Modified Task 4 Assignment

Spring 2018 MAED 3224

Laritza Suero
Section A: Context for Learning
1. Grade level: 4th

2. How much time is devoted each day to mathematics instruction in your classroom?

Each day, 1.5 hours is dedicated for math. It is the first subject that is taught for the day.

3. Identify any textbook or instructional program the teacher uses for mathematics instruction.
If a textbook, please provide the title, publisher, and date of publication.

My teacher uses the Cambridge international math program. It is a rigorous and

challenging curriculum.

4. From your observations, list other resources (e.g., electronic whiteboard, manipulatives,
online resources) the teacher uses for mathematics instruction in this class. Provide one
example of how a resource was used to teach a concept.

My teacher uses online resources such as Pearson and other online math games, to
support her instruction. For example, when teaching about decimals, she had the students play
battleship number line. In the game, the students were given a decimal, and they had to select
the spot on the number line where that decimal would be located. In addition, a wide variety of
materials/manipulatives are available to the students as needed.

5. From your observations, explain how your teacher makes sure the students learn the
standard/objectives conceptually giving a specific example. (one paragraph)

The teacher allows time and provides a wide variety of opportunities for the students to
practice a skill. They do it on their own, or with their table mates, and then they work on it as a
whole class. She selects online math games that will allow the students to keep practicing that
certain skill. Usually, the students get on the games whenever they finish with an assignment
early or after finishing morning work. They also have access to them from home. One great
thing I saw my teacher do is integrate match concepts into other disciplines. For example,
during science block one day, the students made oobleck. They had the directions on a
handout, and the quantities were in large fraction forms. To be able to get and use their
ingredients for the oobleck, the students had to work together to simplify the fractions. My
teacher created fun, different activities so that the students would really understand the
concepts being taught.

6. What did you learn most about teaching mathematics from observing this teacher? (one
paragraph)

The thing that stuck with me the most from observing my teacher in mathematics was to
let the students lead by doing the explaining. For example, once the students had some time to
work on a problem, she would go up to the board and ask the students “where did you begin?”
The students would then share their thoughts on how they solved the problems. Then the
teacher would ask if there were any other ways students used to approach the same problem. It
was more like a discussion. I liked that students were very involved, and I also believe this is
really important in helping students construct their learning.

Section B: Whole Class Lesson
Meet with your IMB teacher and decide what you will teach. Make sure your teacher
understands that your lesson must have a conceptual understanding instruction along with both
procedural fluency and problem solving components. You teach just one lesson.

1. Describe the Central Focus of your lesson (a description of the important understandings
and core concepts that students will develop with this lesson).

Comparing decimals, by using less than, equal to, and greater than symbols.

2. State the CCSSM Standard and the objective for your whole class lesson.

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.4.NF.C.7

Compare two decimals to hundredths by reasoning about their size. Recognize that
comparisons are valid only when the two decimals refer to the same whole. Record the results
of comparisons with the symbols >, =, or <, and justify the conclusions, e.g., by using a visual
model.

Objective: Students will compare decimals by using greater than, less than and equal to
symbols. Independently, students will compare decimals in word problems and write an
explanation justifying their answers. Students must earn 8 out of 10 points to demonstrate
mastery.

3. Instructional Strategies and Learning Tasks: (summarize the lesson plan components by
briefly describing the instruction and the learning tasks you used. Include the tasks students will
solve during the lesson.) (one paragraph)

I started off by putting a problem on the board. I read it out loud to the class, and I had
them turn and talk with each other to discuss what they thought was the answer. After about a
minute, I had volunteers share their answers and why they thought was the answer. We talked
about why 0.5 was larger than 0.25. The students came to the conclusion that adding a 0 would
help see that ‘50’ is larger than ‘25.’ I moved on to how we could show these decimals by using
the symbols. The students all agreed that .50 ＞.25. After this, I asked the students what were
some other ways that we use decimals in real life. They came up with a very good list! Before
we moved on to the explore part of the lesson, I modeled how to play the decimal war game.
The students split up into pairs. I gave them about 10-15 minutes to play a few rounds. As they
were playing, I walked around to observe and encouraged them to explain why their decimal
was larger. When this came to an end, I facilitated a whole group discussion by asking the
students which strategies they used to compare their decimals. I also asked them if there were
any decimals that were more challenging than others. This discussion went well. The students
were excited to share their strategies. To close the lesson, I passed out an exit ticket with three
word problems. Students had to answer the question, justify their answer, and express the
problem with the greater than, less than, or equal to symbols.

4. Create a formative assessment that assesses conceptual knowledge, procedural fluency,

and problem solving. Insert a copy of the assessment with your solutions here. (exit ticket used
for whole group lesson)

5. Define your evaluation criteria for mastery of the assessment in a rubric. Make sure you
define separately conceptual understanding, procedural fluency, and problem solving parts of
this rubric, including the corresponding points. Insert this rubric here. (how did you grade exit
ticket)

Procedural Student identifies the Student identifies an Student does not

Fluency (4 pts) correct answer answer but does not identify an answer
choose the correct
one

Mathematical Student writes an Student writes but Student does not

Reasoning (3 pts) explanation to support does not provide provide an
their answer enough justification explanation for their
answer

Conceptual Student expresses their Student shows the Student does not
Understanding (3 answer with greater answer with the demonstrate their
pts) than, less than, or equal incorrect symbol answer with the
to symbols symbols

Section C: Results of Whole Class Assessment
1. Create a graphic showing class performance of conceptual understanding, procedural
fluency, and problem solving of the objective. This can be pie charts, tables, bar graph etc. but
must show performance in each of the above areas separately, according to each student’s
performance in the formative assessment. (provide a table and color code green/yellow/red
based on mastery)

For the assessment, I decided to focus on one problem out of the three on the exit ticket. The
following is the data I gathered from assessing students on the first problem.

Students Procedural Conceptual Mathematical
Fluency (4 points) Understanding (3 Reasoning (3 points)
points)

Student 1 2 3 3

Student 2 4 3 0
Student 3 2 3 3

Student 4 2 3 0

Student 5 2 3 3

Student 6 4 1 0

Student 7 4 3 2

Student 8 4 0 3

Student 9 4 0 3

Student 2 3 0
10

Student 0 2 0
11

Student 4 3 3
12

Student 4 3 3
13

Student 4 3 3
14

Student 4 3 3
15

Student 4 3 3
16

Student 4 3 3
17

Student 4 3 3
18

Student 4 1 3
19
Student 4 3 3
20

Student 4 3 3
21

Student 4 3 0
22

Student 2 3 3
23

Student 4 3 3
24

Student 3 0 0
25

Student 2 3 3
26

Student 4 1 0
27

Student 4 3 0
28

2. Describe common error patterns in each of the areas of patterns of learning - conceptual
understanding, and procedural fluency. Refer to the graphic to support your discussion. (3
separate paragraphs, one per each pattern of learning)

Most of the students (19 out of 28) did well with procedural fluency. They were able to
identify the correct answer for the problem (they were able to express that 8.6 is larger than
8.245, and therefore, Ronald’s plane flew the farthest). However, some of the students did not
receive the full 4 points, because they failed to answer the actual question. These students did
get partial credit if they at least circled the larger decimal, as this shows that they understand
what the correct answer is.They included the inequality, but didn’t specifically give the answer to
the problem.
Most of the students (21 out of 28) also did well with conceptual understanding. They
showed their work and included the inequality. Some students went further than just showing
the inequality. They labeled the numbers based on place value, and showed how to make
equivalent decimals. With that being said, some of the students completely left out the
inequality, so that made a significant impact in their assessment results.
A good amount of the students (9 out of 28) did not include an explanation in their
answers. There was really no in between in this area; it was either they got the full three points
or zeros. From these results, it is evident that this group of students struggled with justifying
their answers. They might have known the correct answer, but could not explain the “why.”

Note: Patterns of learning include both quantitative and qualitative patterns (or consistencies) for different groups of
students or individuals. Quantitative patterns indicate in a numerical way the information understood from the
assessment (e.g., 10 out of 15 students or 20% of the students). Qualitative patterns include descriptions of
understandings, misunderstandings, partial understandings, and/or developmental approximations and/or attempts at
a solution related to a concept or a skill that could explain the quantitative patterns.
For example, if the majority of students (quantitative) in a class ordered unit fractions from least to greatest as 1/2,
1/3, 1/4, 1/5, the students’ error shows that they believe that the smaller the denominator, the smaller the fraction and
they have a mathematical misunderstanding related to the value of fractional parts (qualitative).
For example, if a student error occurs in a subtraction problem then the underlying mathematical understanding may
include trading or regrouping, meaning of subtraction, and/or subtraction as the inverse of addition. You start with the
quantity of students who made the specific mistake and you continue with the quality of the mistake in terms of the
mathematical misconception.

3. Scan and insert here the copies of 2 students first work samples as follows. Choose the
most representative examples from the whole class assessment (no student names). Then,
analyze each student’s misconceptions.

Student 1 Mathematics Work Sample (student struggles with conceptual understanding)
(one paragraph)

 This student did not show much on her exit ticket. She included the inequality, but she
got the answer wrong. It seems as if she really didn’t understand what they symbol meant.
Because the student did not give much information, the misconception that I think is going on
here, is that the student thinks that 8.245 is larger than 8.6 because it has more decimal places.
Furthermore, this most likely indicates that the student does not understand place value.

Student 2 Mathematics Work Sample (student struggles with procedural fluency or problem
solving)

(one paragraph)

This student does understand place value. They were able to see that Ronald won
because 8.6 is a larger distance than 8.245. Therefore, the student shows a good sense of
mathematical reasoning and procedural fluency. She didn’t really show her work visually
though. She didn’t express her answer with the symbols or provided any pictures that would
demonstrate her conceptual understanding.
Section D: Plan for Re-Engagement
Assessment results are irrelevant if you do not act on them. Thus, you are to create a plan to
use the results you described in Part C. You do not have to actually re-engage the students but
you must show that you understand what to do with these results. Thus, based on the
assessment results you described above, group each of your students into one of these groups:
Group 1 - re-engage for conceptual
Group 2 - re-engage for procedural
Group 3 - re-engage for problem solving
Group 4 - mastery/ready to move on
1. Describe the number of students you will have in each of these groups. (Note: if a child
performed poorly in multiple parts of the assessment, that child will start in the conceptual
group)
• Group 1 (conceptual): 9 students
• Group 2 (procedural): 5 students
• Group 3 (problem-solving): 3 students
• Group 4 (mastery): 11 students
2. Plan to re-engage for conceptual understanding.
a. Describe your re-engagement lesson for this group (objective from CCSSM,
learning tasks, strategies, materials, assessment). (one paragraph)
Standards:
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.4.NBT.A.2
Read and write multi-digit whole numbers using base-ten numerals, number names, and
expanded form. Compare two multi-digit numbers based on meanings of the digits in
each place, using >, =, and < symbols to record the results of comparisons.
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.4.NF.C.7
Compare two decimals to hundredths by reasoning about their size. Recognize that
comparisons are valid only when the two decimals refer to the same whole. Record the
results of comparisons with the symbols >, =, or <, and justify the conclusions, e.g., by
using a visual model.
For this lesson, I will focus on greater than, equal to and less than symbols. We
will review what these symbols mean, and how we can use them with regular numbers.
Then, we will dig into decimals. I will pass out notecards, and have the students come up
with any decimal they would like. They will then need to compare decimals with the
person next to them. Once they have had a chance to compare, I will pass out symbols
that I will draw on paper, for each pair of students. They will need to select the
appropriate symbol for their decimals. I will observe to make sure they are using the
symbols correctly, and once they use one, I will ask them to switch their decimals and
then find the symbol that corresponds.
b. Explain why you believe this re-engagement lesson will be effective based on the
error patterns you found in the data. Score here will be based on how well you describe
the connection to the re-engagement lesson and the error patterns found, effective use
of materials, and sound methodology. (1-2 sentences)
I think this would help build students’ conceptual understanding, because they
will become more familiarized with less than, greater than, and equal to symbols. This is
important, because then they will be able to use them correctly in comparing all kinds of
decimals.
c. Explain how you will reassess for mastery of the concept. (exit ticket)
I will give each student a different word problem with decimals. They will need to
circle their answer and express their answer using the symbols.
Choose to do either 3a OR 3b:

3a. Plan to Re-engage for procedural understanding.
a. Describe your re-engagement lesson for this group (objective from CCSSM,
learning tasks, strategies, materials, assessment). (one paragraph)
 b. Explain why you believe this re-engagement lesson will be effective based on the
error patterns you found in the data. Score here will be based on how well you describe
the connection to the re-engagement lesson and the error patterns found, effective use
of materials, and sound methodology. (1-2 sentences)
c. Explain how you will reassess for mastery of the concept. (exit ticket)
3b. Plan to Re-engage for problem solving.
a. Describe your re-engagement lesson for this group (objective from CCSSM,
learning tasks, strategies, materials, assessment). (one paragraph)
Standards:
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.4.NF.C.7
Compare two decimals to hundredths by reasoning about their size. Recognize that
comparisons are valid only when the two decimals refer to the same whole. Record the
results of comparisons with the symbols >, =, or <, and justify the conclusions, e.g., by
using a visual model.

For this re-engagement, I will use the same standard, but I will focus more on the
“reasoning” aspect, rather than the >, =, or < symbols. I will have the students engage in
a decimal ordering activity. I will pass out a set of decimal cards to each student and
have them order them from least to greatest. I will have them use the benchmark
decimals 0.25, 0.5, and 0.75 as a strategy for students to decide on the order. I will ask
the students which other strategies they can use to order the decimals. Examples of
other questions I will use are “what made you place 0.37 before 0.50?” and “is 0.7 closer
to a whole or zero?” I will encourage students to explain their decisions.
b. Explain why you believe this re-engagement lesson will be effective based on the
error patterns you found in the data. Score here will be based on how well you describe
the connection to the re-engagement lesson and the error patterns found, effective use
of materials, and sound methodology. (1-2 sentences)
I think that this would be a good way for students to get more practice explaining
why a decimal is larger or smaller than another. Having the visuals will also help them
understand better, and develop with more strategies.
c. Explain how you will reassess for mastery of the concept. (exit ticket)
For the exit ticket, I will give students a handout with true or false statements. I
will have a statement such as “0.8 is less than 0.25.” Students will need to decide if it’s
true or false, and explain why.

Scoring Rubric
Possible Points

Section A: Context for Learning 1

A1 1
A2 1
A3 5
A4 5
A5 5
A6
Section B: Whole Class Lesson 1
B1 1
B2 10
B3 8
B4 10
B5

Section C: Results of whole class assessment 10

C1 14
C2 6
C3

Section D: Plan for re-engagement 2

D1 10
D2 10
D3a or D3b

Total of all scores: 100