Ask Marian

This is such a great question because instruction is always a balancing act. We want students to learn math vocabulary to make communication easier and more precise. But at the same time, we want students to feel welcome in a conversation and free to use the words that are comfortable for them. I don’t think that anchor charts for vocabulary are bad at all, but I think they are much better after the words have been used for a little while and when the students can be the ones coming up with the “definitions.” These definitions might not simply be a sentence or phrase but might, instead, show a context or a visual.

The most important thing to think about is that we don’t want to do things exactly the way we did before if that way of introducing the skill or concept was not successful. The reteaching should be short and focused on only the most important idea or two about what is being retaught. It should not be a whole lesson. I also think that reteaching should, whenever possible, address only the students who need it and not everyone.

What you say will depend on a lot of factors, including the age of the child and the difficulties or lack of difficulties the child is having. But a message that I think might pertain to almost any situation involves two things: being appreciative of the parent’s desire to help and suggesting that when they’re helping, they ask the child to explain their thinking rather than show the child what to do.

You might offer sample questions parents can use with their child, such as these:

• What made you do that first?
• If you had to draw a picture to show your thinking, what might it look like?
• Did you use any manipulatives? How did you use them? How did they help you?
• If you had to explain why your answer makes sense, what would you say?