Creating Good Anchor Tasks

[Math]odology Monthly Message

Upcoming

Professional Development Opportunities

Workshop Wednesday

Creating Anchor Tasks

with Dr. Marion Small

March 31st

(session descriptions are listed below)

Summer Happenings:

Developing Roots Kindergarten Workshop:

We are so excited!

July 12th-14th we will be meeting in person in our kindergarten classroom in sunny Florida.

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JUST IN TIME!

Summer Sessions for TEACHERS:

9 virtual workshops focusing on the precise topics you need. We've scheduled two time frames (June & July), each offering morning and afternoon sessions.

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Summer Sessions for STUDENTS:

[Math]odology announces our First summer workshop series for students. 18 virtual offerings with live lessons (with Sarah as the teacher), games, as well as practice & feedback, all targeting the topics your students need.

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What is an Anchor Task?

"There is no decision that teachers make that has a greater impact on students' opportunities to learn and on their perceptions about what mathematics is than the selection or creation of the task with which the teacher engages students in studying mathematics." (Lappan & Briars, 1995).

But how do we engage students, meet all the needs and make sure we have met the goal of the lesson? You create a rich task that students can explore by making conceptual connections between prior and new concepts. As students work through the problem additional layers are revealed and students see and make sense of how concepts relate.

An Anchor Task, according to Dr. Yeap Ban Har" is the task that anchors all learning in the lesson, it leads to the achievement of the lesson's goals, and it engages students in the concrete and representational phases of learning a new concept."

Elements of an Anchor Task include:

· multiple entry points

· various methods to solve the task

· encourages students to collaborate

· take some time to figure out

Some of you may be thinking, how do I start or where do you find such tasks?

We have three options:

1) We use the task straight from the textbook.

2) We take the task from the textbook and alter it.

3) We write our own task.

In regards to #1, I have found very few textbooks that consistently have tasks I can pull from the book so you may be limited based on the textbook series you currently are using. In think!Mathematics, Dr. Yeap Ban Har wrote each lesson centered around a rich anchor task.

In looking at #3, writing a task takes time and right now we have very little time to spare. So, it is not fair to ask us to write a new task for each lesson. Not only does it take time, but we learned from our previous sections on fractions, the spiral is important in how lessons build upon themselves.

So, there you have it-we need to allocate our time and energy in looking at #2. How can we slightly alter a task to create a worthwhile experience?

This month we will look at strategies for teachers to use with an existing problem from their textbooks. You will be amazed at the impact a small change on a problem can make. I have listed some of these strategies below. In addition, our “Workshop Wednesday” series highlights the work of Dr. Marion Small, in creating open tasks using basic techniques.

In addition to these offerings, I would suggest reading "Guiding Questions for Selecting Mathematical Examples" in NCTM's January 2021, Mathematics Teacher edition of Learning & Teaching. In the article, author Rachel Snider offers suggestions on what to consider when selecting examples and practice problems in your classroom.

Please join us, on March 31st, 7:00 EST, and bring a few tasks for practicing the concepts.

Learn with Passion!

Sarah

At [Math]odology, we inspire and nurture creative forces within each of us: one teacher, one student, one school at a time.

[Math]odology MONTHLY MESSAGE

VOL. 7

Anchor Task

It was not until 15 years ago that I came across this idea of an "anchor task." Once I integrated it into my classroom, I noticed a change in the entire culture of my class. Students were willing to take risks, the dialogue around the mathematical content was much deeper, and all students had an opportunity to contribute.

Luckily my path afforded me the opportunity to learn from experts in the field such as Dr. Yeap Ban Har and Dr. Marian Small. In addition, I began to write and test anchor tasks in classrooms for publishing purposes. Below are some tips I use when writing a problem.

TIP #1- REVERSE THE TASK

Use a task from your textbook, like the one below and open it up a little by using the numbers and asking the students to create the question.

Option 1: Penny used the cards to make two 3-digit numbers. What could the sum of her problem be? Take the numbers in the problem and allow the students to create multiple problems. You may choose to add another layer such as, what is the largest or smallest sum possible?

Option 2: Remove the numbers and ask for two 3-digit numbers that add to 627, or use vague language asking for a sum

close to 600. You may choose to add a layer by stating that no digit can repeat? Or is it possible to use consecutive digits?

‌

TIP #2- USE "Soft" LANGUAGE

In our example above from the think!Mathematics textbook series, Chris and Katie use the two meanings for division to create a task that allows multiple answers, different perspectives, and an opportunity for any student in the class to contribute. Begin with a question from the textbook, solve it and think about how to open it up. In this example, adding two perspectives for groups and using soft words such as more than and fewer than allows for the task to be differentiated at a number of levels. The students are asked how many marbles could the box contain? Students can be challenged to prove their answer and to find all the possibilities by looking for patterns.

In 2006, I was introduced to this idea but still struggled with how to write my own tasks. Today with the help of some friends and the think!Mathematics textbook series, creating an open task has become more natural.

As Maya Angelou reminds us, "Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better." Now is the time! We have been introduced to some simple tips that can have a direct impact on the learning of the students in front of us. It is our obligation to give it a try.

Join us March 31st to learn more about opening up problems or contact us to request a sample of think!Mathematics that includes the use of an Anchor Task in every lesson.

think!Mathematics SHOWCASE

This Grade 1 anchor task allows for multiple entry points. It offers an opportunity to look for patterns in developing flexible thinking in decomposing numbers, and most importantly is laying the foundation for renaming during operations.

This Grade 3 anchor task includes "soft words" to allow all students an opportunity to share ideas because there is not only one correct answer. We need to train our students to look at problems from different perspectives.

Removing the numbers allows a student to reason about why certain number choices are easier to visualize than others. Teachers can then ask students to write their own problems keeping in mind the number choice and how it affects the problem.

OUR MARCH WORKSHOP

Workshop Wednesday

CREATING ANCHOR TASKS

Dr. Marion Small

DATE/TIME:

Wednesday, March March 31st

7:00 PM - 8:00 PM EASTERN TIME

1122 3rd Street, Suite 7

Neptune Beach, Florida 32266

[email protected] | 904-853-6628