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A Numeracy Moment

Mostly teachers are faced with dealing with numeracy in the classroom 'in the moment'. The following is a set of steps to help a teacher work through how and when they should deal with such a moment.
 

Once noticed the teacher would identify the numeracy demands of the situation using the Numeracy Framework.

Decide how crucial the moment is to deal with:

 
  • Is it a demand? That is, essential to learning the work at hand.
  • An opportunity? That is, does it provide a terrific springboard into helping students develop their numeracy and or their mathematics?
  • Not important in the context of the program?

Once action is decided upon then need to decide on when to deal with it - Now? Later?
 

If it is to be dealt with what are the particular student numeracy issues at hand? Use the Numeracy Framework to help diagnose these.
 

Identify the strategy you will apply. Do this by:

 
  • Using the information from point 4 to guide your action.
  • Trying something and see how it goes (action learning).
  • Asking the students if they have any ideas on how to approach the issue.
  • Asking other colleagues to help develop a strategy.

Share the results with other colleagues. Across the school support for some student numeracy problems may be necessary.
 

Don't forget even if a numeracy 'moment' is of no surprise to you because in your planning you could foresee it coming you will need to allow sufficient numeracy moments to occur to make sure your students have enough opportunities to develop the numeracy roles of learner and critic. These will be hard to develop if you never allow such situations to occur with prompting from the teacher.


J. Hogan (2000)

 

Copyright copyright.gif John Hogan 2002.
This document may be copied if it is not included in documents sold at a profit.
Hogan, J (2002) see heading of the page. (On-line).
Available at http://www.redgumconsulting.com.au/num_moment.html

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