Today, I had the opportunity to observe Anna working with her year 3 student, Mason, as they explored mathematical word problems involving time, adding decimals and using the right operation to solve the questions. The lesson focused on helping Mason break down multistep questions, identify important information and apply the correct sequence of calculations to arrive at accurate answers.

Anna began the session by reviewing key vocabulary regarding time such as hours, minutes, before, after and elapsed time. She encouraged Mason to carefully read each question and highlight important details before attempting to answer the question. This approach helped him develop a clear understanding of what each problem was asking and reduced the likelihood of rushing into incorrect solutions.

Throughout the lesson, Mason worked through a variety of real-life scenarios, such as calculating how much time remained before an event or determining the finishing time of an activity after several time intervals had passed. Anna consistently prompted him to explain his thinking, allowing her to identify misconceptions and guide him towards more effective problem-solving strategies. They also worked through addition and subtraction of decimals, introduced by the word problems. By breaking complex questions into smaller, manageable steps, Mason became increasingly confident in applying the correct steps in addressing the questions.

Apart from Anna’s academic strategies regarding the topic at hand, a valuable aspect of this session was observing how she was able to quickly draw Mason’s attention back to the lesson when he became distracted by objects around him. Rather than interrupting the flow of the lesson or becoming frustrated, Anna used calm verbal prompts and engaging questions to refocus his attention on the task. She maintained a positive and encouraging tone throughout the session, ensuring that Mason remained motivated and willing to participate.

Overall, this observation highlighted the importance of maintaining a positive and focused learning environment, while combining content knowledge. This can enhance a student’s confidence, participation and overall learning outcomes.

Tira Rustom