Upper elementary math intervention should be targeted math instruction determined by data and observation in a way that is most relevant to student needs.
This article is the 10th, and final, in my “Ultimate Guide to Guided Math” series. To start at the beginning, check out the first post. Check it out by clicking the image below:
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What is Targeted Math Intervention?
Second only to the instruction itself is the use of TARGETED instruction. This means that you, as the teacher, are providing multiple means of assessment and observation to drive your instruction in a way that is the most relevant to your students’ needs. Upper elementary math intervention is an integral factor of this targeted instruction.
Math intervention can be in the form of a whole group reteaching of a skill, a small group, or one on one intervention lesson.
To determine skill mastery, in addition to direct observation, you can allow your students to participate in a “skill check assessment” for which they are given a low pressure (not for a “grade”) set of tasks involving the target skill(s).
The results of this assessment should provide you with data noting which of your students have mastered the skill, which of your students are “getting there”, and which of them require some form of intervention exposure to the skill.
Students who have been identified as needing intervention (further targeted exposure to the skill) will need to be provided with intervention in one of two ways:
- One on One Intervention – for students who require your undivided attention to obtain progress toward mastering a math skill
- Small Group Intervention – for 2-4 students who each require extra practice with the same skill and will benefit from interacting with their peers as they work towards mastery.
What Are Your Math Intervention Goals?
Skill Mastery!
Student Independence!
Student Confidence!
The main goal for math intervention is obviously for the students involved to master the target skill and become independent learners.
Aside from these goals, the opportunity to work one on one with you or in a small group of peers developing their math skills allows students to gain confidence in their abilities as math learners.
How to Set Up a Math Intervention Schedule
The process of setting up a math intervention schedule for your upper elementary classroom can vary widely based upon many factors.
How much time do you have for your math block? How many students do you have in your class? How many of those students are in need of intervention?
My suggestion, is on day 5 of your guided math routine, after you have given your weekly skill assessment, and while students are participating in an application activity that you pull individuals or small groups of students to your small group area for an intervention lesson.
Following this routine each week will help you to stay caught up on intervention needs, and then you can build in a few days throughout the school year that are dedicated solely to spiral review and intervention.
Check out weeks 9, 22, 28, and 33 in the YEAR AT A GLANCE below:
Perhaps the most important component of your math instruction is developing in your students the quizzical characteristic of always asking and determining the “WHY” of math concepts.
Prompting students to begin seeking out the answers to questions about “how math works” or “what is actually happening mathematically” will give meaning to the rote processes involved in math.
Yes, we do need to learn the processes of algorithms, and steps to solving a problem. However, when we develop an awareness of “why” we are performing these tasks and operations, the process suddenly becomes more meaningful!
I hope you have enjoyed this series all about upper elementary guided math, and that you have learned some new strategies that you can begin implementing in your math classroom!