(Recap: This is a session that was given to a math teacher. The question he asked me was "can you suggest a couple of good math apps that I can use, as all that I can find on Google Apps are fractions and it does not serve my needs".) The reason why I answered his question in the documentation below, because I think this is one of the obstacles teachers fall into at times. They are looking for the best app, not realizing that some of tools they have in front of them can do wonders. I believe that all teachers, whether math, reading, science, or language arts, can start the foundation to integrating technology in their classroom, by simply using Google Drive.)
Enhancing Math with G-Suite
Google and G-Suite tools can work in math subjects just as well as it can work in subjects such as Reading and English. After speaking with several Math teachers, we come to the conclusion that in order for this to work, the teacher need to ask the following questions.
What math concepts are you teaching? How are you giving match content to your students currently? What are you as a teacher trying to accomplish? What obstacles or roadblocks are you experiencing.
These questions, even though there may be many more, are the foundation on creating a math class in which technology is used effectively. Experience has shown, that math classes are based on repetition and consistency. Teachers have to consistently show and explain math equations and concepts, and students have to comprehend them, and be able to repeat them.
Using Google Apps, now known as G-Suite for Education, you can start building the type of math lesson that will be engaging, and also keep the repetition and consistency that you are looking for in your class.
Google Drive and Google Classroom
For starters, all teachers who are apart of G-Suite should have their classrooms setup using Google Drive and assignments should be delivered using Google Classroom. This is the foundation for starting any class, including a math class. Using Classroom, students should be given videos that are found online that will help with a particular math concept. These videos should be easily accessible and shared to your student accounts so they can go to them when needed. If you and your students are starting early with using Google, then homework assignments or class discussions can start off with reviewing the video and answer questions about the video, or give math problems that was explained in the video.
Google Forms to Create a Math Quiz or Test
Another popular, and teacher favorite, is to create a math quiz using Google forms. If you are new to creating a quiz or test with Forms, and your students are new, create a simple test where the answers are multiple choice or drop down. Remember, when bringing in technology into the classroom, you cannot give a student everything all at once. So a simple quiz that you created with Google Forms, would work for now.
Video, Record, and Playback
Even though there are apps in the Google Play Store that will assist in math, they will not help with you, the teacher’s style of content. The best way to deliver this, would be the way you teach it. The problem is that you have to show the student how to understand math at their pace. This is why in my opinion, the best tool for math would be to record yourself on how to teach certain math concepts and formulas for the student. Screencastify is one of the best routes to take to record your screen and also record yourself speaking as you go through math questions and explain them. But this is not about you, get the students involved as well. After you get accustomed to creating videos of your teaching math, make it a project with the students. Allow them to create presentations explaining math concepts and how they solve problems.
This is a good video that shows a student explaining a math problem. The student ties all of the above in the project (well at least we will say she is doing so). The assignment to doing this was probably giving to the students using Google Drive or Classroom, there probably was steps on how to do it and the teacher assisted. Then the students more than likely designed a presentation using Slides or Powerpoint to solve the problem. Then the students used Screencastify to record themselves going through the math problem and answering. To finish it, they submitted the problem to the teacher using Classroom.
The following video, shows you how to begin screencastify. If you have anymore questions, we can setup a training on how to effectively use screencastify.
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