving the sample problems in all the concepts, and letting students try and solve similar math questions by themselves, sometimes letting the students work alone, checking their answers, and re-teaching complex ideas and problems.
2. Cooperative teaching strategy
The cooperative teaching approach involves breaking the class strength into small groups and allowing students in all the groups to discuss things and work together to solve problems and learn concepts.
However, teachers should avoid this method in the first place, just after students enter the class because initially, students cannot easily focus on the problems.
Also, only teachers should form groups that have students with different abilities, such as a group should have a few intelligent students, some average and below average students.
These groups must be small, like having 5-6 students. Also, these groups must be changed sometimes so that students can learn to collaborate with all the other students in class.
Teachers can easily inculcate soft skills in students, such as everyone might not have the same opinion as they have, etc., with the help of a cooperative teaching strategy.
Moreover, teachers also need to observe the activities of students in each group to know how their students think and how they process the problems and solutions, whether they enjoy learning this way or not.
3. Flicked Classrooms
A flipped classroom approach is among the most effective teaching strategies that math teachers can use. Flipping the classroom means students doing things at home that they usually do in school or the classroom, like getting the facts about the math concept. On the other side, they would do things in the classroom or school, typically at home, like implementing the learning.
In simple words, flipping the classroom conveys the students’ idea, doing self-study for the next day’s work in classrooms. It could be anywhere from books or tutorials and the next day discussing the concepts of the topic, problem-solving, etc., in the class.
However, teachers must put some effort into providing students with sources to study at home. Also, teachers must be mindful about utilizing the class time for the same.
Most importantly, before using this strategy, teachers must teach students about self-study and how they can do it; students will soon give up when they fail to understand things.
The flipped classroom approach provides teachers and students with more productive hours in the classroom and flexible learning culture.
4. Visualization-based approach
It is one of the most efficient and powerful teaching strategies that seamlessly make math teaching and learning. The visualization-based approach includes images, figures, infographics, mind maps, and other visual objects that can be used in teaching math.
Often, students lose their focus on math, but these teaching strategies and examples will captivate them with the subject and concepts as they see new things beyond just listening to new concepts while learning in the classroom.
This strategy can help teachers retain information better because kids’ brains process images quicker than words.
This approach also creates a scope of learning by teaching as students share how and what they learned with such visuals.
Moreover, unlimited visual strategies are available for teachers, but it only takes the efforts of teachers to begin somewhere and try some things out using these visuals.
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Final Thoughts On Powerful Math Teaching Strategies
Various math teaching strategies engage students with math without enforcing it. Though these strategies are powerful enough to make this change, using them in the right way and at the right time is more critical. Teachers first need to understand their students before implementing any strategy and observe how they respond to it.
Also, teachers should focus on teaching techniques and work in small portions, especially when the students already have a negative attitude toward mathematics.
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