This is my 4th yr teaching 8th grade RC Math. This year I have students that are FAR below grade level (much farther than I’ve ever encountered before). They struggle with single digit addition and subtraction, barely know their multiplication facts and have cases of learned helplessness like you wouldn’t believe!
I am struggling with how to teach them what they need to know (functional math skills) in a respectful way, considering their peers are learning Algebra. Most of them have attitudes that they are dumb, that school is dumb, that math is dumb… And are unwilling to try anything new. I am trying to create an enviroment in which they feel they can take risks, but they have been so beaten down… I really want to make this year bearable (if not FUN!) for all of us! I have tried giving them a pre-test but they became so quickly frustrated, they refused to do it! Suggestions? HELP?
success breeds success and possibly some interest and willingness to try again. Contrive some success for them even if you have to contrive it….
Can they count from 1 to 10? Assuming they of course can - put things in a bag and have them guess how many things are in the bag. they can hold it, feel it but NOT look inside it. Staple the bags shut and have 10 of them. Pass the around the room and the kids write down their guesses as to many ‘things’ inside the bag. Have one bag with large things like tennis balls - that should be bag 1 on down to a bag with a number of pennies in it.
then open the bags one by one and let them check their own answers. At least you’re working with numbers. Have them write down the correct number of things for each bag and cross out their wrong answers.
Now dump one bag into another bag and ask how many ‘things’ are now in the bag. they might be able to figure it out from their sheets.
And let them hold the bags again - staple them shut again. They might figure out it’s easier to figure it out through math than through touch.
Good luck.