Wednesday 25 September 2013

Fraction

A fraction represents a part of a whole or, more generally, any number of equal parts. The numerator represents a number of equal parts, and the denominator, which cannot be zero, indicates how many of those parts make up a unit or a whole. 

I have learnt from Dr. Yeap that when we say a fraction term e.g. 1/4, we cannot say 1 upon 4 or 1 out of 4, we have to say it - one fourth or one quarter.  Hmm...I wonder how these terms derived in our daily lives?

Dr. Yeap then challenged us on a fraction problem - sharing a piece of cake equally among 4 persons using the paper he has provided for us.  My classmates and I folded the paper into three different types of fraction(see figures of rectangles) easily.

Dr. Yeap continued to challenge us by asking us is it possible to divide them into other shapes equally and this is how we derive by having Triangles(see figures of triangles).  He further asked are there anymore shapes we can derive.  Some of our classmates have come up with some shapes and Dr. Yeap asked if these shapes are of equal portion?  Initially I thought it was not as the shapes are uneven from a glance.  Later, I tried doing it on the piece of paper, I realised they are of equal portions(paper is divided into 16 parts and each portion consist of 4 parts).
 
 
 
We do not visualise to determine the equal portion but need to work it out on concrete materials.  Math is really a fun subject to explore!
 
Here are some fraction activities you may wish to try:
 
http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/mathgames/fractions/Balloons_fractions1.htm
http://www.glencoe.com/sec/math/studytools/cgi-bin/msgQuiz.php4?isbn=1-57039-850-X&chapter=3&lesson=1
http://www.interactivestuff.org/sums4fun/efrac1.html

Tuesday 24 September 2013

Uses of Whole Number

What is a whole number?

In google term, it is known as positive interger(1,2,3.....) and not a partial number, fraction or percentage.
 
 
But today in 2nd day of Dr. Yeap's lesson, I have learnt different classification of whole numbers.
 
1) Cardinal Number,
 
2) Nominal Number,
 
3) Ordinal Number and
 
4) Measurement Number.
 
Besides that, the interesting part of the lesson is the 10 frames using "Jack n The Beanstalk" musical story.  It is interesting to understand that there are many ways to solve the problems with three numbers involved.  This will enhance children's creative thinking in deriving various solution methods and not only focus on one method which I was being taught during my Primary school years.Ten Frame Math Games http://theclarkchronicles.com/?p=1877
So how many ways are you able to do this addition?  Try it....
 
 
 
 


Monday 23 September 2013

Day 1 - Own Experience in solving problems

Today is the first lesson of Elementary mathematics.  Four problems in one lesson : one adjective to describe - FUN!!!

 From Rote Counting to Card Trick to Textbook Problem and lastly Tangram Problem, I had fun sloving these problems.  I particularly like the Tangram activity as it really engage me into thinking mode to shift the shapes to form different sizes of rectangles.  There is always a sense of achievement when my peers and I managed to form rectangles using different sizes.  I have realised in order to solve problems, we need to explore, working in group, using concrete materials.

 
 
I have also learnt that there is even a story about Tangram and I google it to learn more about it.  I'll share definitely share this story with my centre's children.
 


Sunday 22 September 2013

Chapter 1 & 2

A note to Parent...

Many a times, when children have problem or struggling solving Mathematics questions, parents will comment," I remembered my Math subject was the worst among all subjects, that is why my children follow my learning style. I think it is very important for parents to engage in their children's education from as early as Pre-K to their college level as in the present society, it focus on education, career and life readiness.

To kickstart with parent engagement, we will introduce one of the most important features of Principles and Standards for School Mathematics.  They are:

1) The Equity Principle - all students must have the opportunity and adequate support to learn Mathematics "regardless of personal characteristics, background, or physical challenges"
2) The Curriculum Principle - Students must be helped to see that Mathematics is an integrated whole, not a collection of isolated bits and pieces.
3) The Teaching Principle - Effective Mathematics teaching requires understanding what students know and need to learn and then challenging and supporting them to learn it well(NCTM,2000,p.16)
4) The Learning Principle - Mathematics today requires not only computational skills but also the ability to think and reason mathematically to solve new problems and learn new ideas that students will face in future.
5) The Assessment Principle - Assessment should be a major factor in making instructional decision.  Teachers can better make the daily decisions that support student learning by continuously gathering data on students' undertsanding of the Mathe concept.
6) The Technology Principle - Calculators, computers and other merging technologies are essential tools for doing and learning Mathematics.

With these six principles, teachers will create an environment where students take risks and share and defend Mathematical ideas, they will be actively engaged in problem solving through teachers' guidance.  First is the language of doing mathematics: children in traditional Mathematics classes often describe Mathematics as imitating what the teacher shows them.  These are low-level thinking activities and do not adequately prepare students for the real act of doing Mathematics.  In contrast, we need to engage students in doing Mathematics with the following- compare, explain, explore, predict, investigate, verify and solve.  These verbs lead to higher-level thinking and encompass 'making sense' and 'figuring out'.

Next is the classroom environment for doing mathematics: classrooms where students are making sense of Mathematics do not happen by accident - they happen because the teacher establishes practices and expectations that encourage risk taking, reasoning, sharing.

Parents... start learning Mathematics with your children now, it is definitely a fun and interesting subject!!!