Have you ever been in a class giving a lesson with a whole
class of blank faces staring back at you? I must admit, during my first few
days of placement early on this happened to me. After the lessons, I reflected
on what had happened and decided that I needed to make math more interactive.
Now I know this might sound simple to everyone else, but all I can remember
from my math classes growing up were worksheets, worksheets, and more
worksheets. I quickly realized, as a teacher, that this was a terrible way to
teach. Worksheets can be a great addition to the lesson, however they shouldn’t
be the whole lesson.
I decided to spice up my lessons a bit. I remember one
lesson where I was teaching types of Angles to a Grade 6 class in Sudbury, ON. For
the starter activity and to assess students’ prior knowledge of Angles, I got
students to get into pairs. When I put the name of an Angle up on the
Smartboard, I asked the students to try and create this angle their bodies. In
my opinion, I was teaching to all types of learners. The kinaesthetic learners
were able to have practical and hands on experience makig angles, the visual
learners could look at the angle of different groups and on the board
afterwards, and the audio learners could listen to their peers and teacher.
Now I don’t know about you, but I’m the type of person that
likes to have fun while teaching! I recently came across this video about a
teacher that uses music to help his students. He creates songs about various
math concepts. In my opinion, most Grade 7 and 8 students would love this. In
addition and as the teacher explains in the video, music helps students with
their memory.
What are some examples of strategies you use in your lessons
to make math fun? Are there specific strategies that you find more effective
than others? Please share your experiences in the comments section!
