Scaffolding
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Sales Price Entry Point
A pseudo- concrete representation of a sales price problem is shown below. This is what I use as an entry point for teaching these problems. The entire shape represents the total price of $80. This is 100%, which in student language is “the whole thing.” The discount rate is 25%. Cut with scissors to lop…
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Trig Fingers
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Cutting Up the Math Into Bite-sized Pieces
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Simplifying Expressions (Combine Like Terms)
Simplifying expressions (see photo below) is one of the most challenging algebra tasks for many students receiving special education services. A major problem is that it is typically presented as symbol manipulation…addressed in very symbolic form. My approach is to make math relevant and more concrete. Below is a scaffolded handout I use to help…
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Introduction to Solving Equations
I introduce solving equations by building off of the visual presentation used to introduce equations. The two photos below show an example of handouts I use. Below these two photos I offer an explanation of how I use these handouts. First I develop an understanding of a balanced equation vis-a-vis an unbalance equation using the…
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Graphing Linear Functions
Graphing linear functions and the underlying concept are challenging for many students. The video below shows a scaffolded approach to teaching how to graph. This approach also addresses the concept of the graph as a visual representation of all possible solutions (see photo above). Students often do not realize that the line is actually comprised…
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1 to 1 Correspondence Scaffolded
I have encountered several students who struggle with 1 to 1 correspondence with the educators struggling to figure out how to teach this to these students who continue to struggle. This post reveals an approach I used with a student. I broke down the task using a formal task analysis approach. This approach involves identifying…
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Kahoot Game
A Kahoot is an online and app quiz game that allows students to answer questions using a personal device (e.g. simulated phone in photo above). The teacher can create the questions (e.g. example question I created in photo above). My approach is to use a Kahoot to scaffold learning. In this post I use plotting…
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Elapsed Time Scaffolded
