February 10 - Words, Words, Words

As this class has progressed, I have been trying to view the content and teaching methods described in the texts with a mathematical lens. In other words, how does a mainly English/literature, history, and sometimes science based subject like reading apply to mathematics education. Since there isn’t much reading involved with math, I usually used the context of mathematics vocabulary to apply the concepts taught in class and through the texts. So the 7th chapters of Hinchmen and Beers seemed much more applicable than past chapters. This being said, there were some very interesting teaching methods that I would definitely apply to my future classroom.

The vocabulary teaching strategy that stuck out to me the most included that of a word wall. Both texts described the use of a word wall which I found helpful. I remember making word walls in English class. We would read the chapter and everyone was required to find a word that they were not familiar with in the text, define it, learn about it, and use a picture to describe it. This experience helped me learn tons of new words and develop strategies to learning new words. This got me thinking, why wouldn’t I apply this to a math classroom? Many units through out a semester (especially in geometry and trigonometry) contain many new and unfamiliar words and definitions. Requiring students to independently learn words and then share what they have learned makes a lot of sense! The Hinchmen text described a method called Teach-Teach-Trade (p 125) in which students learned a new word, made their own definition using both words and pictures, taught their peers the word and then traded words. Now, the exact methodology of this might not work perfectly well for high school classrooms. But a modified version would be perfect for those chapters heavy with unfamiliar vocabulary.

The basic strategy I think I would use is as follows:
• Teach a lesson normally. Define vocabulary using both the textbook definition and your own definition. Get students thinking about the words.
• Assess what students might need help understanding. Ask questions and check for understanding.
• Assign words or processes or equations to students. You could even let students pick their own words.
• Require students to define their respective words on a piece of paper using the textbook definition, their own personal definition, and a picture/visual representation of the word.
• Share the information with the rest of the class. Have students Teach-Trade. Put the words up on a bulletin board.

The more I think about the vocabulary wall I made in high school English, the more I think that the same strategy would be perfect for the rigorous vocabulary of a geometry class or the strange symbols and equations of calculus. I often feel that math class is hard when I do not understand the language of the subject. It’s hard for me to grasp. I can’t imagine how hard it would be for a struggling math student to be expected to just know every word used.