101 Questions
In class we were introduced to an interesting site 101 Questions. On the site there are pictures which can be used in the math class to generate questions. The questions can relate to anything you see in the picture. Below we have an example of what one of those pictures may look like.
From this picture we could ask some simple questions like, How many scissors are there? How many pens are there? How many blue objects are there? We could also relate this to our Data Management course by asking, what's the probability of randomly choosing a pencil? Or, what's the probability of choosing a yellow object and then choosing a red object? There are many more questions that could come from this picture but those are a few.
I think such a task is very interesting to do as you are trying to look at the picture in as many different possible ways as possible. I think for students it also provides some variation in their usual math routine, and allows them to think creatively as they analyze the picture. It also provide them an opportunity to have more ownership in their learning, as they have the chance to ask the questions and seek the answers themselves, rather then just being told what they're expected to do. I think this motivates students to put more effort in their work and as a result they will retain what they have learnt.
This is an exciting new task that I hope to be able to implement in my future classes in order to bring some variety in class and to pique their interest in what's being done.
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| From: http://www.101qs.com/3833-2nd-grade-number-talk |
I think such a task is very interesting to do as you are trying to look at the picture in as many different possible ways as possible. I think for students it also provides some variation in their usual math routine, and allows them to think creatively as they analyze the picture. It also provide them an opportunity to have more ownership in their learning, as they have the chance to ask the questions and seek the answers themselves, rather then just being told what they're expected to do. I think this motivates students to put more effort in their work and as a result they will retain what they have learnt.
This is an exciting new task that I hope to be able to implement in my future classes in order to bring some variety in class and to pique their interest in what's being done.
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ReplyDeleteI agree, this kind of math task seems interesting and exciting - definitely better than answering dry and abstract questions on paper! The question itself is also more visually pleasing, as there is a colourful picture that accompanies it. I would also like to try this myself, as well. It still amazes me that there are so many different kind of math tasks that we can do in class...since for me, math class always involved the teacher writing out the lesson on the blackboard, and us students copying it down. Then, we would do questions from the textbook. They were pretty dry.
ReplyDeleteSome math classes are still like that, as I've observed in my placements. While the teacher may not be writing the lesson on the blackboard (the lesson is projected onto a screen), the class is still the same - the students copy down the lesson, and then answer some questions at the end. I have not been there often enough to know if that is the norm, however. I wonder how realistic our goals are - we seem excited now and eager to try all these new math tasks...how many of us will actually do them once we start? There may be many things to discourage us from doing these new math tasks (such as lack of time, disruptive students, frustration with technology, etc.)
One thing I don't like about the particular picture that you've posted from the site though, is that it's not entirely clear how many scissors there are (or pens, or pencils, etc.). I remember, as a student, if a picture was not very clear, and we were asked questions about that picture, it felt unfair. I would either use a clearer picture, or change the questions so that the student knows that there may be different answers. Or, I would discuss the picture with the students, and clarify what we were looking at, if needed, before they answered the questions.