Slice of Life Day 11

Our grade level decided over a month ago, with the principal's approval, to level our students in math groups. This strategy provides the struggling students with more time to learn, practice, and master a concept. On the flip side, the advanced students can be appropriately challenged to move on to a higher level of thinking or problems without waiting for the struggling students to master the standard. The middle group gets what they need too.

Since I have the most advanced reading groups in fifth grade, I volunteered to take the intensive (most struggling) math group. In this group of 27 students, over half of them do not have their multiplication facts memorized. A good third of them are unmotivated and rarely return completed homework. So it's not a matter of only teaching them using a variety of strategies to engage them and ensure they understand the content. I've got to motivate, push, and yes, nag some of them. It's exhausting and I wasn't seeing much progress.

However, today we began reviewing for the trimester 2 benchmark test. We went back to some problems we haven't practiced in a week or so. And some of them actually remembered how to do it correctly! I was so excited because the standard was adding and subtracting mixed numbers with unlike fractions AND putting them in simplest form. The solution requires completing multiple steps. Most of the class was coming up with the correct answer and showing all their work.

I felt like the proud mama. They were trying! They could do it! They cared enough to try and do it! After weeks of frustration and mounting concern, today was a day where I felt I had made a difference with these students.