Series Meeting Students' Needs in Number Talks: Learning Menus: Giving Options & Independence

Meeting Students' Needs in Number Talks

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Learning Menus: Giving Options & Independence

Lesson Objective: Use learning menus to provide students with independent exploration of concepts

Grades 5-8 / Math / Differentiation

2 MIN

Math.6.NS.A.1

Discussion
Supporting Materials

Thought starters

How do learning menus enable Ms. Morey to provide differentiated instruction?
Why does Ms. Morey allow students to sometimes choose which tasks she assesses?
What resources does Ms. Morey use to design her menu tasks?

15 Comments

Dakota Sky Larson Nov 13, 2019 5:14pm

I love that this teacher goes beyond the curriculum to find application-based problems for the students to choose from. This is a great way for students to practice self discipline, because they get to decide what concepts to work on. I like that it gives students a break from classmates so they can focus on what concepts they need to improve on, while also giving the teacher a chance to work more closely with a handful of students at a time. Probably my favorite part about this teaching method is that the students are given a warm up, or “appetizer” problem before choosing what they want to focus on. I think this is a great way to build the student’s confidence in their abilities and make them want to challenge themselves in the “main course.” I love that this video shows other resources that are available to the students to help them complete their worksheets, like blocks. Of course, the best part of all of this, is that the students seem to be having a lot of fun.

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Jacqueline Shingler May 6, 2019 11:25am

I like how she uses the menu math to differentiate their independent station. I also like how they know how they will be assessed. My questions are:

How often does she meet with small groups?
How often does she formally assess her students?
Area all the menu options related to one object?

I could see this being used in my stations for my inclusion class.

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John DeMeo Jun 30, 2018 6:05pm

Love this strategy. I think I will try this in the fall.

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Kellye McCoy Mar 7, 2018 11:39am

Like this idea, creative way for kids to choose what they feel comfortable doing. Shares the education responsibility and covers empowering the student.

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Uma Mahajan Aug 16, 2017 3:48pm

This is so awesome! Could you tell me where I could look for for these options for the menu problems? Also, you mentioned that you work with a small group of students while the others work on the "menu" problems and next day you de-brief with the students who were working independently, so what happens to the 5-6 kids who didn't work those problems?

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Materials

External Resource Materials

Book: Making Number Talks Matter: Developing Mathematical Practices and Deepening Understanding, Grades 4-10

Transcripts

Learning Menus: Giving Options & Independence Transcript

Crystal: One of the strategies I use in my classroom is a strategy called

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Learning Menus: Giving Options & Independence Transcript

Crystal: One of the strategies I use in my classroom is a strategy called Menu. First, I knew that if I was going to pull a small group today, to really get at what they knew, I had to do something with the other 20 to 25 kids that I had in that room. Menu is an opportunity for students to independently develop a concept in a variety of different ways. You'll notice that our Menu task are on the very back counter. Most of the Menu tasks are application task. I use a variety of resources sometimes within the curriculum, but often times with open educational resources. I have put together a series of tasks that help develop that concept over time.

You'll be pushing through those by yourselves as I work with a small group of people. In our conversation tomorrow we'll really focus on challenges that you had today. Today, I had an appetizer, a main course, and a dessert option. I asked students this time to pick one appetizer to do. It got them primed and ready to tackle those main course options. Often I let students pick which of the task they actually want me to give feedback on and grade. If students do five tasks, they really only felt successful on one, then the best feedback I could provide them with is the one in which they chose. Before a student goes into dessert, they'll need to come and show me those tasks that they're choosing for me to grade. If their thinking isn't really fully developed yet, I'll have them go back and add to their thinking before they go into dessert.

The students get one point for answering the question and labeling their work. They get two points for giving me two different strategies. Students get an additional two points for explaining and justifying how and why those strategies make sense. One of the things that I really realized is as students were coming to me with second grade math skills to eighth grade math skills, Menu is a way that I can use the progression document in the Common Core standards and I can get task that span those needs in my classrooms. I can give all students access to those.

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