Powerful Problem Solving: Activities for Sense Making with the Mathematical Practices

How can we break the cycle of frustrated students who “drop out of math” because the procedures just don’t make sense to them?  Or who memorize the procedures for the test but don’t really understand the mathematics?  Max Ray-Riek and his colleagues at the Math Forum @ Drexel University say “problem solved,” by offering their collective wisdom about how students become proficient problem solvers, through the lens of the CCSS for Mathematical Practices.  They unpack the process of problem solving in fresh new ways and turn the Practices into activities that teachers can use to foster habits of mind required by the Common Core:

• communicating ideas and listening to the reflections of others
• estimating and reasoning to see the “big picture” of a problem
• organizing information to promote problem solving
• using modeling and representations to visualize abstract concepts
• reflecting on, revising, justifying, and extending the work.

Powerful Problem Solving shows what’s possible when students become active doers rather than passive consumers of mathematics.  Max argues that the process of sense-making truly begins when we create questioning, curious classrooms full of students’ own thoughts and ideas.  By asking “What do you notice?  What do you wonder?”  we give students opportunities to see problems in big-picture ways, and discover multiple strategies for tackling a problem.  Self-confidence, reflective skills, and engagement soar, and students discover that the goal is not to be “over and done,” but to realize the many different ways to approach problems.

Read a sample chapter.

Susan O’Connell has decades of experience supporting teachers in making sense of mathematics and effectively shifting how they teach. As a former elementary teacher, reading specialist, and math coach, Sue knows what it’s like in the classroom and her background is evident throughout her work as she unpacks best practices in a clear, practical, and upbeat way.

Sue is the lead author of the new Math by the Book series, a K-5 resource connecting math and children's literature.

She is also the lead author of Math in Practice, a  grade-by-grade K-5 professional learning resource. She is also coauthor of the bestselling Putting the Practices Into Action, Mastering the Basic Math Facts in Addition and Subtraction, and Mastering the Basic Math Facts in Multiplication and Division.  She served as editor of Heinemann’s popular Math Process Standards series and also wrote the bestselling Now I Get It.

Sue is a nationally known speaker and education consultant who directs Quality Teacher Development, an organization committed to providing outstanding math professional development for schools and districts across the country.

Watch an introductory Math in Practice webinar, hosted by Sue.

Click here to watch Sue talk about the links between reading and math.

Connect with Sue on Twitter: @SueOConnellMath

Max Ray-Riek is a curriculum writer at Illustrative Mathematics and is the lead author of Powerful Problem Solving: Activities for Sense Making with the Math Practices. He previously worked for The Math Forum, focusing on fostering problem solving, communication, and valuing student thinking. Max is a former secondary mathematics teacher who regularly presents at regional and national conferences.

Watch Max and Suzanne Alejandre talk about giving students effective feedback.

Follow him on Twitter @maxmathforum.