Running head: MATH NIGHT 1

Math Night Summary

Tianne M. Wambsganss

Pittsburg State University

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Math Night Summary

Throughout working on our Math Night Lesson, I have been experiencing deja vu. I have

even slipped up a few times and called this course science! Although there have been similarities

to our Science Night, participating in Math Night has allowed me to assimilate everything that I

have learned thus far in the field of both math and science education. I have gained knowledge

in the effective and most beneficial ways to teach mathematics and feel more prepared to teach

my future students.

To begin, in mid-February Megan and I began working together as partners. In class, we

discussed with each other what we would do our lesson over. Since I am in a fifth grade

classroom and Megan is in a fourth grade classroom, we first had to decide if we wanted to use a

fourth or a fifth grade standard. After collaborating upon some of our classroom observations

and demographics, we decided to go with a fourth grade standard. The fourth grade standard we

chose was: “Measure angles in whole-number degrees using a protractor. Sketch angles of

specified measure.” After that was decided, we had to decide upon a lesson. We conducted

research and decided to go with “What’s in a Name.”

Before we began writing the bulk of our lesson plan, we worked on an anchor chart in

class that made assumptions about our students based on the task we wanted them to perform.

These assumptions or preconceptions that we considered included: not starting at 0 degrees,

confusing which way to read the protractor, and incorrectly interpreting intervals. (Van de Walle,

2015) We would find out later that two of these misconceptions were more common than the

other. The anchor chart also helped us to realize how our content standard really connected to

our math night activity. When referring to the Common Core Standard for Mathematical
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Practices Flip Book, we were able to synthesize how our standard intertwined with the SMPs.

“Mathematically proficient students in Grade 4 consider the available tools (including

estimation) when solving a mathematical problem and decide when certain tools might be

helpful. For instance, they may use graph paper or a number line to represent and compare

decimals and protractors to measure angles.” (Common Core Standards for Mathematics Flip

Book for Grade 4, 2014). Additionally, the Flip Book enlightened us with the background angle

knowledge that students should have in the fourth grade. In the fourth grade, students should be

able to compare angles. Knowing this allows them to have a reference of what angle measure

they should use when using a protractor. (Common Core Standards for Mathematics Flip Book

for Grade 4, 2014).

Throughout our preparation for Math Night, Megan and I kept great communication and

were able to be flexible with each others’ work schedules. The first time we met in person was

on February 28th. On this date, we began working on our lesson plan as a team. We first

discussed our initial thoughts on how we wanted our lesson to go. Then, we took turns typing in

the different sections of our lesson plan. During this process, we reread everything to each other

to check for clarity and alignment to our partners thinking. Following our first meeting, we had

some time to work on our lesson plan in class, but we also met again on March 7 to finish up our

lesson. Then, when we obtained feedback on our green lesson plan, we met up to revise and

work on our board. Since this was right after Spring Break, we did some individual preparing.

We texted each other to figure out our color scheme. Then, Megan painted out board black and

bought our letters. I sketched out everything that we needed to have on our board and bought the

construction paper that we used. On the evening of March 26, Megan came over and we put
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together our board. We also rehearsed our lesson for the peer review that was the following day.

Lastly, after the peer review, we made more alterations to our lesson plan based on the feedback

that we got from our peers.

During and after math night we realized that our preconceptions held true. The most

common student errors were not starting at zero degrees and confusing which numbers to read on

the protractor. I believe that we could have better addressed these common errors by providing

the students with a more concrete experience. Most of the children that we worked with were in

the Concrete Operational Stage. In this stage, students use materials to help build their

confidence. “Providing various mathematical representations acknowledges the uniqueness of

students and provides multiple pahs for making ideas meaningful.” (Fincher, 2018). We only had

protractors to use, but I think it would have been more beneficial to students is we would have

had another approach or explanation to measuring angles. For example, I think it would have

been enticing to make a manipulative for the students to use that showed the 360 degrees of a

circle. I imagine a device that looks like a clock hand that the students could move around to see

the different types of angles and to make angles of different degrees. I believe this would have

fostered a deeper understanding of angles.

Having a different way for students to manipulate the measurement of angles is what I

would have changed about our lesson plan. Even though I would have changed this to better

meet the needs of all the students, the highlight of my night was when a first grader was able to

pick up some of the concepts of our lesson. I chose to include a photo of me working with this

particular student below. He had never really heard of any of the “angle terms” but he caught on

to the general idea pretty quickly. After explaining to the student that there are 90 degrees in a
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right angle, he was able to point out the right angles in his name. Then, the student was also able

to recall and classify obtuse and acute angles as well. By being able to assimilate the new

information taught, this student was demonstrating the concrete operations of classifying. The

first grader was able to group objects according to the mental class that he learned. (Fincher,

2018). Although I was surprised at his ability, he actually aligned perfectly to the Piagetian

expectations of a six year old boy.

Lastly, the anecdotal record I took during math night helped me to accumulate

quantitative and qualitative information in relation to student problem solving skills. Out of the

students we took anecdotal notes on, three of the students were ten years old and in the fourth

grade. While one students was eight and in the third grade. When looking at the quantitative

information, I see that none of the students reached stage four of any of the problem solving

areas. Based off our data chart, the quantitative information also tells me that the students most

often needed assistance from adults to be able to fully perform our activity. There was one

student in which Megan ranked in stage three for all three problem solving areas. This tells me

that the student understands all concepts, make only minor errors with strategies, and her

explanation of the task was

clear. The bar graph to the

right shows the problem

solving rankings of four of

our students from math night.

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In regard to the qualitative data, the students that were in the fourth grade seemed to

recall more information. For example, the student in third grade only recalled right angles

compared to the students in fifth grade that recalled right, acute, and obtuse angles. The student

in third grade stated, “ We learned that there are right angles.” When showing this student how to

use a protractor, the student made the mistake of not lining up the protractor at zero degrees.

Additionally, this student did not know which numbers to use on the protractor when measuring

the angles which demonstrated a lack of understanding between the difference of obtuse and

acute angles. Contrastingly, the students in fourth grade had a little bit more background in

regard to angles and protractors. The fourth graders seemed to all have pneumonic devices to

help them remember the different types of angles. They said things such as, “an acute angle is a

little cute angle and an obtuse angle is a big obese obtuse angle. The fourth graders also had

some prior experience with the protractors so we mainly just had to remind them to line the

protractor up to the zero degrees.

In conclusion, I have learned a lot about myself as a teacher through teaching math night.

I realized that I am not as confident in teaching math as I thought I was. I learned that there is a

lot more that goes into it if you want your students to get the most benefit out of it and develop a

deeper understanding of mathematical concepts. Through the handouts we have accumulated

over the semester, I now know how I can be a teacher that does not just try to “cover” everything

but also be a teacher that promotes using problem solving strategies in mathematics.
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References

Van De Walle, J. A., Karp, K. S., and Bay-Williams, J. M​.​(2015) ​Elementary and Middle School

Mathematics Teaching Developmentally ​(9th Edition). Boston, MA: Pearson Education,

Inc.

Common Core Standards for Mathematics Flip Book for Grade 4, (2014) Retrieved from

http://katm.org/flipbooks/4%20FlipBook%20Final%20CCSS%202014.pdf

[Fincher, Dr. B Personal Communication. March 2018]

[Fincher, Dr. B. Personal Communication. April 2018]