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Math Workshop / + - * / + - *

Hello Families!
There are a lot of exciting things happening in math class that I wanted to share! With
beginning of year diagnostics almost complete, I have a great picture of who the kids
are as mathematicians, and the students and I are looking forward to kicking off
full-blown Math Workshop! With our relatively new Everyday Math version, there will be
a focus on developing mathematical discussion and explanation skills, as well as the
eight Standards for Mathematical Practice.
There are two components for students within Math Workshop:
1) At Home: Students watch my video lesson (usually 7-12 mins in length), and
take notes in their Math Notebook (black and white speckled composition
book--math section). They complete practice problems from the Math Journal
(pink workbook from Everyday Math). Please remind your child that, unlike live
Ms. Webster, they can pause and rewind virtual Ms. Webster as often as they
need, and record any questions that arise so they can bring them to workshop
the next day. :)
2) At School: Students will meet with me in their small workshop/discussion
group where I will provide more individualized instruction on the lesson, go over
some of the journal problems, do some work on mathematical explanations of
problems, clarify any misunderstandings, and remediate/extend the concept
when necessary. Students will also have time to work on the independent
practice piece--the Home Link and Math Box for that lesson.
*This means that the guaranteed homework each day should be watching the video
lesson, and, depending on the individual students pace, they may also need to finish
any problems on the Home Link and Math Box that they didnt finish in the independent
work time.
*Disclaimer: There are a few lessons that are just not conducive to flipped video lesson
format, and thus will be taught live, and the homework piece will become the traditional
Home Link and Math Box. This will always be stated clearly on the planner.

 We are looking to form a challenge/enrichment group very soon that will be

embedded into the Math Workshop two days a week, and will work with one of our
wonderful parents. If your child is selected as a candidate for this group (I look at a
variety of data points), you will receive a separate email with information on this
soon.
It is so important for students to put their best effort forward on the math homework
(Home Link and Math Box) each night, and use the answer key provided in the
family newsletter to check their work and monitor comprehension. We check the
answers in class, but there really is no substitute for the one-on-one feedback a
student can get from you at home when working through a Home Link problem and
checking his/her work. Math Boxes and Home Links are not scored for correctness,
as this is the students first opportunity to practice the skill, but they are inputted as a
"complete" or "missing" grade on PowerSchool, and tallied into a cumulative
completion grade at the end of the unit.
Should your student ever forget or misplace his/her Home Link, you can always print
one off from the ConnectED website. This site has many resources for your family
to explore, from the eToolkit, to Everyday Math games, to an electronic Student
Reference Book.
For Unit Review Sheets/Study Guides, we are using the Nearpod app as an
interactive review tool. We do a "live session" in class, but the same review sheet is
available to view on individual devices as a "homework" link. Nearpod Reviews can
be found as a link on Google Classroom. I also send home hard copy review sheets
as an additional means of practice. I hope you find these very helpful when you help
your child prepare for upcoming tests.
When it comes time to study for Unit Tests, look for the Study Tools review
packet cover page--Here you will find QR codes to the Nearpod review, my
recorded lessons, and the Everyday Math site for support materials. Also listed will
be the study tools that we collect in class: corrected Home Links, any check-ins, and
the Math Journal lesson pages. This should be a great tool for families to work
through with their students during study time. BONUS: 20 minutes of studying
equals 2% extra on your test, when the test alert at the bottom of this cover page is
signed & stapled to the test! I like to encourage strong lifelong study habits. :)
Every odd-numbered Unit Test will contain an Open Response portion, and every
even-numbered Unit Test will contain a Cumulative section. Well be working hard

in class on developing strong mathematical explaining skills using this

rubric/checklist. Feel free to take a look and practice at home with your child!
The students have been working on their math fact fluency. Were using the
research-based XtraMath app to support automaticity in addition, subtraction,
multiplication, and division facts. This app is on each child's device, and ANY spare
time that students may have at home, please encourage them to practice--even 5
minutes a day will help grow our automaticity with math facts, a skill that will benefit
us for the rest of our lives! As these are third grade goals, we will not be able to
spend too much class time on them this year, but we will take timed tests in class
approximately once a month to gauge progress and goal-set.
Hope this helps you gain some insight into the wonderful world of Math Workshop! It is
definitely a different format than a traditional math block, but one that affords the
students a lot of opportunity to take ownership of their learning, and for me to get a full
picture of who they are as mathematicians and challenge them accordingly. :) As
always, let me know if you have any questions!

~Ms. Webster