What is the future of teaching math? And what tools will teachers need to engage students and help them truly understand the concepts at hand?
Tune in as some of TpT’s terrific math Teacher-Authors answer these questions. Find out what they’re doing in their own classrooms to bring math to life and what TpT resources they recommend to harness the future of math today.
Secondary Math Teachers on TpT
4 the Love of Math
“The future of secondary math instruction is putting students in charge of their education. This involves teachers taking a proactive approach to engage students in the classroom using diverse teaching methods. That provides students with resources to develop a deeper understanding of the material rather than just regurgitating formulas and definitions. TpT helps encourage this by providing easy access to a plethora of resources for all stages of learning. It brings together a broad spectrum of teaching methods and activities into one place and leverages the use of computer-based learning and hands-on interactive problem solving.”
Try her:
Solving Equations (1-step, 2-step, Multi-Step): Guided Notes (grades 6-12)
21st Century Math Projects
“The future of math instruction will steer toward more practical application instead of rote practice. Students can learn every process in the world, but if they can’t apply it in a different context, what’s the point? Empowering students to use mathematics to develop evidence-based arguments and use critical thinking to analyze results is where we need to move. In order to do this, there MUST be a practical context (real or imagined!). The tough stuff. This is where I spend the majority of my TpT time and where I hope I can contribute to teachers and students and impact learning!”
Try his:
STEM-ersion — Rational Functions — Anesthesiologist (free) (grades 6-12)
All Things Algebra
“I feel the future of math instruction is a flipped classroom in which students learn the content at home via video lessons, while in-class time is devoted to engaging activities and collaborative projects. Many teachers feel they don’t have time for activities; however, the flipped classroom frees up more time and gives way for more valuable practice. Having a toolbox with plenty of diverse activities is essential for this classroom model. My store contains notes packets that can be used for online instruction along with a large collection of activities that will get students out of their seats and having fun while learning!”
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Multi-Step Equations Gone Fishin’ Game (grades 7-10)
MissMathDork
“‘When are we ever going to use this?!’ Yep, if you’re a math teacher, you’ve heard those words! Math is all around us in our daily lives, and we really need to start making those connections for students. As math educators, we need to stop droning on about the rote computations and start building real-world problem solvers. Students need to see their math applied in new, real ways! My friends and I have partnered up to create a monthly real world link-up called ‘Math IS Real Life (MiRL)’ Each month, we post about how we as people (not as teachers) are using math in our daily lives. We post pictures that teachers can use in the classroom (and we sometimes include freebies!) Here’s a link to all of the MiRL posts that have been written to date. We post the first Wednesday of every month.”
Try her:
Geometric Sort Bundle: Surface Area/Volume, Radius/Diameter, Area/Circumference (grades 4-8)
Lindsay Perro
“Math class used to be a land of lectures, note taking, and worksheets. Students were taught rules for mathematics with little explanation of why those rules work, and were then given a worksheet for practice. TpT is breathing life into the math classroom through games, stations, activities, PowerPoint presentations, foldable notes, and interactive notebooks. Many teachers are afraid to step outside the box because they don’t know how. TpT takes the guesswork out of it by providing teacher-tested, quality resources help students not only love math, but develop a deep understanding of the concepts.”
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Beyond The Worksheet – Middle School Math Activities (grades 6-10)
4mulaFun
“While the concepts of mathematics will never change, we as teachers must change our instructional delivery to meet the needs of our ever-developing learners. During the last five years, I’ve built up interactive notebooks and other forms of interactive learning in my classroom. Being able to transform my teaching to reach students in an engaging way not only keeps them focused on the lesson at hand but also develops further learning through the synapses firing in their brain as they are engrossed in their learning. As this continues, students move new information from short-term to long-term memory.”
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7th Grade Interactive Notebook Unit- Ratios and Proportional Reasoning (grade 7) She adds, “This is just one of the over 85 Interactive Notebook products in my store.”
Mary Carr
“Increasing rigor in math education will further challenge educators to engage those students who might otherwise tune it out as ‘too hard’ or irrelevant to their interests and goals. We can grab and maintain the interest of students by providing variety in the learning environment. Problem-based investigations, practice in real-world situations, and cross-curricular learning are important ways to make sense of the growing complexity of our world and the role of mathematics in solving real-life problems. TpT’s catalog offers educators a rich selection of these types of resources with which to provide the necessary variety and relevance.”
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Environmental Math Mini-lessons Bundle (grades 6-9) She adds, “This resource is cross-curricular and involves topical, real-world situations.”
Runde’s Room
“I believe the future of math instruction lies within the student. It’s absolutely essential to figure out exactly what your students need in order to be engaged and successful during math lessons. They need the opportunity to explore concepts through hands-on exploration, and they need to reflect on the learning that happened through exploration. When students reflect, they’re not only thinking about their comprehension of math concepts; they’re also thinking about HOW they learn best so they can begin to take ownership over their learning. This reflection is the key to differentiation because the students can prove their comprehension in a way that best suits them and their learning styles.”
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Interactive Math Journal 2 (grades 4-7)
Misty Miller
“The future of math instruction is going beyond the ‘lecture, worksheet, test’ mentality. Students need activities to get them thinking and excited about a subject that many don’t like. My math remediation class is the second math class my students take daily. They are very enthusiastic about math when they’re creating notes and examples for their interactive journals, answering math problems to solve a riddle, or playing a game of musical chairs to demonstrate their knowledge of a math skill. TpT has provided my students with many out-of-the-box activities to learn math content.”
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Pi Day Musical Chairs (grades 5-8)
Mathew’s House
“Effective math instruction regularly reinforces fundamental ideas and concepts. This helps to build both confidence and a strong foundation. Playing math games can be a fun, effective, and interesting way to achieve this by supplementing your present teaching practices.”
Try his:
Exponents – Can you guess which one? Game I (grades 7-11) He adds, “This is my favorite math game. I initially created it to help a group of students understand equivalence, an essential math skill at all levels. It blossomed into an effective series of activities to learn, reinforce, or review several essential topics. Students decide which one of the four math expressions doesn’t belong, that is, which one is not the same.”
Lisa Davenport
“As teachers, we must provide meaningful instructional and learning opportunities for all students to master the skills necessary to be successful in high school, college, and their careers. My focus for the past few years has been in developing an interactive notebook, specifically for Algebra 1 (as well as other middle school math concepts). The foldables within the interactive notebook provide students with meaningful, concise, organized notes. TpT has encouraged me to perfect these foldables. It’s also given me the opportunity to collaborate with teachers around the world. It’s so exciting to not only share my resources with teachers outside my school but communicate with them daily as well!”
Try her:
The Ultimate Foldable Bundle for 8th Grade Math & Algebra 1!!! (grades 8-9)
Elementary Math Teachers on TpT
Math Coach’s Corner
“Math classes today are not quiet places, yet they are purposeful — groups or pairs of children working on challenging mathematical tasks in Math Workshop, students discussing various solution strategies, and small group instruction with the teacher and students engaged in mathematical discourse. The CCSS thrust the idea of teaching math for deep conceptual understanding into the spotlight, but teachers struggled to find the resources they needed from traditional sources. Enter TpT Sellers, who are providing quality resources that meet the changing needs of teachers quickly and economically. It’s a win-win for students and teachers!”
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Place Value with Large Numbers: Choice Board and ‘I Can’ Cards (free) (grades 3-6)
Blair Turner
“The Common Core represents a significant shift in math instruction. Students learn fewer concepts, but explore them in far greater depth and detail. Even in non-Common Core states, we’re seeing that same shift occur. We need to seek out materials that rigorously address key concepts with depth and complexity. When my school began implementing the CCSS, I found that the major publishing companies, in their rush to produce ‘aligned’ resources, often simply repackaged old programs, without tackling this fundamental shift. TpT Teacher-Authors, on the other hand, responded with brand-new resources to fill needs in our own classrooms and address gaps in packaged curriculums.”
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{FREE SAMPLE!} Interactive Notebooks for 1st-5th Grade Math She adds, “I am slightly obsessive in my CCSS research, and strive to create engaging and rigorous materials that fully address each standard, along with its underlying objectives. My interactive notebooks are my most popular resources and really dig into each standard. This resource includes one activity from each of my grade-level packs for grades 1-5.”
Ashleigh
“After seeing the pendulum of instruction swing back and forth for the past 12 years, I don’t think I can predict the future of math instruction. However, I do feel confident that TpT will be the site that transitions current education research and trends to practical classroom implementation. I hope to continue to see an emphasis on active engagement to gain and maintain student motivation and critical thinking skills. I believe that teachers will continue to use task cards, interactive notebooks, and performance tasks, as well as discover new and innovative ideas. As the needs of students change, so will instructional strategies.”
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Common Core Constructed Response Freebie (grade 3)
Laura Candler
“Whether teachers follow the CCSS or another set of standards, they will ALWAYS need materials to help them differentiate math instruction. Guided math lessons and math centers are some of the best ways to meet individual needs, and TpT is a game-changer for this type of instruction. Math teachers used to be overwhelmed by having to create their own differentiated lessons and activities, but now they can search TpT and find what they need! TpT offers a wealth of resources like math games, engaging review activities, and task cards to help teachers effectively implement guided math groups and math centers.”
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Math Stations for Grades 3 – 8 She adds, “This is my best-selling item; it’s an eBook book about implementing math stations.”
In the Math Lab
“Math used to be all about computation and algorithms. Now? Not as much. Sure, you still need fluency with facts and basic procedures. But mathematics instruction is moving away from rote memorization of steps and algorithms and moving toward an emphasis on conceptual understanding. The goal is to produce critical thinkers who can apply their math skills to solving novel, real-world problems.”
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Problems of the Month (POM) Math Packs BUNDLE – 5th Grade She adds, “I developed this resource with the above goal in mind. The problems align with Common Core Math Standards and have fun, monthly themes!”
Teaching With a Mountain View
“I believe that math instruction has been shifting towards a more hands-on approach for years. Students are learning to see things differently and evaluate their answers while teachers encourage them to try a variety of methods for finding answers. While that emphasis on hands-on, inquiry-based instruction continues, I also believe that teachers are striving to incorporate true real-to-life situations in their teaching. More than ever, students want to know how they’re going to apply these math concepts to real life. I think that TpT has allowed teachers who are putting these practices to use in the classroom to reach other teachers and allow them to more easily implement these changes as well.”
Try her:
Division Project or Math Center *Movie Marathon* (Long Division) (grades 4-7)
Math Mojo
“We are moving away from the traditional ‘mile wide, inch deep’ curriculum. The focus has narrowed; students are expected to perform skills with greater fluency and apply these concepts in problem solving. These massive shifts often outpaced school and district resources. TpT is an incredible tool to drive change and innovation in our schools, because it is like getting to do a virtual search through thousands of teachers’ ‘best stuff’ and to put it into practice in the classroom. The biggest shift for me was the need for daily formative assessments and skill and performance based summative assessment.”
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Math Exit Slips 4th Grade Common Core Mega Bundle (grades 4-5)
Natalie’s Nook
“More than ever before, our students are expected to be strong, independent problem-solvers. As primary teachers, it is our job to help our students develop a fundamental understanding of mathematical concepts. We need to nurture a positive attitude towards math and help our students to feel that mathematical success is possible. TpT has an incredible wealth of high-interest, unique math resources. It is collaboration at its very best! Teachers have access to tons of ideas to meet the diverse needs of their classroom. Our students are benefiting from multiple minds working to create unique and motivating resources.”
Try her:
Subtraction Safari {Teaching 2-Digit Subtraction With Regrouping} (grades 1-3)
Evil Math Wizard
“Math is real, alive, and all around us. Math builds, fixes, creates, designs, invents, moves, heals, feeds, challenges, grows, inspires, and is involved in everything. Learners need to see that math is involved in everything we do. The future of math instruction relies on teachers feeling passionate about math and sharing that excitement with their learners. TpT allows all types of math teachers to share their passion for math with others. I love math!”
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Multiplication Array Task Cards – Arrays Around Us Real Life Pictures 3.OA.3 (grades 2-3) She adds, “Here’s an example of one of my products that demonstrates that math is everywhere.”
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“Mathematics has beauty and romance. It’s not a boring place to be, the mathematical world. It’s an extraordinary place; it’s worth spending time there.” – Marcus du Sautoy, Professor
Thank you, TpT’ers for helping your students to understand and believe these very words.
Don’t forget to check out “the number” of incredible math resources available on TpT!
(Feature image: Thanks to Kelli Olson for the math symbols clip art and Amanda Pauley for the AP Print font.)
