Teacher resources and professional development across the curriculum

Teacher professional development and classroom resources across the curriculum

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Problem SolvingSession 03 OverviewTab atab btab ctab dtab eReference
Part A

Observing Student Problem Solving


Think about the student work and reflect on the following questions. After you've formulated your own answer, select "Show Answer" to see our response.

Question: How does this problem provide an opportunity to learn about division through problem solving?

Show Answer
Sample Answer:
The problem enables students to make connections to their prior problem-solving experiences and to discuss characteristics of division problems. The students also encounter remainders that need to be interpreted according to the meaning of the problem.

Question: What is the advantage of having students work in pairs to solve a problem? How does such grouping encourage students to independently figure out the assignment and what the goal is?

Show Answer
Sample Answer:
The two students propose interpretations of the assignment to each other. This helps them get started and to critique some of their ideas. They talk through the meaning of and possible solution methods for their proposed problems. In this way, they come up with the solution while self-correcting their work.

Question: How does the wording of this assignment contribute to students' success in discussing methods of solving sharing-division problems?

Show Answer
Sample Answer:
The mention of "no food" may actually serve as a hint by helping them think of prior work they've done around sharing food, such as cookies. Having a number sentence provided helps them focus on the mathematical concept instead of having to worry about what numbers to use when they write a sharing-division problem. The task of needing to write a problem of a particular type encourages them to propose and discuss methods for solving several problems.

Next  Observe what a third-grade math class did with a similar activity

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