Snapshot
Make Friends With Numbers
October 2016 Presentation:
Number sense is important because it encourages students to think flexibly and promotes confidence with numbers– they ” make friends with numbers ” as Carlyle And Mercado charmingly refer to in their book Teaching Preschool and Kindergarten Math. Conversesely, students who lack strong number sense have trouble developing the foundation needed for even simple arithmetic much less more complex math.
In a study of 180 seventh-graders conducted by the University of Missouri, researchers found that, “those who lagged behind their peers in a test of core math skills needed to function as adults were the same kids who had the least number sense back when they started first grade.
To address the problem of practice, preschool students will use iPad applications daily to learn and practice mathematical number sense Pre/Post assessments will be done by the classroom teacher and instructional assistant using the Number Concept and Operations objective on Teaching Strategies Gold. After the first assessment, students will be separated into two groups– one using math applications on the iPad and the other receiving traditional mathematics instruction. Parenting volunteers will assist the teaching staff in making sure that each group of students practices their designated type of math instruction. During the school year, teaching staff will conference with parents to discuss the importance of number sense for future mathematic success. Data collected from September to March will be at the Action Research Summit. In order to conduct the research, three mini iPads will be purchased for student use.
