INSIDE THE CLASSROOM: MATH
Devona Sewnauth, FifthGrade teacher, P.S. 243 Weeksville School, Brooklyn
During the first weeks of fifth grade, my co-teacher and I hold individual conferences with each student to talk about their mathematical skills and proficiency. Our integrated co-teaching, or ICT, class includes two teachers. We share data from the tests that students took the previous year, and we talk honestly about their strengths and weaknesses in regard to the math standards. The fifth grade team then meets to decide how to tailor instruction to the class.
Most of my students struggle with operations and algebraic thinking, a major standard across the upper grades requiring fluency in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. In fifth grade, students use these four operations to work with fractions and decimals, as well as measurement, data analysis, and word problems.
Assessment is very important to both teachers and students. I give my students regular baseline assessments throughout the year to identify which standards and skills they need to focus on. The students have access to their data, so they always know where they stand.
The data helps us group students based on their instructional needs. Our school focuses on discourse to push student achievement. In my lessons, students talk out the solution to the problems with each other, rather than looking to the teacher as the authority for the answer. Discussion promotes higher-level thinking and allows students to inspire and encourage their peers.
In a memorable recent lesson, I gave the class a price list for various souvenirs and food selections at a fair and asked them to total up an order using the four operations with decimals. Then I asked a series of questions — for example, how much change they would receive back if they ordered certain food items and spent a specific amount at the souvenir shop. The lesson required students to decode word problems and practice operations in the context of a real-world situation. When students are exposed to real-world problems, they can connect math to their own lives.
By the end of fifth grade, I aim for all my students to know where they stand in terms of data, appreciate all the ways of reaching a correct answer, explain their reasoning, and understand the value of mathematical practices. Most importantly, students achieve their fullest potential when pushed just a tad out of their comfort zone.
Sample questions:
Students will complete 45 multiple-choice questions on the 2017 exam, as well as 10 openresponse questions requiring them to demonstrate their use of mathematical methods.
1) A swimming pool is shaped like a rectangular prism. The pool is 36 feet long and 20 feet wide. What is the total amount of water, in cubic feet, needed to fill the pool to a depth of 4 feet? A. 800 B. 864 C. 2,880 D. 5,760
3) A library had 6,422 music CDs stored on 26 shelves. If the same number of CDs were stored on each shelf, how many CDs were stored on each shelf?