Making Sense of Word Problems: Using Number Sense to Build Operations Sense
Word problems can be daunting for young children-- discover how to increase children's confidence as fluent problem solvers!
Description
Word problems can be daunting for young children. In this session, participants will discover how to increase children's confidence as fluent problem solvers by helping them understand the story behind the problem.
Participants will also identify the progression of children's solution strategies, four basic problem situations and their various 'unknowns,' as well as how to construct and facilitate intentional number stories that target four powerful number relationships that lead to automaticity with number facts.
About the Instructor
Lisa Ferguson, M.A.T., has more than 20 years experience in early childhood education. In addition to teaching in schools in Wheaton and West Chicago, Lisa has served as an Instructor and Mentor to early childhood teachers in UIC’s Alternative Certification Program and as an Emergent Literacy Consultant and Professional Development Presenter with Family Focus. She is currently a Math Coach and Professional Development Facilitator with the Early Math Collaborative at Erikson where she serves as a support and resource to English and Spanish-speaking early childhood teachers and directors.
Objectives
This workshop will help participants to:
- make sense of word problems as 'stories'
- discover four number relationships that lead to fluency
- construct effective word problems that target the four basic number stories