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Chapter 6 – Option 3 (Action)

02/24/2019 3:22 PM | Anonymous

Share a problem scenario from your teaching that you think would be appropriate for the Three Reads routine.  Please remind us of your grade level/subject. 


If you want to share a task with the group, send a document, photo, or link to atomicbookclub@gmail.com and I will set up a shared google drive folder for the materials.

Comments

  • 02/25/2019 10:57 AM | Sarah Giaquinta
    I teach precalculus to juniors and seniors in high school. The next unit we are about to study is an in-depth look at exponents and logs. They were introduced to these concepts in Algebra 2, but we spend a lot of time looking at more complicated applications of them. I think the three reads will be a great way to help students pull apart the problems I plan to give them. In the past, they have struggled with what is being asked, and what models they need to use to solve the problems being asked. I have found problems within these topics are not nearly as straightforward as word problems they may have solved in the past. Getting them to go through this routine to actually figure out what the problem is saying, what is being asked of them, and then what is needed in the problem to do that, will be very helpful in getting them to break it down!

    On another note, I loved the little chart on page 130 that the teacher had hanging on the wall. I think having some "ask yourself" questions visible for students on a daily basis is a great idea. It gives them reminders they need for a jumping off point, especially when they are overwhelmed to begin a problem! I may rope some of my colleagues into brainstorming with me some helpful questions and phrases to post in my classroom :)
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  • 02/26/2019 4:26 PM | Cindy Noftle
    I am in the process of creating a problem scenario for the Three Reads Routine for my Algebra 2 class. We are working on Adding and Subtracting Rational Expressions. The word problems that the students have to solve always seem to cause panic. They struggle with how to start. They look to me for an interpretation of the problem being presented. I find that I am answering the same questions from each group. I am going over the problem but I didn't realize how I was doing the thinking for my students. I am hoping that the Three Reads routine will help my students make sense of the problem on their own. I usually ask students to read the problem once without taking any notes and determine what question needs to be answered, then read it again to make note of the important information, and then solve the problem. Once there is an answer I have the students go back to read through the problem to see if the answer makes sense. This is similar to the Three Reads routine but it is not as structured. My hope is that the students will follow the process and not try to skip through the steps. Students are anxious about word problems because they have so many layers. By understanding the narrative, then interpreting the question, and finally identifying the important information my students should have more success and confidence in solving the problem.
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  • 03/03/2019 9:13 AM | Allison Day
    I am an elementary math coach and work with students and teachers K-5. There have been some good standardized test questions that we paired with curriculum units. I was thinking this problem below would be a good problem for the Three Reads Routine.

    Source: Gr. 5 PARCC Paper-based test

    An egg farm packages 264 total cartons of eggs each month. The farm has 3 different sized cartons.

    *The small carton holds 8 eggs, and 1/6 of the total cartons are small.
    *The medium carton holds 12 eggs, and 2/3 of the total cartons are medium.
    *The large carton holds 18 eggs, and the rest of the total cartons are large.

    Determine how many of each size carton is needed each month. Then determine how many eggs are needed to fill 264 cartons. Show your work or explain your answers.

    This problem is always a struggle for students because there is a lot of information, they're not sure what information they need, what they're supposed to answer or where to begin. I think the "Ask Yourself Questions" on p.130 would be a great way for them to understand and enter this problem. If students started identifying the quantities and relationships, it will help students identify the pieces of information and see how they are connected. It will also help students identify what information is not given such as the number of large cartons. Students can notice that there are fractions and whole numbers. I like how there are few different ways to enter this problem. Depending on how the students approach the task, the teacher can really dig for the relationships and connections in this task.

    Since students know they are going to be reading this task multiple times with different goals each time, it makes the task less threatening for them. Every student will be able to tell the problem is about cartons of eggs for the first read. The second read will be important for students to identify that there are two questions being asked. Figuring out what the questions are and the order they need to be answered will be important. During the third read, I would be interested to see if students would annotate by color coding the pieces of information that go with first question and then the second question.

    I look forward to suggesting this task and routine to teachers and seeing what the outcomes are.
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  • 03/04/2019 11:22 AM | Michele Hanly
    I am fortunate to be able to work with Junior High and High School students. Generally, I help them with their math homework or SAT prep. Periodically, I will help with essay writing. I find essay writing and solving word problems to be similar in many ways. Both involve a several step procedure and I find that students are sometimes uncertain about what step to take next to complete the task.

    As you know, essay writing involves researching and developing an outline, writing a rough draft and then editing the rough draft (may take several redrafts) into a final draft.

    Similarly, solving words problems involve the three reads. First students must understand the content, next they interpret the question and finally identify the important information so they can solve the problem.

    When I initially work with students I tend to do more teaching, particularly when it comes to SAT preparation. Sometimes I am filling in "holes" where the student (for a possible multitude of reasons) does not know the material and it is my job to teach them. But eventually, I need to back off and be there to guide them on how to answer their own question. The three read outline is a great tool for completing that task.
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  • 03/07/2019 9:20 PM | Walter Pohle
    Hello! I am a fifth grade teacher. One of the hardest math problems to figure out, for more than a few of my 5th graders, is one that is embedded in a word problem. Some students are lacking the skills necessary to comprehend the words surrounding the math problem. Often leading to adding instead of subtracting or multiplying instead of dividing. Students who struggle in both ELA AND math are being asked to solve a difficult math problem AND comprehend a story that makes absolutely no sense to them. Difficult task for anyone to say the least. Each of the three reads allows students to focus on just one aspect of the problem and alleviating the pressure of solving two difficult tasks at once.

    A problem I could use Three Reads for is, " Sam owns 3/4 of a section of land. He plants tomatoes on 1/4 of his land. What fraction of the entire section is planted with Sam's tomatoes?" First read, it's about a person planting tomatoes. Second read, students identify that they are to solve how much of the entire section of land was planted with tomatoes. On the third read the students identify that Sam plants tomatoes on 1/4 of his 3/4 section of land.
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    • 03/20/2019 9:32 AM | Michele Hanly
      I agree with you that sometimes it is even more difficult tor ELA students to solve word problems. As a teacher, you need to make sure they understand the vocabulary as well as comprehend the math problem. I think the three reads gives them the additional time needed to take the problem one step at a time.
      At times I try to put myself in their shoes as ELA learners and find that I am continually amazed at how quickly some students catch on to math.
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  • 03/19/2019 3:03 PM | Jill D'Amico
    I think the Three Reads routines would be appropriate for my K-5 teachers that are currently working on teaching problem solving skills through the use of Exemplars. We have found that many times it is not the content/math that the students struggle with but rather with how to enter the problem and/or get started with their thinking. I look forward to sharing the Three Reads routine with my teachers to see if they think this would benefit their students and look forward to seeing the success as I believe there will be.
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