Eureka Math! Finally something that makes sense!

Eureka Math!  Finally, something that makes sense!
This past week my 7th graders learned a lesson in adding fractions with unlike denominators without having to divide.  Thank you Rosa, our Eureka expert, for the heads up!  I had tried everything with some of my struggling students  without a lot of success.  I went to a training and voila, the lightbulb went off.  I showed my students how to add fractions by decomposing numbers-5th grade standard.  After the lesson I gave them an exit question, more than half of the group got the right  answer.  I was ecstatic! I saw a glimmer of hope for some of the kids who had given up on this math.   The smiles on their faces implied a newly found feeling of success.  We definitely made progress.			Click on the video to meet Melony.  Her testimony rings true with most struggling students.
As a result of this approach to adding fractions without dividing, many students now have an entry point to solving these kinds of problems.  Where there was despair, now there is hope.  I noticed students helping others understand the process.  Some shook their heads and said they liked the old method better.  They were given the choice to whatever method they selected and most chose to use decomposition of numbers.  This is definitely a step in the right direction.  We are chipping away at that fixed mindset, one day at a time.
	During the lesson, I used the following talk moves: Revoicing-I asked students a question in the steps leading to decomposition of numbers and I would ask students to be ready to repeat whatever so and so said.  This allows me to engage students who tend to drift away when others are answering the questions.  I then shift to the next talk move, adding on.  This move essentially asks students to build on prior statements-sometimes these can be contradictory to what someone has said.  It is truly exciting when students disagree with something that was said.  Learning happens in that instant.
Here is a little video of a dear student who is dedicated to becoming better in math.  Her name is Melody.  She is determined to master this subject this year.  She stays for tutoring every single day it is offered.  Listen to her perception of math.  Her story sound very similar to many of my struggling students.
	Feel free to send me your comments after you have read and seen the video.  I welcome all constructive criticism.  Have a fantastic rest of your day! Hilda Castillo