A+Problem+Solving+Unit

Dear families of Mr. Stowell’s 4th and 5th graders! Querida a las familias de la clase de Mr. Stowell,

This is Mr. Brown, and I wanted to invite you to take a look at the math unit your students will be starting in the middle of April. Your students have worked extremely hard this year in order to complete their entire curriculum early, giving us time to focus on one of the most important parts of mathematics: Problem Solving. Indeed, problem solving skills are some of the most important tools your students will practice in school, and math provides a strong foundation for how to tackle difficult situations. In this unit, students will focus on recognizing what a problem situation is asking, showing our thinking by representing the problem with numbers, symbols, words, pictures, and physical objects, and finally, proving that our solutions are reasonable, correct, and answer the original question. As students progress through their unit, they will continue to build on their computational skills with multi-digit division, addition/subtraction of fractions and mixed numbers, and the perimeters/areas of quadrilaterals and triangles.

Some of the highlights of this math unit include an art project, in which students will represent their problem solving strategies artfully on a poster (which will go into the hallway of the school), and the opportunity for your students to help younger students learn new strategies for solving problem situations. Students will also involve their families by showing you how they have learned to represent their thinking using numbers, symbols, pictures, and physical objects.

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments about the unit. Also, if you your student comes home and talks about the unit or something new they learned, I would love to hear about their excitement.

You are always welcome to come in and chat, and you may call or email me with any questions or comments.

Sincerely,

Mr. Brown 425-698-0000 nathantbrown@gmail.com

Here are some good videos that show problem solving strategies at a 5th grade level:
 * Youtube: Singapore Math

Here are some websites that offer some more strategies on word problems:
 * Bellton Schools
 * Math Stories

And here is some extra practice for your students:
 * California

Here is more insight into what our next generation needs from story problem practice:
 * Education World
 * Modeling
 * Do's and Don'ts
 * Open-ended problems
 * Routine versus non-routine problems

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