When you think about Math instruction, what tools do you think about using? … You’re probably thinking about paper, pencil, calculators, white board, markers and even manipulatives. But what about your voice? Yes, your voice! We are usually thinking about ELA when it comes to talking about your work. You may have to present a project for Social Studies or explain your thinking in Science. But in Math, you solve a problem, show your work, you may briefly talk about it with a partner. They may or may not have the same answer and then you move on. However, let’s talk about the importance of explaining your thinking in Math.
Math is more than just arriving at a correct answer, the how to get there is equally if not more important. Being able to explain your thinking allows collaboration on different levels. Here is where math talk comes in. This is actually different from number talks. What’s the difference? Math talk is a conversation about a math topic to promote deeper understanding. Number talk is more of a mini-lesson that supports computational fluency. Math talk can happen at any time. But here are a few sentence stems and questions that promote the math conversation.
Sentence Stems
- I agree/disagree with you because…
- I solved my problem by..
- My first step is…
- I chose this method because…
- I am confused by…
- What I heard you say was…
Questions
- Can you explain this to me?
- How did you solve it?
- How else can you solve it?
- How did you know your answer was right?
- How did you…?
- What if…?
These sentence stems can be used in both adult to student and peer to peer conversations. When you talk about the math, students get to
- See other’s thinking
- Clarify their own thinking
- Justify their work
- Build confidence
Remember never silence the student voice during math. What are some ways you encourage math talks in and out the classroom?
