Polynomials Day 2

Well... I definitely learn better ways to do things and, even more, I learn what NOT to do! First and foremost, do not overestimate what kids can do without guidance. I have had to learn to slowly build up to what I want the class to achieve and I seem to forget this lesson every time I start a new unit. Yesterday and today, students learned to factor out a greatest common factor from a polynomial. I started with a review of how to multiply a monomial and a polynomial. We review/defined the terms "product" and "factor." Then, I gave them a product and asked them to find the factors. Students did great. Our first consolidation involved me going through how to find the greatest common factor of a monomial. In my first class, I just spoke the words and I eventually learned that it wasn't enough. So, in my second class, I wrote the words. How simple of an adjustment that made a HUGE difference! (I'm definitely going to have to backtrack with my other class to fix that mistake of mine!) At that point, the students were really knocking it out of the ballpark. I use my interactive whiteboard as a common banner. I learned about the common banner from Peter L. in a workshop I attended in October. He had the common banner along the top of the whiteboards with new problems progressing from left to right. However, that does not work for this 5'1" teacher!

My next challenge is how to keep problems going onto the common banner while helping the students who are struggling the most.  I get pulled into helping and other groups are anxiously awaiting the next problems.

Our four-quadrant notes were better today.  The kids even gave me some positive feedback.  In particular, they like doing them as a group.  However, I had to promise that they could use them during their next skill-check as incentive to make sure they took them seriously.  It's all a work in progress, I suppose!

Next class we multiply polynomials!