The math workshop was the first in a series of five workshops for 50 lead teachers from the educational district of Motheo and 7 subject advisors (2 IP and 5 FP). Facilitators were Prof. Hamsa Venkat, Prof. Mike Askew and Ms. Samantha Morrison from the Wits Maths Connect – Primary project.
The main objectives of this series of workshops is for teachers to increase their knowledge of maths, their ability to apply this in their classrooms and to address negative attitudes on maths. Participants are encouraged to think critically about the mathematical conversations they are having with their learners. ‘Because’ is the magic word in these conversations. Not just saying that something is true or how you are doing something, but explaining why you are doing this.
The focus for this workshop was on developing number concept, place value and using these concepts in basic arithmetic operations. An important aspect was to explore various methods and ways of representation such as drawings and number lines. The facilitators introduced various addition and subtraction strings and participants discussed various strategies for learners to solve them. The main goal is to guide learners in moving from counting in units to developing fluency in using faster strategies such as counting in 10s which will help them when working with bigger numbers.
All participants received the reference book “Mathematics for Elementary Teachers” (Beckmann, 2014) which will serve as a handbook for the course. Additionally, participants received presentation handouts. All participants completed a 25-item pre-test. A pre-test and post-test will serve to assess the impact of the trajectory.
More pictures can be found on http://bit.ly/2ckqUO4
