Teaching Math to Multilingual Students, Grades K-8

  • Title:Teaching Math to Multilingual Students, Grades K-8: Positioning English Learners for Success
  • Author:Kathryn B. Chval, Erin Smith, Rachel J. Pinnow, Lina Trigos-Carrillo
  • Publication Date:January 2021
  • Grade Level:K-8
  • ISBN:9781071810842
  • Publisher:Corwin Press

Using strengths-based approaches to support development in mathematics 

It’s time to re-imagine what’s possible and celebrate the brilliance multilingual learners bring to today’s classrooms. Innovative teaching strategies can position these learners as leaders in mathematics. Yet, as the number of multilingual learners in North American schools grows, many teachers have not had opportunities to gain the competencies required to teach these learners effectively, especially in disciplines such as mathematics. Multilingual learners—historically called English Language Learners—are expected to interpret the meaning of problems, analyze, make conjectures, evaluate their progress, and discuss and understand their own approaches and the approaches of their peers in mathematics classrooms. Thus, language plays a vital role in mathematics learning, and demonstrating these competencies in a second (or third) language is a challenging endeavor.

Based on best practices and the authors’ years of research, this guide offers practical approaches that equip grades K-8 teachers to draw on the strengths of multilingual learners, partner with their families, and position these learners for success. Readers will find: 

  • A focus on multilingual students as leaders
  • A strength-based approach that draws on students’ life experiences and cultural backgrounds
  • An emphasis on maintaining high expectations for learners’ capacity for mastering rigorous content
  • Strategies for representing concepts in different formats 
  • Stop and Think questions throughout and reflection questions at the end of each chapter
  • Try It! Implementation activities, student work examples, and classroom transcripts


With case studies and activities that provide a solid foundation for teachers’ growth and exploration, this groundbreaking book will help teachers and teacher educators engage in meaningful, humanized mathematics instruction.  

Table of Contents

Preface

Acknowledgements

Our Hope for Multilingual Learners

Teachers Who Inspire

 

Studying Teacher Practice

Interacting With Multilingual Learners and Their Families

Position Multilingual Learners as Classroom Leaders

What Research says About Positioning

Reflecting of Xiao Li's Experience

Reflecting on Nabil Abadi's Experience

Reflecting on José López’s Experience

Positioning Students as Experts

One Year Later

Reflecting on Why Positioning Matters

Recognize How Teachers Position Students

Positioning Multilingual Learners as Leaders

Explicitly Positioning Multilingual Learners as Leaders

Implicitly Positioning Multilingual Learners as Leaders

Strategies for Positioning Multilingual learners as Leaders

Thinking About Positioning in Your Practice

Facilitate Multilingual Learners' Participation in Mathematics Classroom

Reflecting on Your Experience with Participating 

What Research Says About Student Participation

Factors That Influence the Participation of Multilingual Learners

Reflecting on Your Experiences with Fear

Overcoming Fear

Encountering Unknown Contexts

Examining Teaching Strategies That Influence Participation

Strategies for Facilitating Multilingual Learners’ Participation in Mathematic

Thinking About Participation in Your Practice

Facilitate Partnerships Between Multilingual Learners and Their Peers

Solving a Mathematics Problem with A Partner

Solving a Mathematics Problem with A Partner

Qualities of Partnerships

Strategies for Facilitating Partnerships

Establish Participation Norms With Students 

Practice Compliments

Provide Concrete Resources

Pay Attention To Pairing

Monitor How Partners Work 

Revisit Partnership Norms With Student

Thinking About Partnerships in Your Practice

Engage Multilingual Learners Through Culturally-Relevant Contexts

Reflecting on the Challenge of Contexts and Culture 

What the Research Says About Contexts in Mathematics

Strategies for Engaging Multilingual Learners Through Culturally-Meaningful Contexts

Thinking about Contexts in your Practice

Reach Multilingual Learners with Visuals, Illustrations, and Gestures

What Research Says About Visuals and Gestures

Using Visuals Strategically

Examining Ms. Bristow’s Use of Visuals: Dividing Cookies

Examining Ms. Bristow’s Use of Visuals: Emphasizing the Meaning of ‘Loose’

Emphasizing Mathematical Connections

Reflecting on Your Use of Gestures

Using Gestures Strategically

Examining Ms. Bristow’s Use of Gestures: Obstacle Course

Examining Ms. Bristow’s Strategic Use of Visuals and Gestures: Columns and Rows

Thinking About Visuals and Gestures in Your Practice

Strategies for Using Visuals and Gestures

Analyze Mathematical Work of Multilingual Learners

Reflecting on Your Experiences

What Research Says About Analyzing Multilingual Learners’ Mathematical Work

What Research Says About Analyzing Multilingual Learners’ Mathematical Work

Analyzing Additional Student Work

Strategies for Discerning Between Mathematical and Language Issues

Examining Abigail’s Work

Examining Janessa’s Work

The Importance of Interviewing Multilingual Learners


 

Thinking About Analyzing Multilingual Learner’s Mathematical Work in Your Practice


 

Investigate Meanings to Enhance Multilingual Learners’ Language Development

The Importance of Academic Language for Multilingual Learners

What the Research Says About Academic Language


 

Distinguishing Between Multiple Meanings of Language


 

Introducing Specialized Mathematics Language


 

Amplified Use of Academic Language


 

Strategies for Enhance Multilingual Learners’ Language Development


 

Thinking About Academic Language in Your Practice


 

Use Your Discourse Strategically to Enhance Multilingual Learners’ Opportunity to Learn

Reflecting on Varieties of English that Influence Discourse


 

What Research Says About Discourse


 

Teacher Discourse

Connecting Academic Language to Mathematical Representations

Posing Questions to Engage Multilingual Learners

Posing Questions to Engage Multilingual Learners

Strategies for Promoting Classroom Discourse 

Thinking About Your Discourse in Your Practice 

Foster a Culture of Writing in the Mathematics Classroom

Reflecting on Your Experiences 

What Research Says About Writing in Mathematics 

Establishing a Need to Write in Mathematics 

Establishing a Culture of Writing 

Providing Feedback on Students’ Writing 

Analyzing Students’ Writing 

Strategies for Fostering a Culture of Writing in Your Mathematics Classroom 

Reflecting on Mathematical Writing in Your Practice 

Develop Writing in Mathematics for Multilingual Learners

Reflecting on Your Practice 

Mathematical Genres of Writing 

What the Research Says about Mathematical Genres

Identifying Mathematical Writing Genres

Strategies for Developing Writing in Mathematics for Multilingual Learners

Teaching Practices

Activities

Reflecting on Your Use of Mathematical Genres in Your Practice 

Enhance Curriculum Materials for Multilingual Learners

Reflecting on Mathematics Curriculum

What Research Says About Curriculum Enhancement for Multilingual Learners

Strategies for Crafting Language to Better Support Multilingual Learners

Analyzing Curriculum Materials for Multilingual Learners

Research Recommendations for Enacting Mathematics Curriculum

Recognizing Different Mathematical Conventions and Representations

Thinking about Mathematical Conventions and Representations in your Practice

Thinking about Curriculum Enhancement in your Practice

Engage with Parents and Families of Multilingual Learners

Reflecting on Your Experiences

What the Research Says about Multilingual Parent and Family Engagement

Multicultural Parenting Styles

Cultural Values

Emphasizing the Value of Family in Your Classroom

Examining Teachers’ and Multilingual Parents’ Expectations

Reframing Multilingual Parental Engagement

Strategies for Facilitating Multilingual Family and Parent Engagement in Your Classroom

Reflecting on Family Engagement in Your Practice

Appendix A. Additional Resources

Appendix B. Selected Solutions

References

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