Staying Focused on the Main Thing in Math Instruction
As math educators, it's crucial to ensure that students grasp core concepts without getting overwhelmed by unnecessary distractions—like working with overly complex numbers. Using simpler numbers allows students to focus on understanding the fundamental ideas rather than getting lost in the mechanics of calculation.
My school director (who luckily was a former math teacher) brought this to my attention my first year when I was making copies of a worksheet I had just made. Students were practicing postive and negative fraction operations. Practically every problem was a weird non-sense fraction. Nobody uses 3/57 or 5/21 in the real-world. Students have a hard time making sense of these numbers and quickly get overwhelmed by the abstract fractions.
Use numbers that make sense while you are building their foundations. Integer operations, fractions, equations, scientific operations, slope, proportions are all examples.
You need to create a strong foundation for these concepts. Students need to practice the MAIN THING, and not get distracted by large or obscure numbers. I would practice basic numbers for the entire year. If students have a solid foundation of the concepts, then moving on to larger numbers will be natural.
By simplifying numbers, students build confidence in the underlying principles. Once the concept is solidified, more complex problems can gradually be introduced. This approach ensures clarity and reduces reteaching, keeping the "main thing"—conceptual understanding—at the forefront of your lessons.
What strategies do you use to streamline your teaching? Share your thoughts below!
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Image created using OpenAI's DALL·E
