Freya Seemann's List: M405

It was very interesting to see all the different ways the students were able to come up with answers. This activity linked to a real life situation, this being a taxi fee, and included other KLA's such as public speaking with the English outcome Talking and listening TS2.1(Board of Studies, 2006, p. 17). This example of mathematical thinking also demonstrates the mathematical outcomes WMS2.2, WMS2.3, WMS3.3, WMS2.4, and WMS2.5 (Board of Studies, 2002, p. 19). This video, although not as hands on and physical, shows an example of real life problem solving, like achieved in "Food for Thought: The Mathematics of the Kitchen Garden" (Lyon & Bragg, 2011). It also demonstrates the idea and benefits from students explaining and discussing their problem solving process that they went through to get the their final answers. In doing this the students go through a cognitive and metacognitive process when they explain their solving process. Of cause this video is also linked with the reading WM4 "Making mathematical arguments in the primary grades: The importance of explaining and justifying ideas" (Whitenack & Yackel, 2002) and Chapter three of Elementary & Middle School Mathematics (Van De Walle. J, Karen S. K, & bay-Williams, 2010) and how it talks about why explanation and justification are important in the learning process. It gives a chance to raise healthy debates on why a mathematical method may or may not be appropriate and allows students to gain a clearer insight and understanding to their own thinking.

This would be a fun exercise for stage three and four students. By the students looking for and collecting they would begin to understand the process to creating graphs more deeply. They would start the know the difference between data and information, data being a collection of unorganised raw facts and information is raw data organised into meaningful facts showed through many different graphs (This was discussed in Lecture three of Learning Technologies EDU10003). During this exercise the students would learn how to draw up different graphs using their collected data. They would also visually see that even though they are using the same data to make the graphs, different graphs will look vastly different. For Year Six and above you could even go into finding the mean, medium, range, and mode using these graphs. They could then do their own data collecting on things they enjoy, for example: How fast can I run 100 m. Then they would repeat the experiment by running 100m everyday for the rest of the week and record the times they ran. Once they have their data they would use it to make the different kinds of graphs they had explored in earlier lessons. During these lessons the students will have learnt data collecting (outcome DS2.1), data analysis (outcome DS3.1and DS4.1), the shape of data and processing data (Van de Walle, et al., 2010, pp. 436-455, Board of Studies, 2002, p. 21). Reading S4 discusses the need to create opportunities to develop and deepen the students understanding of probability and statistics (Joyner & Reys, 2002). To do this it is important to have a base understanding but also teach Data and Probability using ideas the students are interested in and this lesson achieves this.

This would be a good and fun way to introduce perspective when teaching geography. It could then lead into the students making their own perspective photos or videos, this being with themselves or making Claymation’s. Just like what reading SG6 (Morrow, 1991) refers to, the making of the students own perspective videos and photos promote active involvement both physically and mentally guiding students in their own knowledge process. Reading SG4 (Clements & Sarama, 2000) talks about constructive blocks as being an important part of learning perspective. Young students would be able to look at the blocks from different angles and distances creating perspective illusions. Sperry Smith (2009, p. 195) also explains block building as "one of the most meaningful tools for self-education". Block building for both boys and girls enables dramatic play and encourages the learning of spatial awareness. This ad coves the Mathematics outcome SGS3.1 (Board of Studies, 2002, p. 183) and the Science and Technology outcome UT S3.9 (Board of Studies, 2006b, p. 17).

This is such a good idea for a lesson. It is a physical way of learning which FD1 talks about being an innovative way of learning fractions. Teachers could use the idea from FD1 (Mills, 2011) as an introduction to fractions. I love the idea of learning through play, which this lesson does. It also relates it to a life situation. You could even include this lesson idea with the reading Food for though: The Mathematics of the Kitchen Garden. (Lyon & Bragg, 2011). Students would grow their own food and prepare salad sandwiches and egg sandwiches and fruit drinks and fruit yogurts. They would also make lunch menus and waiter and waitress rosters. Once a week they would all prepare the food and then play role, ordering food and then pay with play money. These series of physical lessons would cover PDHPE (Board of Studies, 2011, p. 223) -healthy choices: nutrition (PHS2.12, DMS2.2 and V4), English outcomes RS2.5, WS2.9, WS2.10, and WS2.1 (Board of Studies, 2006a, pp. 19, 29), and of course the Fractions outcomes WMS3.5, NS2.4 and NS3.4 (Board of Studies, 2002, pp. 20,155)

This song is a familiar nursery rhyme for young students and is often reinforced on children's programs such as 'Play School'. In early childhood classes it is important to continue this learning and measuring of time and this is done by carrying out a daily and weeks routines or schedules for the class. This will help children recognise events with different times of the day and week (Lee, Lee, & Fox, 2009, Sperry Smith, 2009, p. 221). Sperry Smith (2009) also describes the importance of incorporating time language (metalanguage) in everyday activities. This could be simply achieved by having a daily schedule. On this schedule I would place images of analogue clock times, digital clock times and handwritten times so that the students would become used to seeing the different ways the same time can be shown. By doing all of this students will start to understand the measurements of time and the language. They would start to use this metalanguage themselves completing the outcome MES1.5 (Board of Studies, 2002).