Adapt Dan Meyer task for complex instruction by Amy Lindahl

Link to Math Task

alindahl4 — 2022-11-20 17:23:21 UTC

Principle: Curricular Materials for Complex Instruction

alindahl4 — 2022-11-20 17:31:04 UTC

Definition: Provide tasks that are open-ended and rich in multiple abilities that support learning important mathematical concepts & skills central to a conceptual big idea

In CPM curriculum, it suggests you occasionally "randomly" choose one person's work from each group to grade. That grade represents the whole group's grade. This holds all members of the group responsible for staying caught up with the rest of the group, and the group members are invested in keeping all members engaged.

2022-11-29 17:43:14 UTC

2022-12-01 19:02:27 UTC

Facilitator=Problem Defender
Resource Manager=Ideation Support
Harmonizer=Empathy Guide
Reporter=Prototype Control

2022-12-07 20:59:17 UTC

Facilitator = facilitates the conversation by making sure all students have room to share
Resource manager = acknowleges and provides ideas that support the problem, asks questions
Harmonizer = acknowledges others strategies and opinions, provides feeback
Reporter = prototype creator

3rd Grade Role Adaptation

2022-12-14 20:30:29 UTC

Director- Make sure all group members are participating. What do YOU think?
Illustrator- Draw pictures, models, diagrams that show what the group is doing with the problem. Is this what you were thinking?
Questioner- Keeps track of questions the group has. What was your question?
Resourcer- Makes sure everyone has what they need to work. What tools would help us solve this problem?

hancockm — 2022-12-14 20:31:00 UTC

Possible intervention would be working with a smaller case first before going to the biggest amount. Being able to provide the actual materials to do the math experiment.

hancockm — 2022-12-14 20:32:26 UTC

I've seen some teachers have students give scores to their group members with rubrics to hold everyone accountable. They fill them out at the end of the task that they worked together on.

having most 'advanced' groups share out first. Giving students the opportunity to answer one anothers questions.

2022-12-14 20:49:43 UTC

2022-12-21 16:18:52 UTC

Like someone has previously posted, having a group rubric would be helpful to hold the group members accountable. This way students receive a "participation" score, and using the average of those scores, that way another group member can't purposefully score them low.

2022-12-23 15:16:20 UTC

I liked her status intervention of pulling everyone of a specific role and providing some coaching. To keep it more student centered, I would like to try posing a question to that group role and see if they can coach each other.

For the first experience with Complex Instruction, I would choose a problem that is at a basic level. The goal would be to practice and apply the roles and to be successful. This would lay the groundwork for tackling more challenging problems.

kmeisels — 2022-12-23 23:07:33 UTC

Pointing Out Good Points

2022-12-28 05:05:41 UTC

This isn't an in-the-moment intervention, but I often try to point out good questions and statements that I heard students saying during the task, such as:
"Do we cross-multiply next?"
"I'm not sure how to round this."
"Why did you pick that equation? I thought it was ____ because ____."
etc.

I want to reinforce that it's good to be honest when you're confused and ask questions. The group could be about to go off in the wrong direction, so asking people to explain their thinking and making sure that everything makes sense is a good thing.

Video modeling norm development and everyday use

alindahl4 — 2022-12-30 00:35:50 UTC

2022-12-30 17:37:39 UTC

Scaffold three act tasks and complex problems by proving a more basic example so students are familiar with the process.

Provide manipulatives for students to use as visuals in solving these types of problems.

Be strategic about groupings and roles assigned.

Provide multiple entry points (low floor, high sealing) so everyone can contribute and gain confidence in their skills.

2023-01-02 19:53:20 UTC

I liked the role where a student could "spy" on other groups. Perhaps having that role do a switch with other groups to see what is happening and come back and report.

2023-01-13 00:18:15 UTC

I am open to doing this with 2nd graders, but in more developmentally appropriate ways. I think one of the challenges at this age group is trying to be on task and hold themselves and each other accountable. I'll just have to feel my way to do this with 8 year olds!

I think it is also important for students to know that they are accountable for their OWN learning. When students know that their grade/evaluation is not negatively impacted by group members, they are often more willing to let struggling students be part of the discussion. When they know it is not positively impacted by other group members, they don't feel they can ride on the coat tails of others.

2023-01-27 22:59:04 UTC

For upper elementary, it might be fun to do it a second time, using what they learned, with a smaller container. Then after completing the task they could actually fill it themselves and see how close their answers came.

2023-01-27 23:00:52 UTC

mgillette8 — 2023-01-31 21:34:08 UTC

Students may struggle with what information they need or be overwhelmed by the ambiguity of the task. This seems like a good place for the problem definer to step in and focus the group's work.

gonzalez252 — 2023-03-10 17:24:02 UTC

Complicated task that purposely limit them so that they can come back and come up with ways to work together to accomplish the complicated task.

General Expectations

gonzalez252 — 2023-03-10 17:24:31 UTC

Advocate for themselves, each other and the space.

2023-03-17 15:42:59 UTC

Constructors two for constructing the solutions and outcome of the problem. One person as a devlis advocate to point out possible problems and a supervisor to help with the process and make sure the group is advancing to a outcome

2023-03-17 15:44:13 UTC

Everbody contributes, everyone is listened to and the solution is a process not a endzone

2023-03-17 15:46:38 UTC

guiding the students towards ideas and possible resourses to help in the pursuit of thinking about the problem and asking .. questioning their thinking and process

2023-03-17 15:48:57 UTC

by pointed questioning and resolution of the task within the group along with a similar type of homework problem for each to explain or even a rubric or sentence frames so decribe the situation.

2023-03-17 15:50:47 UTC

Have the students also work it backwards to see if they could think about it as emptying at a rate and as both filling and leaking at the same time

Exit Tickets for Multi-Day Projects

cindydrouhard — 2023-03-29 22:06:56 UTC

I think providing a short Exit Ticket to have students communicate group successes and challenges, as well as individual successess and challenges for the day could provide a voice to those that might be struggling with their group or role. I imagine that keeping track of participation in large classes can sometimes be tricky,

Present a "intuitive" task at the beginning to generate interest without any real mathematics. Perhaps a small portion of the tank filling video could be shown with the time running and then stopped, asking students to use the time and the amount of water they see in the tank to guess how long it takes to completely fill. Record guesses and then set out to find a more precise way to determine how long it takes to fill the tank, asking students what mathematical data they need to support their guess.

2023-04-28 03:01:42 UTC

Student Roles

2023-06-11 20:48:22 UTC

I think it would be great to connect the math roles to roles in other subject areas. I'm having some trouble coming up with different creative names, but here are my ideas based on the standard/alternate ones in the video:
Facilitator/Problem Definer: Manages the thinking process and ensures teammates stay on task and follow protocols and norms (like the Blue Hat from DeBono's Six Thinking Hats).
Resource Manager/Ideation Support: Make sure everyone has the tools and manipulatives they need to solve the problem, and can check out what the other groups are doing if their group is stuck.
Harmonizer/Empathy Guide: Makes sure everyone has their voice heard, everyone is listening, and nobody gets left out.
Reporter/Prototype Control: Makes sure everyone agrees on the solution, and everyone can communicate the thinking and process.

2023-06-17 20:32:12 UTC

Each group would create a public display of their findings. Displays would be posted about the room and time would be allotted for a gallery walk, so groups could comment on/learn from others.

2023-06-17 20:36:20 UTC

Norms for any task would be based on students fulfilling the group roles established for complex instruction - making sure everyone understands the task (facilitator); making sure everyone has what they need to complete the task - this includes info, not just rulers, markers etc.(resource manager); making sure everyone's voice is heard (harmonizer); making sure the groups work is expressed clearly to the rest of the class (communicator)

2023-06-30 18:12:38 UTC

Possible idea is showing groups of students a smaller container filled with water first. Then, move on to the video so that they have some experience with the concept.

2023-07-08 21:20:14 UTC

I think starting with a smaller task first and leading into this task would make students feel empowered and familiar with solving. Let's build their confidence solving smaller problems before jumping into this one.

2023-07-08 21:20:16 UTC

Integrating what we have learned from CM would be helpful. Having students be able to hear other students' ideas and discuss as a group prior to jumping in.

2023-07-11 23:21:56 UTC

model, model, model... each role and have students be models for each other with roles. One thought - is work with a set of students explaining each of the roles with a simple task and then Fishbowl the process. Give other student a similar task and then have them all try it out.

Director, questioner, facilitator

2023-07-19 04:54:48 UTC

First Grade Roles

2023-07-19 21:17:46 UTC

I think with first grades I might try to stick to smaller small groups, like a group of 3. Two is already hard to manage, so I think trying with 3's would be a good way to start before brining in more.

Written Communicator (maybe just writer): This would be the person who would write down ideas of the group members. In thinking about skills and this age group, the fight over wanting to be the one to write/draw. I would also allow all students to have a whiteboard to communicate ideas but the final one for the presentation is written by this role.

Verbal Communicator (maybe just speaker): This person would share the learning of the group.

Teamwork Monitor: This person makes sure everyone gets a chance to share, and if able are provided with questions they can ask to get others to participate with sentence frames

First Grade Norms

2023-07-19 21:20:50 UTC

I feel like I would frame this around a growth mindset and that this would be familiar to them already, for example.

I make mistakes and that's okay.
I can do challenging things.
I can take risks in my learning.
My ideas are important.
I am a good listener.
I can respectfully disagree

... and so on...

First Grade

2023-07-19 21:22:16 UTC

If possible show them a smaller scale example in real life, even if its just pouring water into a vase. Just to get the idea and concept of what's happening before showing a video.

In groups of three...

2023-07-20 20:20:51 UTC

Facilitator - ensures that all members of the group are participating. Works to keep all group members on task.
Resources & Response - gathers materials and tools necessary to complete the task. Can check in with others who have the same role to compare strategies and also gain additional information when needed.
Commuications - is responsible for taking notes and sharing with the rest of the class through visual or oral presentations.

Norms

2023-07-20 20:24:19 UTC

Everyone contributes.
Stay on task.
Be an active listener.
Show respect to one another.

Questions

2023-07-28 16:15:49 UTC

I would start this lesson by having student generate questions from looking at the water jug picture. We would refer back to these often and students could change their questions as the learning occurs. This would help students stay accountable for their own learning.

I like the idea of having multiple recorders, so that ideas discussed are reflected in different ways. I also like having a "synthesizer" or "reflective listener," and a "questioner" so that the conversation remains rich and the ideas presented aren't just blindly accepted.

2023-07-28 20:44:59 UTC

Growing and learning means making mistakes. All ideas are valuable. Treat others the way they want to be treated. Be willing to learn, unlearn, and relearn.

2023-07-28 20:46:16 UTC

Mediating how students progressed through the task by breaking up the time

2023-07-28 20:47:37 UTC

karen_kennedy1 — 2023-08-06 23:09:31 UTC

Creative Questioner: composes/records questions that come up during the discussion
Vocabulary Enricher: finds new vocabulary words and looks up their meanings to share with the group
Literary Luminary: makes note of quotes from the group (or text) that stand out or seem important
Travel Chaser: chronicles the solution process, strategies/approaches attempted, etc.
(Adopted from South Carolina English Teacher, 2014)

karen_kennedy1 — 2023-08-06 23:12:16 UTC

Your team is not done until everyone is done.

No one is as smart as all of you together. Do not leave anyone behind or allow him/her to go ahead. The process of finding the answer is just as important as the answer itself. Also, understanding others’ approaches improves our own understanding.

(Adopted from CPM)

karen_kennedy1 — 2023-08-06 23:17:24 UTC

I agree with my colleague who suggested starting with smaller tasks before engaging in complex ones like the water tank. It's more effective to build and secure soft skills and learning practices while students during less cognitively demanding tasks.

karen_kennedy1 — 2023-08-06 23:28:56 UTC

As it is the case when adults get together in a group, some students may dominate conversations and dismiss contributions and ideas from teammates that do not align with theirs. Knowing your students, planning groups strategically, and designing the lesson for potential hiccups should mitigate much of this. We need to prepare for students disagreeing - and using solution strategies we never thought about!

karen_kennedy1 — 2023-08-06 23:47:10 UTC

Holding students accountable for learning can be embedded in the group norms and/or articulated in the lesson goals. Based on the teacher's regular communication with group leaders, then they can adjust where groups "should" end up at the close of a task. For example, at 10:20, the teacher sees that four of six groups have two solution strategies and two are almost done with their second. They might say something like: "At 10:30, your group should have at least two out of three solution strategies and your Notetaker prepared to share one of them. If you already have two, then continue to work towards a third strategy and be prepared to share your ideas if we have time before lunch."

2023-08-10 18:46:05 UTC

At the beginning of the year, we establish our classroom rules based on our hopes and dreams (RC). So as not to have a separate set of norms they should be the same as the class rules we establish. With that being said, when we develop them this year, also consider how we can tie group work into our goals and H&D.

Practice, Practice, Practice

2023-08-18 04:29:14 UTC

I would want to have the time to dedicate to practicing these roles in lower stakes and high engagement activities so that students would have the experience of working in all four roles before it moves to a more strenuous academic task.

grabera6 — 2024-01-03 22:45:39 UTC

There are always going to be students who have a tendency to dominate. One thing I have done in the past to help address that is have students switch up roles on a time interval and included order of talking to role descriptions (this person talks first, this person can only ask questions, this person cannot talk, etc...). It helps a lot to create a little more equity of voice, especially when some students know the information but don't realize it until a peer has asked them a specific question.

Facilitator, recorder, timer

2024-06-04 18:15:32 UTC

2024-06-13 05:02:58 UTC

Everyone must participate.

Each person has a role.

Respect each other.

Don't rush through the assignment.

Check your work.

2024-06-13 05:04:49 UTC

Never give up.

Everyone in the group must participate.

Everyone in the group has a role.

Respect Group members.

Allow each group member time to complete their task.