Math Stretches
Runners stretch before a race, so that their muscles are warm and ready to perform at optimum levels. Just like those athletes, our students need to warm-up to get their brains focused and ready for quality thinking and learning. Math Warm-ups are an important component of Laney Sammons’ Guided Math framework. When we give our students the chance to warm-up their math thinking and reasoning skills, we are prompting our young learners to think mathematically and are setting the tone for the learning that is ahead.
Taking the time to warm-up with a quick math activity helps our students make “subtle mental shifts into the world of mathematical awareness and learning.” Sammons continues to say that the daily repetition of similar math tasks, along with class discussions, help our students begin to see patterns, make connections, and develop mathematical understanding. Just as athletes know that brief stretching maximizes their performance, our students will learn that these inclusive daily math stretches will help their math understanding grow and so will their confidence.
Teachers plan Math Stretches according to the needs of their students. Whatever the students’ level, Laney suggests to keep these things in mind:
- Math stretches are brief.
- They can be completed by students independently.
- They prompt students to think mathematically.
- They generate mathematical communication.
Here are just a few quick warm up ideas:
Number of the Day – Choose a number and show it as many ways as you can. 10 ten ********** 2+8 20-10 2+2+2+2+2 1 ten and 0 ones
What’s Next? – Present a pattern and have students complete it. Describe the rule that was followed. Example: 2 4 8 16 32 . . . What is my rule?
Data Collection – Ask a math question and use the children’s answers to generate the data. Use the information to create a graph.
What’s My Number? – Leave a few hints and challenge the children to guess the number. Example: My number is less than 50 and greater than 0. It is a two digit number. It has a 3 in the tens place. The ones digit is even. The ones digit is greater than 6. What is my number?
Calendar Math – Gathering around the calendar is a great place to start each day. Find the date and ask questions. What is the date of the third Thursday of this month. David’s birthday is in 10 days. What is the date of his birthday? If today is Monday, what day will it be in 7 more days? How many Sundays are in this month?
Math stretches are a great way to start the day. They are quick, nonthreatening, and inclusive times that encourage students to use their prior knowledge and put their skills into practice with real world activities. Follow-up class discussions allow students to share their thinking and be immersed in rich math dialogue. Out role is to present ideas, model thinking and language, and encourage students to stretch. Creating deeper math thinking comes from an environment that is rich in numeracy. The daily warm-ups offer growth opportunities for students and assessment opportunities for teachers. We can get a quick look at the developmental needs and strengths of our young mathematicians and that can give us vital information that will drive quality instruction.
Check out the work of Laney Sammons and Guided Math at: http://www.guidedmath.org/about-us
Another great resource is Donna Boucher and the Math Coach’s Corner: http://www.mathcoachscorner.com/2012/09/using-math-stretches-for-a-daily-warm-up/
These two wonderful educators will be leading our K-5 Math Institute this summer – Using the Guided Math Framework to Promote Deep Mathematical Understanding
Click here to learn more: https://www.myedresource.com/new-k-5-math-institute-using-the-guided-math-framework/
Interested in Guided Math materials? Click here: https://www.smore.com/56dug