Primary Years Programme Making the PYP happen - ITARI

Making the PYP happen
Good mathematics practice
What is a PYP mathematics classroom like
In a PYP classroom mathematics is a vital and engaging part of students’ lives. The children in the room are
very active, with an underlying sense of organization and cooperation. Teachers and students are asking
questions of each other, trying out and demonstrating ideas in small and large groups, using the language of
mathematics to describe their thinking, generating data to look for patterns and making conjectures. A wide
variety of materials is available to all. These manipulatives are constantly in use. There are lists, tables and
charts on display showing written and numerical data about which relevant questions are asked and
answered.
The number of mathematics resources available is impressive: colourful and thought-provoking posters and
children’s work cover the walls; materials, ranging from student collections of keys, foreign money and
seashells to store-bought pattern blocks and geoboards, are out on tables; everyday tools, such as measuring
jugs, calculators, even cereal boxes, are in use. On the bookshelves are many resource books for the teacher
and students, including a wide variety of textbooks, mathematical dictionaries and encyclopedias and
children’s literature, which focus on mathematical ideas. The computer area is well stocked with innovative
software that encourages the application of mathematics skills and problem solving and the general supplies
area has a variety of paper for recording mathematical ideas: different sized squared paper, dot paper and much
scribble paper. There may even be a video area where high quality video tapes show how mathematics is used
outside the classroom. It is clear where things belong and how they are used.
The mathematics classroom does not work on its own. The students visit younger children to help them with
their investigations. Students also work with older children to travel about town in small groups on a treasure
hunt, asking and answering questions about dates, times, distance, prices and more. Other teachers and
parents come to share their interests and expertise. The school nurse and administrators are involved in
providing information and participating in surveys. The school’s parking lot and local shops are visited when
collecting data. The community at large provides innumerable opportunities for budding mathematicians to
practise their craft.
How does a PYP mathematics classroom work
Inquiry-based units of study are the entry points into mathematics learning through which students will
experience what it is like to think and act as mathematicians. Students and teachers identify together what they
already know which might be relevant to the inquiry, what they want to know, what they need to know to
answer their questions and how best they might find that out.
The PYP mathematics teacher is well trained in primary mathematics. Personal knowledge of the subject
matter is of primary importance. The teacher’s own interest in and development of the discipline is
maintained through regular inservice, reading professional journals and, especially, regular contact with
colleagues who share the commitment to teaching mathematics through inquiry.
With the curriculum as the guide, the teacher spends time in different ways: walking about while students
are working alone, in pairs, in small groups or even as a whole class; asking key questions; challenging the
students’ thinking—prompting them to take ideas one step further; and jotting down notes to inform the
next stages of learning. The teacher might also gather a group of students with a particular interest or
problem to provide more specific help through guidance and practising together.
One of the most important aspects of the teacher’s role is to encourage appropriate mathematical discussion
among the student mathematicians—demonstrating the nature of mathematical discourse and the
development of conjectures. Students follow simple, polite rules when talking with each other, building on
previously mentioned ideas, supporting others in the various stages of learning and sharing their discoveries
in a congenial atmosphere. Students see writing down their ideas as a natural step in the process of
communicating important ideas. They record in a variety of ways, including drawing pictures, recording
numbers and writing in mathematics journals.
78 © IBO 2000