Palomino Primary

2021-2022

Strategies and Best Practices

Resource Guide
AES (Associates for Educational Success) PD
Tier 1 Instruction
AES Common Practices

In Class with Students Planning & Assessing

- “I am learning…” objectives/checklist - Team Planning (Long-term planning calendars)

(learning target) - Success Criteria Grade Level Planning
- Fluency Warm-Ups, Fact Fluency Document
- Quick Write (QW) - Using problem set to plan objectives
- Number Talks - Priority Skills review
- Anchor Charts - Organizing/sorting manipulatives
- Math Journals - Embarc Website
- Data Logs (https://embarc.online/course/index.php)
- Two Color Code Feedback (informal - District GVC Website
assessment) (https://sites.google.com/pvlearners.net/pvcurriculum/

- Talk Moves (Partner Talk, Revoicing) curriculum/math/prek-5-math/1st-grade?authuser=0)

- Using manipulatives (“Tool box”)

- Map - Model - Solve
- Math Mats

Examples of Best Practices

“I am learning…” Objectives & Checklist
Quick checklist that shows students the goals or tasks that need to be completed for the
lesson. These can be posted to the front board or on the projector. Check off steps as you
complete them.

Checklists can also be used to provide steps

that need to be taken to solve a problem.
Fluency Warm-Ups, Fact Fluency
Quick number fluency warm-ups. These can be done through number dot cards, pictures,
fingers/hands, or orally. Fluency warm-ups normally take about 2-5 minutes.

Examples:
Number Bond Dash - included in Eureka, quick fact fluency practice that can be done daily

Happy Counting - quick oral counting practice, can be done with counting by 1s, 5s, 10s,
forwards, or backwards. The counting can start at any number and work forwards or
backwards.
“Today we are going to count by 1s. When my thumb is pointing up, you will count up by 1,
when my thumb is sideways, you will pause and hold the last number we said in your head,
and when my thumb is pointing down, you will count backwards by 1.”

Math Finger Flash - flash a number on your fingers and have students tell you how many. The
speed can increase to help students recognize numbers faster. Numbers can be broken up
on two hands for number sentence practice.

“4” “2 + 5 = 7” “4 + 5 = 9”
Quick Write
Quick writes are used to activate prior knowledge about a topic students have learned. This
gives students time to make connections and try new ideas or strategies. Students can use
this strategy to answer a question, finish a sentence stem, or talk about a math picture.

“Find 2 ways to solve this problem.”

“Matt has 1 unit of ten and 2 units of one. Tim has 23 units of one. Matt says that he has
more. Is Matt correct?”

“This week I learned that part-part-whole __________________”

“Which one doesn’t belong? Why?”
“Box “c” because the other pictures all
have groups of 4 and 1, but box “c” is a
group of 3 and 2.”
“There are 5 kids sitting and 2 kids standing.
The number sentence is 5 + 2 = 7.”
“There are 3 kids and 2 kids and 2 kids. The
number sentence is 3 + 2 + 2 = 7.”

For more examples of “Which one doesn’t belong”, go to https://wodb.ca/. Search

examples by shapes, numbers, or graphs & equations.
Number Talks
Short (5-10 min), daily activities to help students build number sense.
1. Present the class with a problem.
2. Give “think time”.
3. Call on a student and have them share their thinking or how they solved the problem.
4. Offer the strategy to the class - give students the opportunity to agree or disagree.
5. Have other students share their strategy for solving the problem.

Skills can include: dot patterns and subitizing images, balancing equations, 100s charts, skip
counting, ordering values of numbers or coins, identifying missing addends
Anchor Charts
Anchor charts give visual reminders to students of vocabulary and examples that have been
taught so far. Anchor charts should be made with the students, not ahead of time.

Teachers can use alternating colors to help students see the different terms and examples.

Anchor charts can also be used to display one specific example of a math strategy (see
below for “Arrow Way” strategy example).
Math Journals
Journals can be used daily to give students practice of previously taught stills. When used
repeatedly, students will see math journals as part of their normal routine for math instruction.

The word problem or number sentence can be typed and glued in each student’s journal or
students can simply look at the board for the problem and answer in their journal.

Students can also include the date and learning focus with each journal entry.

Kindergarten 1st Grade 2nd or 3rd Grade

Data Logs
Data logs are the next step for math journals. Students are able to keep track of how well
they answered the math journal question day-to-day. Each day, students rank their answer
on the rubric (this can be differentiated grade to grade). At the beginning of the week,
students can set goals for how many journal problems they want to solve correctly.

0 = I was not able to solve this

0 = I need to keep working

1 = I tried to find the answer but could not

1 = I got part of the answer

2 = I solved the problem correctly with 1 strategy

2 = I solved the problem correctly with
1 strategy
3 = I solved the problem correctly with 2 strategies

Kindergarten 1st Grade 2nd or 3rd Grade

Two Color Code Feedback
When checking math journals or problem sets, mark each student's paper with a colored
dot. The colors can change daily, weekly, or always be the same. The two colors will signal
to you who understands that concept and who is still struggling.

Talk Moves (Partner Talk, Revoicing)

Talk moves give students the opportunity to communicate thoughts and understanding in
math. This may include revoicing, adding on, and turn-n-talk.

Examples:
Revoicing: when one student restates or summarizes what another student has said.
“Luis said the answer is 2 groups of ten.”
“I heard Jennifer say that part plus part equals a whole.”

Adding On: this is done when one student takes the thoughts of another student and adds
on their own thoughts or answer.
“Thomas said that 3+2=5 and I know that this is true because _________________.”
“I know that what Daniel said is correct because __________________.”

Turn-n-Talk: partner time when students can share their answers or strategies to solving a
problem. Teachers can use this time to listen in on different partner groups to hear student
thinking and check for understanding.

Choral Response: engagement strategy that allows students to all give a verbal response at
the same time. Choral responses can be used when answers are short and the same.
Manipulatives “Tool Box”
An easy way to organize all math manipulatives in one space. “Tool boxes” can be kept in
each desk or somewhere in the classroom. In the beginning of the year, clear expectations
are given about how and when tool boxes should be used.

Manipulatives in the tool box can be changed throughout the year, or everything needed
can be put in at once.

1st Grade “Tool Box”

- Tupperware container for storage
(optional - ziploc bags are also helpful)
- Linking cubes
- Red & yellow counters
- Tens frame
- 100s chart
- Number line

“Map - Model - Solve” - AES Template

AES strategy for solving word problems. From the AES directions, Map-Model-Solve is “good
for multi-step problems as well as problems that are told out of chronological order. It
provides a space for computation that typical Singapore style bar models do not”.

“Map - Model - Solve” Template (example can be edited)

1. Read the entire problem and create an answer stem for what the problem is asking.
2. Read to the first ending punctuation and stop. Students ask themselves what the
important information is in that sentence. It gets written in the “map” portion. It can
be verbatim or summarized. (Note: Students will need help with this as they sometimes
think everything is important.)
3. Students make a model (possibly, but not limited to, a bar model) that represents the
information and they are asking what they will need to solve for as they create the
model. Labels are important here, especially in multi-step problems.
4. Complete the necessary computation for that model in the “solve” column.
5. Repeat steps 2-4 until the answer stem can be completed.
Math Mats
Larger-scale displays of strategies or skills that students are currently working on. These can
be placed in sheet protectors or in math folders. Math mats can be used during Tier 2
interventions or in math centers. Mats can be switched out whenever needed.

Kindergarten 1st Grade

2nd Grade 3rd Grade