We
have had a wonderful start in fourth grade math! Along with some beginning of the year math tasks, we have also
been discussing the importance of attitude in math and the idea of a growth-mindset. A growth mindset
is the belief that one’s abilities can be developed through dedication and hard
work. This is so important in math
because there is often an idea that some people are “math people,” and others
are not. This is not true! Just like a muscle gets stronger with
exercise, the brain actually changes through grappling with math problems.
One of the
first activities we worked on, after a discussion of how we treat each other
when working in a group, was called Four 4s. In this activity, students
were tasked with finding every number from 1 to 20 using only four 4’s – all
four of the fours had to be used each time – and any mathematical operation they
knew was available to them. The
students did a great job working in small groups and worked in a really focused
and enthusiastic way. It was wonderful to see the excitement of students as they worked to find solutions for different
numbers and how well they listened to and supported each other.
If you want to try
Four 4s at home, it is a lot of fun! Just jot down the numbers 1 through 20 on a piece of paper and get started!
No comments:
Post a Comment