Capturing Math Thinking Through Technology

How do we capture math thinking in our busy intermediate classrooms?  How do we promote a culture of communication and collaboration when our students are working through math tasks?  How can we embed time for rich math discussions among student groups?

There are a number of technology tools that can help us with these.  
One of my favourite "low tech" manipulatives is the white board.  (There is just something about taking away the stigma of "paper" and being able to write with markers that captures intermediate students' attention.)  My lessons always began with a Minds-On activity where students would work through a problem on whiteboards.  Students would work in pairs or small groups and capture their collective strategies on the whiteboard. They were often eager to share with the class (often put under the document camera) to explain their thinking!

Another tool that provides multiple ways to share and show math thinking is through an iPad App called Explain Everything.  It works as an interactive white board. It has a range of functions (write, type, record voice, take video, screen capture, add links, photos, equations, import documents, etc.) for students to share the process of working through a problem. It is easy to export or share.  This provided me with an easy location to assess and provide feedback to students virtually!

Below is a pic of a previous student sharing her solution and how she and her group worked through it using this app.

There are many other Apps that provide ways to capture student thinking as well.

                     

Regardless of the tool, the key to ensuring mathematical conceptual understanding for students is to have as much information about HOW students solve problems as possible.  Without a "clear picture", we tend to make assumptions about what students know.  This is where we enter the danger zone of "misconceptions".  When students are explicit about their processes and strategies we have much better insight into where they are in their learning and what we need to do to move them forward.