By S. Nield, Teacher of Mathematics and Lead Teacher of Cohorts
With the increase in focus on problem solving for the new spec GCSE in Maths, we have been spending much more time in lessons on problem solving activities. A concern that some of us have had, is that consequently students don’t get enough practice on the fundamental skills required to solve these various problems. I have been using a great resource from a Maths website we are subscribed to, where once per week students work independently through 10 questions each on a different topic. The same topics are repeated each week with slightly altered questions, as shown on an example below:
After completing the questions and marking their work with the answers provided, the students fill in a self-assessment grid. I then take around 10 minutes to answer questions from students and explain any questions they are still unsure of now they have the answers. Once the majority of students are achieving 10/10, they fill in the end columns and add the topics they are still not confident on to their revision lists.
With the increase in focus on problem solving for the new spec GCSE in Maths, we have been spending much more time in lessons on problem solving activities. A concern that some of us have had, is that consequently students don’t get enough practice on the fundamental skills required to solve these various problems. I have been using a great resource from a Maths website we are subscribed to, where once per week students work independently through 10 questions each on a different topic. The same topics are repeated each week with slightly altered questions, as shown on an example below:
After completing the questions and marking their work with the answers provided, the students fill in a self-assessment grid. I then take around 10 minutes to answer questions from students and explain any questions they are still unsure of now they have the answers. Once the majority of students are achieving 10/10, they fill in the end columns and add the topics they are still not confident on to their revision lists.
This has proved especially useful for practising skills they
have not used for many weeks or months. Having run this since September with
several classes, I have noticed a significant improvement in their ability to
apply their Maths skills to a variety of problems.
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