Measurement

Growing up, math was always my least favorite subject, it was boring and tedious and I was never particularly good at it.  This course however, has taught me to see the fun in math!  Measurement in particular is another great unit to incorporate alot of hands on games for the students.

Whats great about measurement is that it encompasses various different components, which makes activities fun for students.  One great way to get students engaged and learning about measurement is through measurement Olympics.  Whats great about this activity is you can differentiate it to be geared towards your students specific needs.  Areas of improvement can be incorporated and you can add different mini games that focus on the specific areas of measurement you are looking at in class.  Measurement Olympics is also great to have students practice their predictive skills.  Having students guess what might happen and explain why they think that can help students articulate their learning and thought processes.  It can also be a great discussion for a math talk.

Using math games such as this can be a great way to engage students, however it can also be a disengaging and discouraging avenue if students have not acquired the proper skills to successful participate.  I noticed this last week in my placement grade 7/8 class.  The students were working on measurement and after the math talk, the students participated in a short activity.  During the game, I noticed one particular student acting inappropriately and not participating accordingly.  When I spoke to him, he explained that he did not understand and that he has been struggling with this unit for years.  This highlighted the importance of a diagnostic before implementing such games, as they can very easily get out of hand if students do not participate.