Dan Lewis

This looks a little like how I start looking at completing the square. What’s your approach to that out of interest?

I got a dollar on holiday in America once.
Then my dad was giving me a basic explanation of exchange rates and on some level I realised I’d been conned out of my usual pound.

So for a bit of context, the students get a formula sheet that uses a for coefficient of x^2, b for coeff of x and c for constant. Makes sense to go off those I would say.

Beginnings of work on quadratic formula. Task 4 very specifically designed for this particular group, who frustratingly keep changing cases on variables. #mathstoday #ukmathsteachers

Yes! This is the only way to go about it!

Hopefully there’s enough going on so
it doesn’t get too samey throughout. I wanted to avoid just putting the radius in all the time.

#mathstoday some questions on the volume of a sphere, “forwards and backwards” #ukmathsteachers

6 they found difficult, but once they had the idea they found 7 pretty straightforward. All of them who got to 8 made the obvious error. It’s a bottom set, but I was really proud of how they tackled it!

Got to say, delighted with how that went.

Glad it worked well. My turn tomorrow!

A small activity to finish off work on constructing error intervals for my GCSE foundation class #mathstoday #ukmathsteachers

Let me know how it goes. I’ll get to it either tomorrow or Thursday with my group, but not sure how they’ll get on with it.

Great, I’ll check it out. Thanks!

It’s not quite what @dwekselgreene.bsky.social is doing, but inspired by a general idea, put these together for expanding and collecting like terms #MathsToday #ukmathsteachers

What you using to make these?

Thank you, v grateful

These are lovely. Mind if I use them with my dept. in a meeting? I like to start the meeting with a question or problem, something thought-provoking, and these look great.

Looking at an application of products of prime factors in simplifying fractions. #mathstoday

Nice. I’d love to see some of those at some point as a bit of inspiration myself.

No, not really. They know they need to get it right to achieve the grade they want, so that’s motivation enough. And I also think it shows them that I’ve really thought about their performance as a class and have put some effort in myself to reviewing it. Which may or may not help.

Yeah, it’s a nice problem! Almost like backward fading, but also, again, not quite the same thing?
How did students find it?

Alternate segment theorem. Fairly straightforward to develop a little confidence before some of those trickier exam questions. #mathstoday #ukmathsteachers

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Looks like an “open middle” type problem? openmiddle.com that had some similar maybe?

I don’t do anything new but look over some key bits from their autumn mock exams. Usually keep some questions back and don’t go through them when reviewing the paper. Use them to structure a full feedback lesson around that question. Seems to keep them motivated enough through to Xmas.

Some checking for understanding and independent practice for the division law of indices, with some multiplication worked in. #mathstoday #ukmathsteachers #ukmathschat

Just looking for a little trial and error: substitution practice, calculating using a power, checking for equality (all very recent work for them). Trial & error always seems to be a “tarnished” approach.

I do. But I have to do that verbally. As you can see, my margin is not big enough. But I can also safely assume they’d ask me whether they’re different or not.

Afraid not: they’re all 12 years old! 😃

Oh yes, def with task 5. *But* I would say with this group of students, I would like them to play about with a little trial and error. And for task 4, it’s absolutely contrived, but practices a little ratio for them.
I’m always on the lookout for improvements/better questions to ask them though 😃

Must say, moved to a book and a visualiser and can’t move back: even just modelling “this is how it should look in your book” has made my life much easier.