by Jennifer Van Blair | Oct 16, 2022 | Math
Why writing math word problems is important for students: Stop and think about when you really learned the most with math word problems? As a student learning math, I was able to follow steps and procedures to “DO” the math, but did I really understand it? No. I think...
by Jennifer Van Blair | Oct 12, 2022 | Math
A few years ago, my students tanked a word problem situations assessment. When talking with my principal at the time, he said, “If we improve students’ reading abilities, then their word problem understanding will improve also.” Intrigued by this thought, I looked at...
by Jennifer Van Blair | Oct 6, 2022 | Math
James Clear has many memorable quotes in his book Atomic Habits, but my favorite by far is, “You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.” Prior to practicing the daily word problem routine I currently use in my classroom, I used...
by Jennifer Van Blair | Sep 30, 2022 | Math
Word problems are difficult. Most adults surveyed can recall struggling with word problems in school, some even saying that they STILL struggle with word problems. That’s why I developed this 3 step method for teaching word problems. As a student, I was good in upper...
by Jennifer Van Blair | Sep 21, 2022 | Math
Teaching subtraction relies heavily on a student’s conceptual understanding of the number system. When students lack an understanding of how numbers are built and how our number system works, it is common for them to make mistakes. These mistakes reveal the lack...
by Jennifer Van Blair | Jan 30, 2022 | Math
My close friend and colleague shared an experience during her time in high school during the late 80’s. She was sitting outside in the courtyard of an inner city school studying for her sixth period physics test. A young, attractive man came up to her, obviously...
