Cross-Curricular Planning and Math

Cross-Curricular Planning and Math

It is very important as a math teacher to incorporate lessons that link to other areas of the curriculum into your lessons. Math cannot be taught in isolation. Its a part of everything we do in our everyday lives. Students can benefit greatly by reinforcing what they know through different areas of the curriculum. When I was a student, I did not enjoy math class at all. In fact I dreaded it. However, if math was integrated into other subject areas such as The Arts, Phys Ed or Language, maybe I would have been able to demonstrate my understanding of certain concepts in a much easier fashion.

  "By linking expectations from different subject areas, teachers can provide students with multiple 

opportunities to reinforce and demonstrate their knowledge and skills in a range of settings."

Students learn in different ways. I also believe when we ask students to show us what they know (summative assessment), it is best if they can show it to us in a way that is best for their learning style. Its a teachers job to learn the different learning styles of their students and tailor the programming accordingly. Everyone has a preferred learning style according to Howard Gardner, "In the  classroom, a teacher can differentiate instruction and assessments according to the multiple intelligences. For example, a learner who has a strong musical intelligence might learn basic multiplication facts quicker if they are made into a rap or song." 

When I think about Assessment of Learning, a good  strategy for teachers is to give students options. This is where the Cross-curricular links come into play. Along with traditional approaches to assessment (i.e. rubrics, observations), giving choice is important as well. Whether a student shows what they learned about area/fractions by doing a drawing of a robot (Visual arts), or if they wanted to create a dance to demonstrate their learning of fractions (Dance) or do a play to show understanding of multiplication (Drama), teachers can incorporate The Arts or Language into their assessment of student learning.  Students need to express themselves in a variety of ways and when they are able to use a learning style that best suits them, they are able to gain confidence in themselves and get a deeper understanding of the topic they are studying on different levels.

Cross-Curricular Links and Integrating Technology:

There are many positives about integrating technology into the classroom. Students these days are plugged into technology outside the classroom so why not integrate it into your math class?

Here is a link where students can demonstrate their learning in mathematics:

http://edshelf.tumblr.com/post/107222506261/edshelf-weekly-student-assessment-tools

Sources:

 edShelf Weekly-Student Assessment Tools. (January 5th, 2015).[Blog post].

   Retrieved from http://edshelf.tumblr.com/post/107222506261/edshelf-weekly-student-assessment-      tools

 Gardner's Multiple Intelligences (n.d.). In Decoding Differentiation.
   Retrieved from https://sites.google.com/site/decodingdifferentiation/home

Cross-Curricular and Integrated Learning. The Ontario Curriculum Grades 1-8: Mathematics, 2005 (revised), p.26.