Middle school math test prep season is upon us! Maneuvering the Middle’s test prep unit literally saved me for the 4 years I used it, so I thought I would share what’s included with some ideas for using it in your classroom. Update: Maneuvering the Middle has updated their test prep units, so keep reading to learn what's new!Hopefully, these components will help streamline your test ...
Grouping Students in Math
Grouping students in math can be a very complex process. If you take all the factors that are necessary for a group to function…personality, math ability, and ability to work in a group together, then you may find that no perfect combination exists. Here are some reasons you may decide to group students: Regardless of your beliefs, let’s talk about the pros and cons of ...
Mean, Median, and Mode: Teaching Measures of Center
Mean, median, and mode - my favorite measures of center! Let’s discuss this 6th and 7th grade skill as well as tips for teaching and real-life applications. Vertical Alignment 6th Grade Standards - Understand that a set of data collected to answer a statistical question has a distribution which can be described by its center, spread, and overall shape. 6.SP.2 Summarize ...
4 Division Strategies for 5th Grade
I will never forget my first day learning long division in third grade – the multiple steps, the division, followed by multiplication…then subtraction?? What? Fortunately, while that is the only way I ever learned division, there are now numerous other options for division, so students can feel successful. And though I believe the standard division algorithm is a necessity for math, ...
Keeping Up with Absent Students
Absent students - it’s that time of year! Managing absent students’ make-up work, incoming parent emails, catching them up when they return - it is a lot! (In fact, as I write this post, my daughter is missing school due to Flu A and strep.) Here are some tips for preparing for all the inevitable, seasonal absences. Stay On Top of Planning This is my advice for just about ...
Student Surveys: An End-of-the-Year Reflection
The end of the year will be here before we know it! Summer is soooo close. With the end of the year approaching, the time for reflection is upon us. Let’s dive into student surveys – why we love them, how to implement them, and how to grab our free middle school survey (+ Google Form option too!) WHAT IS A STUDENT SURVEY? A student survey is a great tool to get students thinking ...
Ideas for Teaching Transformations
Transformations is a big meaty unit in 8th grade math that students will revisit in Algebra 1 with quadratic functions. Let’s talk about all the ways you can help your students succeed with transformations! CCSS and TEKS Standards Let's take a look at what the standards actually say regarding transformations: Released STAAR Question from 2019 Backwards planning (looking ...
Properties of Exponents
There is a great paradox in teaching math: the more simple a topic, the more likely it will cause complete confusion in your classroom. Cue - properties of exponents. If you have experienced students mixing up all the laws of exponents or if you are about to teach them for the first time, then you are in the right place. Laws of Exponents Standards The standards are pretty ...
Tips for Using Math Activities with All Access
Classroom activities are where math comes alive! Personally, I loved the discourse, the teamwork, and the application that occurred with my students when working through an activity. Here are some broad stroke tips for how to implement activities in your math classroom. Filter the Activities On the New Platform The All Access platform makes finding aligned activities easier ...
Unit Overviews in All Access
Our All Access Unit Overviews received a makeover this month! At Maneuvering the Middle, we strive to create AND update resources that teachers use for planning and teaching. Let’s talk about what is new, what has been removed, and some tips for implementing the unit overviews in instruction. FEATURES OF THE UNIT OVERVIEW The unit overviews serve as a comprehensive guide to each ...