Observation Numero Uno - February 16th

Today Ana and I finally made our way back into Mrs. Dixon's First Grade Classroom. We were excited to be there and to watch a new part of their class schedule that we were unable to witness last semester -- Math. Being in Dr. Berry's Teaching Elementary Math made this observation particularly interesting as we got to watch as students worked through different addition centers. For the most part, students were working on their own to fill out various worksheets and work through a computer addition facts drill. It was cool to watch as students employed various manipulatives and strategies to solve the problems. You could tell that Dixon had given freedom to her students to use any method they found useful to arrive at a correct answer. Some students were using counting blocks, others were using their hands, and some the traditional algorithm. But by far the most interesting strategy to me was employed by the students on the computers. They were using the number keys at the top of the keyboard as a number line to accomplish their basic addition facts. It really was a fascinating strategy that I had never considered before.

All in all, it was very useful to get in and observe how math time goes for Dixon's class. She did admit that sometimes she opts to spend the hour teaching in a more whole-group setting. For the most part she claims to use the centers approach to mathematics because she believes it allows for differentiation of instruction and plenty of concept practice as students move through varied center activities.