Mathematics Teaching and Learning Centre

Presenter: James Russo

Webinar Synopsis

Games are widely used in primary classrooms for developing number sense and building computational fluency; however, not all games are equally valuable. How might primary teachers decide which games to introduce? What makes a ‘good’ mathematical game? Combining research findings and practitioner wisdom, James will present six principles of educationally-rich games to support teachers when considering these issues. In this webinar, teachers will be given opportunities to evaluate several recently developed games, explore how they might be modified to enhance their educational value and consider how games can be catalysts for rich mathematical investigations. 

Presenter: Charles Lovitt

Webinar synopsis

Quality tasks, quality planning, and quality delivery.  We can’t hope for more than that! Around the country, a pool of quality learning tasks have evolved from creative teachers supported by rich and balanced ways of planning for their delivery. Two of the most exciting planning models are known as ‘The Menu Model’ and ‘The Mathematicians Model’. In this webinar, Charles will present advice and critiques of these models using information about content, pedagogy, equity, learning theory, technology, assessment, context, connections, and policy. Charles will engage participants in learning about these models through a practical approach, ready for use by teachers and/or maths leaders.

Presenter: Peter Sullivan

Webinar synopsis

About half of the students in each class are ‘above average’ in achievement. While often consideration of difference results in attention to ‘low-achieving’ students, it is possible to do this while extending the thinking and opportunities for high achievers, including gifted and talented students. In this webinar, Peter will elaborate ways classroom programs can cater for the needs of higher achieving students within the scope of the curriculum by “going deeper” and prompting reasoning and formation of generalisations. Peter will also offer advice on implications for planning and assessment, as well as information on the risks and opportunities of ‘like-achievement’ groupings.

Presenter: Linda Parish

Webinar synopsis

A ‘good’ pedagogical approach is effective for all students, but some of our students require special consideration when it comes to maximising their mathematics learning. In this webinar, Linda will focus on ways to support low-achieving students in the mathematics classroom using ‘first-wave’ classroom intervention strategies. Guided by the Concrete-Representational-Abstract (CRA) approach, Linda will share ways of supporting students’ Number learning as a means of developing a number sense that is meaningful and transferable. 

Presenter: Chrissy Monteleone

Webinar synopsis

Critical Mathematical Thinking (CMT) is a new term, bringing together critical thinking and mathematical thinking in a domain specific way. In this webinar, Chrissy will provide strategies and teacher questioning to help students enact critical mathematical thinking. There will be opportunities to reflect on teaching practice by exploring learning experience design, student responses and types of teacher questioning that can be posed during mathematics learning experiences. Chrissy will share research-informed practices that support students to think mathematically and enhance their mathematical understanding.

Presenter: Ann Downton

Webinar Synopsis

The daily collection of formative assessment is important to assist teachers and mathematics leaders in gaining insights into their students' mathematics learning. Data collection requires teachers to use the data to inform planning and teaching with the purpose of impacting on student learning. The ways that teachers and leaders document the data in effective and informative ways can be a challenge.  

In this webinar, Ann will explore a range of assessment strategies to make sense of formative data teachers collect, including a practical approach to generating scoring rubrics and documenting those data.  

Presenter: Aylie Davidson

Webinar Synopsis

How can we plan lessons that will improve the experiences of mathematics learning for all students? In this webinar, Aylie will focus on an instructional model that is ideal for student-centred structured inquiries in mathematics. Using the ‘Launch, Explore, Discuss’ lesson structure, Aylie will offer practical tips and suggestions on what teachers should focus on when planning each stage of the lesson. This includes having a clear mathematical focus, considering the role of ‘I can’ statements, approaches to differentiation, assessment, and building students’ mathematical vocabulary. 

Presenter: Doug Clarke

Webinar Synopsis

Fractions are probably the hardest topic to teach and learn for teachers and students alike. This is due mostly to the issues that teachers need to consider that make fractions so difficult like the different fraction concepts (constructs), the various models we use, and common misconceptions that students can form. In this webinar, Doug will focus on the key idea of fractions having a size which is the most important predictor of future success in maths. Many helpful resources will also be provided along with a number of engaging and worthwhile activities and games that highlight the fun and enjoyment of fractions.

Presenter: Jill Brown

Webinar Synopsis

Multiplicative thinking is a critical aspect of the mathematics curriculum as it underpins proportional reasoning. Multiplicative thinking is characterised as the capability to work flexibly with multiplication and division across a wide range of contexts and to communicate that thinking effectively. As students move through Years 3-8, the range of numbers increases and includes common and decimal fractions. Students must transition from additive to multiplicative thinking and then beyond skip counting and 'equal group thinking' for this sophisticated reasoning to flourish. In this webinar, Jill will explore tasks and approaches and offer teaching advice that promotes multiplicative thinking that develops proportional reasoning.

Presenter: Matt Sexton

Webinar Synopsis

If the primary work objective for the mathematics leader is to lead teachers’ professional learning, then it is important that we have access to ‘tools’ that allow us to do that work. Leadership tools are professional learning strategies that mathematics leaders can use to lead the development of teachers’ dispositions, practices, and knowledge for effective mathematics teaching. In this webinar, Matt will share several tools that have the potential to focus on important mathematics leadership work in schools, and he will offer advice on how to use those tools through professional learning leadership practice.

Presenter: Matt Sexton

Webinar synopsis: Geometry is a curriculum area that we leave until the end of the term or the school year in favour of more Number-based topics. Unfortunately, geometry is often reduced to ‘worksheet learning’ where the excitement of geometry is lost and for those students, who have that affinity with geometric ideas, they lose their chance to shine. Geometry is much more than colouring-in tasks. In this webinar, Matt will share several tasks that, with adjustments and layering of challenge, can be used from Foundation to Year 6 (and beyond) where the ‘world of geometry’ is opened up for you and your students.

Presenter: Vincent Geiger

Webinar Synopsis

Numeracy is a General Capability within the National Curriculum. This means that there must be attention to the numeracy demands of the curriculum across all learning areas and teachers must look for ways to attend to those demands. In this webinar, Vince will share advice on how to design and implement tasks that provide students with opportunities to develop their numeracy capability. Important pedagogical considerations about these tasks will be illustrated via practical examples drawn from classroom settings. Vince will also focus on how to best implement such tasks, including how to avoid common difficulties with their design and implementation using insights from his research in the field.