Classroom/Teaching Changes

 

 

As an elementary education major, I will be certified to teach students from first to sixth grade. It is important to note that the academic requirements for each grade level are extremely different from one another. We cannot expect students to know how to multiply and divide at first grade, for there are other skills that need to be taught before that manipulation is introduced. Likewise, we should not be doing single digit addition and subtraction in sixth grade. Mathematics is meant to be built upon, for as students grow older, they are to be challenged differently.

Students are not going to find math worth learning if they do not feel that it is something to pay attention to. There are already numerous stereotypes in math that make it out as content that is not worth learning about, for students question when they will actually learn something like the quadratic formula in real life. Although you may never have to truly know that, it’s the challenge that promotes the learning process.

Mathematics in the lower grades is extremely beneficial for students because this is the time in their educational career that they not only begin the learning process, but they also learn how to make connections. What’s great about the elementary level is the amount of cross-subjecting that you can do. For example, you typically have one teacher that is the same teacher for math, science, language arts and social studies, whereas in the older grades, you typically change classes and have a different teacher for every subject. The best part about teacher all of the subjects, however is the fact that you can develop a math lesson, and then go back and change the topic into something that relates to science for the sake of making connections and allowing the students to learn how to apply scenarios to real life situations that further student engagement.

Overall, the standards act as an outline of expectations that students should know how to do by the end of their grade level. Each grade level has specific standards; therefore, teacher know exactly what topics to introduce in a given year. This concept is not a sudden change; however, it is more so one that is continuous and allows continuous development to occur.