ECST Mathematics Department

The two questions above guide the formation of each GREEN SHEET that Sara VanDerWerf creates. She has generously shared the green sheets she has created - look for the link at the bottom of her blog.

She writes, "... if you want to use the green sheets I’ve created, great. BUT if you plop them in front of your students – they will not be as effective as creating your own to match the needs of the students you teach. For that reason I HIGHLY encourage you to go through the same process I do."

" ‘Green sheets’ are one of several ways I support the academic needs of my students who arrive in my courses with academic holes that cause them to struggle with grade level mathematics. For example, an Algebra 2 Unit on Solving Systems of Equations assumes my students are proficient already at solving systems of linear equations with 2 variables using a variety of methods (graphing, substitution, elimination and others). I know many of my students are not proficient with this yet. To support students I created a ‘green sheet’ reviewing multiple ways to solve systems of linear equations. ... Each unit I create 1-2 one page review sheets on topics connected to the learning in the current unit. "

Why Extra Support Materials for Algebra 1?

Students who struggle in Algebra 1 are more likely to struggle in subsequent math courses and experience more adverse outcomes. The Extra Support Materials are designed to help students who, for many possible reasons, need more support than it is possible to provide in their Algebra 1 course. Often, extra time is built into these students’ schedules for mathematics, but their teachers struggle with how to use this time effectively. These materials review or establishes skills, understandings, and mathematical connections to put students in a better position to be successful in Algebra 1.

Students who need extra preparation to succeed in Algebra 1 often also need support to develop positive beliefs about mathematics. The Extra Support Materials . . .

• give students opportunities to access grade-level mathematics in age-appropriate contexts. The Extra Support Materials do not delay Algebra 1 content, and invite students to reason mathematically and communicate their thinking at the same level of rigor as the Algebra 1 course.

• provide students opportunities to be and feel successful. A small number of high-leverage instructional routines focus on number sense, precision of language, and mathematical reasoning that all students can access. These routines are repeated so that students can see their “thinking like a mathematician” skills improve.

• focus on routines that build a positive classroom culture in which everyone is expected to share their thinking, all ideas are considered seriously, and there is collective responsibility for making sense of the ideas offered. This is not only good mathematical practice, it is also a way of showing students who have historically felt that they didn’t have good mathematical ideas that their thinking is valuable.