Written Communication in Math
Action Plan
What was implemented?
During this study, I implemented writing in math. Writing in math is when students write about or explain an answer to a math question. This writing can be completed in the form of exit tickets or math journals. Students write to explore, reflect, explain, argue, or describe their answers or ideas. I chose to implement writing in math because research has shown that it increases student’s understanding of math concepts, allows students to use problem solving skills, and allows all students to have a voice about their ideas.
How was it implemented?
Due to my research, I implemented writing in a math journal two or three times a week. In addition to journals, I taught math instruction as normal, using differentiated strategies such as homogeneous grouping. Students would write about math during independent work time. During this time they would be answering or responding to math questions using math vocabulary. Before students were expected to write independently, I taught and modeled for them how to write in math journals, which provided students with several examples. After modeling for them a handful of times, students then got to work with partners to practice how to write responses to math questions. After students had the opportunity to practice writing math responses with a partner, they were expected to write their responses independently. During the study, students received support in a variety of different ways. All students were provided sentence starters and a word bank of words that they could use in their writing. These sentence stems helped students to start their writing process and encouraged them to use the appropriate math vocabulary in their writing. Another support that was provided to students who struggle with math or are considered to be performing below grade level was the opportunity to verbally explain their answers to me as I scribed for them or they recorded themselves explaining their ideas on camera instead of writing. Students were exposed to writing about math for several different purposes including to explain, describe, argue, and reflect. l created homogeneous groups and utilized targeted instruction after reviewing writing entries throughout the study. I used targeted instruction to clarify misconceptions and provide more challenging experiences for students as needed. Implementing writing in math was a decision that was best for my students because of the identified learning needs in the area of math communication. Specifically, there was a clear gap in students’ abilities to write about math to deepen their understanding of the mathematical concepts that were being taught. In order to help capture a clear pictures of student growth during the time of the study, students were given both a pre-test and post-test. The pre-test was taken prior to beginning differentiated math action research in the classroom. It was meant to gather information on the students and their content knowledge at the time of the assessment. The pre-test had eight total questions, and was a collection of questions from four math topics: writing multiplication and division equations to match a picture or solve a story problem, solving multiplication and division story problems, using inverse operations to help solve for an answer and using the distributive property to solve larger multiplication problems. Math groups were created before the start of each topic based on pre-test scores from the beginning of implementation. The post-test was given at the end of the study. It was similar to the pre-test with a few more questions, and was given to measure growth from the beginning of my action research, to the end of my action research.
Word Bank Provided to Students
Sentence Stems Provided to Students
Example of Prompts Used During Study
When was it implemented?
This study was implemented daily during math workshop over the course of a unit and a half. Specifically, this study was implemented from January 23rd to March 6, 2020. Students received fifteen minutes of classroom instruction on the skill that we were learning that day. Afterwards, students were split up into small groups to practice the skill with guidance from the teacher. Students that were not meeting with the teacher were in small groups completing various activities on other desired skills. These activities included math worksheets, math games, or fact fluency cards. At the end of the lesson, I posed a math question that provided students with opportunities to explain their mathematical thinking using the sentence starters and math vocabulary in their math journals or as an exit ticket. During the majority of this study, the concepts that were covered included solving multiplication and division problems using a variety of strategies. Below you can see some of the anchor charts that were posted in the classroom during the this unit and over the duration of the study.
Heading 5
Anchor Charts Posted in the Classroom during the Unit
Why were these strategies chosen?
According to my 2019 Fall MAP math data, in the area of number sense 41% of my class was academically below average for their grade level and only 59% were academically at grade level or above in regards to number sense. This shows that my students need research-based strategies that will help them progress in the area of math. This was a concern that I needed to give my students required additional instruction in math.
Additionally, based on the first math CSA of the year, 91% of my entire class was proficient or advanced on the entire CSA. However, 91% of my students were progressing or beginning in terms of their ability to communicate their mathematical understanding of the concepts or explain how they got their answer.
Writing in math was the solution for this problem because students were more engaged with the process of what it means and looks like to write about math. Writing in math also helped my students develop deeper understandings of the math concepts, which helped to improve their overall math scores.
Writing in math was best for my students because of their learning needs in math. Specifically, there was a clear gap in my students’ abilities to write about math to deepen their understanding of the mathematical concepts that are being taught.
How were diverse learning needs met?
All students were provided sentence starters and a word bank of words that they could use in their writing. This was to help students start the writing process as well as encourage them to use math vocabulary in their writing. Another support that was provided to students who struggle with math or are considered to be performing below grade level was the opportunity to verbally explain their answers to me as I scribed for them. Additionally, students were given the choice to record their thinking or explanation on camera instead of writing. Students were exposed to writing about math for different purposes including to explain, describe, argue, and reflect. Throughout the study, I created homogeneous groups and targeted instruction after reviewing writing entries that were completed. I utilized targeted instruction to address or clarify misconceptions as well as to provide more challenging experiences to students throughout the study. Additionally, I worked with each student before, during, and after the study to help them set individualized and developmentally appropriate goals. At the beginning of the study, I met with students in small groups to explain and reflect on a proficiency scale that ranged from the numbers one to four. I explained to students that by the end of this math unit they should be able to solve multiplication problems fluently up to ten times ten and be able to explain how they knew. For each of the four numbers on the scale, a descriptor was placed below to help students understand what they would need to be able to do to be at the level. Students were then asked to self reflect where on the scale they were. After a few seconds of time to self reflect, I asked students to turn and talk with a partner about where they thought they were and why. After students got a chance to share with a partner, I asked if anyone would like to share with our small group. Once everyone got an idea of where they thought they were at, I provided each student with a sticker that they got to place on the chart representing where they were. This chart was kept up in the classroom throughout the entire unit and was referenced often in regards to having students reflect on where they were at the beginning and where they were at the moment in time. At the end of the unit, I met with the same small groups and had students again repeat the process of self reflecting, talking with a partner, and sharing with the small group before they were asked to place a new sticker on the proficiency scale. This proficiency scale was used as a way for students to recognize where they were at the beginning, reflect as they were learning, and see where they were at the end. Additionally, to help students set individualized and developmentally appropriate goals, each student met with me individually to set action steps that would help them reach their math goals. When I met with each student, we discussed where the student was at currently and where we wanted them to be or how much we wanted them to grow. After determining the growth goal, students were asked to reflect on what they were already doing to help themselves grow and learn in math. The student and I then discussed the action steps they could select from to help them reach their growth goal. Students selected goals such as practicing their math facts three times a week, double checking their work on assignments and tests before turning them in, and participating in mathematical discussion and using math vocabulary. These action steps and goals were then shared and discussed with families. In order to hold students accountable for their action steps, each student was assigned an accountability partner that had selected similar action steps in our classroom. Students met with their accountability partners two to three times to a week to check in on how they were doing on completing their action steps. This time was an opportunity for students to reflect on how they were doing, what they should keep doing, or what the needed to improve.
Proficiency Scale used for Students to Self Reflect during the Course of a Unit
Math Growth Goal and Action Step Student Sheet
Listening and reflecting with two students turn and talk about where they are on the proficiency scale.
Fostering an Equitable and Accessible Learning Environment
My study fostered equity in my classroom because all students were writing and explaining their ideas in and about math. This fostered equity because all students were able to participate instead of the teacher just asking questions and having one student at a time provide an answer. In addition, it fostered equity because I was adjusting instruction based on how my students were writing in and about math. Furthermore, each student had access to the anchor charts including sentence starters and a math vocabulary word bank to help them start and continue writing. Students had a choice as to whether they wanted to use a sentence starter to help them begin their writing piece or not. Students who struggle in the area of writing or find writing to be a trigger were given the opportunity to record their responses, instead of writing. Some students who were below grade level were able to explain their ideas by verbally telling it to me while I took anecdotal notes or choosing to record it on a camera. This fostered equity because all students had a way of showing me their understanding based on their academic, emotional, and behavioral needs.
My study fostered accessibility because I adjusted my instruction and grouping of students after reading their writing entries. Based on their writing, I was able to identify if I needed to provide additional instruction, move on, or use extension activities after reading journal entries or exit tickets. I continuously grouped my students into homogeneous skill groups based on data gathered from previous writing entries or exit tickets. I was able to identify each student’s level of understanding of a math skill or concept by reading their writing. Additionally, I was able to address each student's individual strengths and areas of need by teaching them in homogeneous skill groups during math.
Multiple Perspectives
My study supported multiple perspectives because each student was sharing their ideas in their math journals. The questions that students responded to had more than one correct answer which allowed students to show me what they knew about a concept. Specifically, the questions that students were asked to respond to during the study were closely related to questions that the district uses on their assessments. These questions ask students to explain their thinking about a problem or concept. For example, students are asked to explain the exact steps they took to solve a problem. When asked to do this, students are expected to respond in a way that someone else who is reading their explanation could solve the problem themselves. The questions that students responded to were asking them to explain concepts or the how and why to what they are doing. Therefore, when students responded to such questions in their math journals, each response students provided were valued as long as students provided a clear explanation and could elaborate on their answer when prompted. For example, when students were asked to reflect on a strategy they used in math, students had different answers in their reflection based upon the strategy they originally used. The differences in answers were valued and provided me with different perspectives on how students were performing in math. Students' perspectives were valued because they were sharing their individual ideas about math in their journals. The student and the teacher were the only ones that read the math journal entries so students were more likely to share their personal ideas confidently in their journals. Writing in math allowed students to share their ideas while still respecting their privacy. Students were able to be honest with their answers in their math journals because of this privacy.
Collaboration
Internal Stakeholders
There were internal stakeholders that supported my study because they helped me differentiate instruction for my students. Three of my internal stakeholders were my team of colleagues on my third grade team at my school. Through collaborative planning, my teammates helped determine what writing prompts and questions I could use during my study. This collaborative planning was important because it helped determine questions and expectations that were appropriate for students when asking them to write about math. Through this collaborative approach, my teammates and I were able to determine appropriate questions and prompts that aligned with the district's curriculum. This collaborative and thorough planning helped determine engaging ways to access students' learning during math to help them deeper their understanding. Additionally, I collaborated with my instructional coach to adjust instruction for students who were struggling to grasp concepts in math or were performing below grade level expectations. My instructional coach also helped me to determine ways that I could challenge and extend learning opportunities for students who already understand the skills or concepts that were being taught. This helped student learning because it provided me with ways to support all students during this study.
There were external stakeholders that supported my study because they helped me plan, process, and implement my study while maintaining and processing the information and knowledge my study was providing me. My CADRE associate became a huge support and factor in helping me to strengthen my implementation of meaningful and purposeful math instruction. She video recorded many conversations that I had with students regarding math communication, helped me to analyze students' writing samples, and collected data during math talks. I was able to identify what students I was calling on to share their thinking during math talks as well as identify if the questions that I was asking were giving students an opportunity to actually share their thinking or just answer. Throughout the study, this data allowed me to be aware of what questions I was asking and what students I was calling on to share their ideas aloud. This allowed me to ensure that more students were being given the opportunity to share their thinking aloud. The most common time that I tracked this information was during math talks. The protocol for math talks does not include writing responses, so the main focus of this strategy was for verbal communication. However, we also worked together to analyze student written responses in math journals where students answered a questions by sharing their thinking. They were also able to share their math thinking in workshop when they were divided into small groups and two rotations were with an adult (myself or my associate) to ensure that each student had an opportunity to share thinking, often writing first and then sharing their response. Additionally, the CADRE cohort was also a great support during my study. There were other teachers within the cohort that were also researching and implementing strategies to increase students' mathematical understanding. These other teachers and I were able to discuss common research that we found and how we were going to plan to use their research in our own lesson plans and throughout our study. The cohort provided a huge benefit to help ing me to determine what would be the best data to collect throughout my study and how to best analyze this data. Discussing ideas with the cohort helped me to determine if the data that I was collecting was beneficial and connected to my study. If at any time during the course of my study I found myself in need of guidance or support about what my data was showing me, I knew the cohort members would be a great resource to utilize. My last external stakeholder was the instructional coach I interviewed in my literature review. She helped the study by providing ideas for time management of math journals and planning for the questions I would ask the students. She helped me to understand the importance of writing in math and why it is so important for students to find success in it. She was able to inform me of resources and strategies that I could implement throughout my study. This individual helped with student learning because I was able to explain to students why writing about and in math was important. Additionally, this individual provided me with several strategies that I used to help make writing in math more engaging and meaningful for students throughout my study, which benefitted student learning. These external stakeholders helped student learning because it helped inform my planning, teaching, and feedback to students as they engaged in the writing process during math.