Hi everyone, I hope you are well! Today I had a last-minute cancellation at 4-5pm so I observed Eireyna’s Year 10 maths session. During the session Eireyna did a great and engaging job with helping the student understand graphing, using concepts about finding coordinates and the x and y intersection to guide them.
Firstly, Eireyna marked last week’s homework and this step allowed her to assess the student’s progress, spot any particular difficulty they may have had, and identify any gaps in understanding. She also took the time to ask questions, ensuring the student could articulate the reasoning behind each answer. When they went through finding the axis on a cartesian plane, Eireyna used the whiteboard to draw a graph, ensuring it was clear, and then told the student to copy this graph in their own workbook. She broke down each step, explaining how to determine where a line crosses the axes and what that represents mathematically. This not only helped the student understand how to find the intercepts but let them know how these ideas an be used in real life. In this way, Eireyna created a supportive environment where the student felt comfortable asking questions and making mistakes, because she reminded them that without this, they won’t make good progress.
The encouraged the student to think aloud, asking them to predict where lines would intersect and guiding them when needed. This questioning technique helped the student actively engage with the material they while they were studying. Eireyna also emphasised the correct order of the axis intersections and when plotting each of the points, so they could follow independently. This kept them on the right track. One of the standout aspects of the session was Eireyna’s ability to maintain a positive and encouraging tone throughout, so the student could feel comfortable with developing their problem-solving skills. Because of this, her combination of active learning strategies ensured the student was feeling more confident and better prepared for future challenges in broader areas of maths.
By the end of the session it was clear the student had gained a better understanding of these equations and their overall confidence was strengthened. The student’s positive response to her methods highlighted the importance of fostering an encouraging learning environment between Eireyna and her student.
Eleni Nicholas
