Shared reading in mathematics

Castlemaine SCNovember, 2009

Turn and Talk…

What does shared reading in mathematics look like?

Why would we do it?

Think about…

Shared Reading is whole class teaching in a supportive environment, using enlarged print

and high quality text.

Teachers select text which is appropriate for

strategic instruction.

Students and teachers share the task of reading a

text which might otherwise prove too challenging.

Specific to Mathematics…

Complex overlap in term usageNumerous terms and symbolsSystematic development of

conceptsNo existing schemaDifferent meanings outside

mathematics

Year 9 maths text…

diagram

rectangularcoordinates

ORIGINminimum

triangleMEDIANS vertex

midpoint

opposite

point of intersection

centroidequations

(3,5)

Effective vocabulary instruction…

Describes and explains words in context

Makes meaningful connectionsRequires frequent repetitionTargets learning styles

Non-linguistic representations Students’ own explanations

addition

Remember the word splash?

How could you use this tool in your classes?

Focus: Review the features of a textbook page and consider ….

Graphics usedLayout of text and graphicsConcepts on pageAllowing for difference in

competence in reading levels

Students who understand how text is organised are better able to……

Locate key informationDistinguish between important

information and supporting detailsSynthesise information from

different parts of a text or from several texts

Connect new information with what is known

Restructure schema accordingly

So what…..?What does this mean for our

teaching of mathematics? science? technology? art? health? humanities? english?

Think about the vocabulary which is specific to your domain. How can you support your students’ learning through discussion of the vocabulary in textbooks?