What is SSR?

By Michelle Tucker
©2010 Michelle Tucker

     It's a simple acronym teachers use with students.  SSR stands for Silent Sustained Reading.  Research has shown, that if children will read for a sustained reading time of 20 minutes a day, their reading will improve.   What about more time, such as 25 minutes, 30 minutes, 100 minutes?  Well, the research also shows that more time doesn't have as much return for the investment of time, or bang for the buck.  In other words, to get the same improvement in actual reading skills to be able to read at higher levels, is optimal at 20 minutes.  The optimal amount of time is to have your child read 20 minutes every day to improve his reading.   So, if a teacher is asked, "What is the minimum amount of time I should have my child read?"  We teachers reply, "20 minutes."
     Of course, reading longer is encouraged.   Children are learning about a myriad of things in their universe, when they read and read and read.

     If you have a child that is a reluctant reader, here are some suggestions:
     My older child won't sit down and read:

• You can put the child on a timer.  Start with 5 minutes and build up to 20.  Set the goal and expectation that you want the child to get to 20 min. SSR.
• Use Positive and Negative Reinforcement.  Have something the child wants (a small reward or activity) for doing the reading; and/or have a consequence, when the child won't sit down and read the 20 minutes.

     My young child won't sit down and read:

• Very young children need the parent to model and read to them for 20 minutes.
• Also, the child can be "reading" the pictures in wordless books for 20 minutes.
• Then, start sharing the reading:  She reads one page, then the parent reads one page...
• Finally, when the child can read independently, let the child read through several short books during the 20 minutes.

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The Editing Game

By Michelle Tucker ©2010 Michelle Tucker

     Kids like games, so why not make the editing of their writing, a game also?!  I have to thank Sandi Smythe for giving me this idea, although I have tailored the editing game to either my teaching style or students' needs over the years.  The editing game motivates students to proof read their own writing.

     Here's an explanation of the editing game. 
1) Put the "red pen" in the hands of your child.  You pick a different color pen.  You set up a score sheet, simply with your initials at the top in each color pen you are using. 
2) The rules of the game are this, after the child has read a sentence of his/her writing aloud, it is fair game.
3) The first one to catch a convention error, whether it is an error in: spelling, punctuation, grammar, capitalization, etc., gets the point.  The point is recorded in that person's column.  The person who caught the mistake, corrects it with his/her color pen on the paper.  After a while, the child wants to catch the mistakes and will carefully look for his errors.  This is what you as a parent or teacher want. 
4) So, at the end of the child reading his paper and playing the editing game, the player with the most points wins. 
5) If the child wins, I give him/her a prize.  If I win, the child owes me a chore.  The child has to do something, like dust my room.  Sometimes, I have given a candy bar and when I win, the child gave me a candy bar.  Whatever reward you decide, as long as it motivates.

     I did come across some glitches.  For instance, some students would make more mistakes, just to get more points.  In a class room, I would find a couple students doing this.  Often my lecture about doing one's best didn't change them.  So, I gave them the red pen, and made them correct what they knew, before they sat down to play the editing game with me.  Then, if they still had errors (hoping to cash in on them), during the editing game, I would quickly fix them before the student got a chance.  I would do this if I knew the child was being dishonest.  Sometimes I would say, "You get the first one, but from then on, you fix it for free.  I don't want to reward you for making the same mistake again and again."  Afterwards, I would have a talk with them about the writing process and how proof reading is supposed to be after the student seriously tried to write his/her best.  A second glitch, was when a student didn't know the grammar rules and what was right or wrong.  You can only hold your child accountable for what he or she has been taught.  So, if your child has been taught basic capitalization and the punctuation for the four sentence types, plus words that he/she used, which he/she should spell right, then just proof read for these.  If you have a large classroom, it will be difficult to sit one on one with each student to play the editing game; however, an aide, or resource staff member could take a struggling student one-on-one.

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Answer to the Sample POW

By Michelle Tucker ©2010 Michelle Tucker

     Yesterday I answered the question about what a POW - Problem of the Week is and in what ways it is useful.  I said that I would post the answer today.  First, I have copied the POW problem again from the website The Math Forum at http://www.themathforum.org/:


Flipping Coins

     Greg and Shelden made up a coin flipping game using one penny and one nickel. The two coins are tossed at the same time. If both coins land the same way, either both heads or both tails, Greg wins. If not, Sheldon wins.
1. If they play the game 60 times, about how many times would you expect each player to win?
Hint: The nickel heads and penny tails is different, than the penny heads and nickel tails.
Answer: Each player should win about 30 out of 60 games.
2. Is this a fair game?  Yes
[Mathematics consider a game to be fair if all players have an equal chance of winning]. Explain how you solved the problem.
I drew the choices for each toss.  There are two players.  Half of the time is 30.  Each player should win about 30 out of 60 games.

     When your child brings home a POW, you never want to solve it for him/her.  But, encourage him/her to take time to think about it and write down an explanation of how it was solved.  Your child will develop the thinking skills he/she needs.

What is a Math POW and why is it useful?

By Michelle Tucker ©2010 Michelle Tucker

     Many teachers and schools are promoting that students do POWs - Problem of the Week.

     The Problem of the Week (POW) is useful in that, it requires higher order thinking skills.  The POW is like word problems because students need to read, think and solve.  The POW is different in these ways:  students do not readily find one numerical number as the answer, they think and try more, they are not intended to have a quick or simple answer and they have more real world application.  Students take their time, using the whole week to think, try out some possibilities and solve.  Students discover that there are several approaches that will get them to a solution.  Some approaches are more efficient than others.  Most importantly, students have to write out and explain their thinking in complete sentences.  Students have to discover the best method or strategy, show all their work and explain how they arrived at the answer.

     Here is an example of a POW from the website The Math Forum  at www.themathforum.org.
Flipping Coins
     Greg and Shelden made up a coin flipping game using one penny and one nickel.  The two coins are tossed at the same time.  If both coins land the same way, either both heads or both tails, Greg wins.  If not, Sheldon wins.
1. If they play the game 60 times, about how many times would you expect each player to win?
2. Is this a fair game?
[Mathematics consider a game to be fair if all players have an equal chance of winning].  Explain how you solved the problem.
     Tomorrow I will post the answer to this POW on this blog.

Solving Word Problems - Follow the 5 Step Plan

By Michelle Tucker ©2010 Michelle Tucker

     Remember back when we were in school, when we would start sweating just if a teacher mentioned word problems.  Actually, the hardest part was not having a plan or knowing where to start.  I have some suggestions that you can take and use with your child.

     Here is a 5 Step Problem Solving Plan that I've used as a teacher and parent:
1. Facts - We carefully read the problem to find out what facts are given to us.
2. Spot the Question - Read and highlight the question that is being asked.
3. Plan - Then, we plan how to use the facts to answer the question.  First, choose a strategy:draw/sketch,
               identify a pattern, graph, chart, make a logic table, guess and check, write an equation or make a
               chart (2 dimensional or 3 dimensional that looks at three categories).  Second, look to see what, if
               any, operation(s) we plan to use (addition, subtraction, multiplication or division).
4. Solve - Do the computation to solve the problem.  Sometimes, there is one step.  Often there are multiple
               steps.
5. Look back and Recheck - After solving, look back at the question.  Did you answer it?  Recheck.

      Something that works well with training a student/child is to use this as a check list.  The child applies this plan to a given word problem by following it step by step.  After each step is applied to the word problem, the child should check that step off his/her 5 step list.

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