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The Mathematics Lesson-Planning Handbook, Grades 6-8
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The Mathematics Lesson-Planning Handbook, Grades 6-8
Your Blueprint for Building Cohesive Lessons

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December 2018 | 264 pages | Corwin

Your blueprint to planning Grades 6-8 math lessons that lead to achievement for all learners

When it comes to planning mathematics lessons, do you sometimes feel burdened? Have you ever scrambled for an activity to engage your students that aligns with your state standards? Do you ever look at a recommended mathematics lesson plan and think, “This will never work for my students”?

The Mathematics Lesson-Planning Handbook: Your Blueprint for Building Cohesive Lessons, Grades 6–8 walks you step by step through the process of planning focused, research-based mathematics lessons that enhance the coherence, rigor, and purpose of state standards and address the unique learning needs of your individual students. This resource deepens the daily lesson-planning process for middle school teachers and offers practical guidance for merging routines, resources, and effective teaching techniques into an individualized and manageable set of lesson plans.  

The effective planning process helps you   

  • Identify learning intentions and connect goals to success criteria 
  • Select resources and worthwhile tasks that make the best use of instructional materials
  • Structure lessons differently for traditional and block middle school schedules
  • Anticipate student misconceptions and evaluate understanding using a variety of formative assessment techniques
  • Facilitate questioning, encourage productive struggle, and close lessons with reflection techniques  

This author team of seasoned mathematics educators make lesson planning practical and doable with a useful lesson-planning template and real-life examples from Grades 6–8 classrooms. Chapter by chapter, the decision-making strategies empower teachers to plan mathematics lessons strategically, to teach with intention and confidence, and to build purposeful, rigorous, coherent lessons that lead to mathematics achievement for all learners. 

 
 
Book at a Glance
 
Praise Page
 
Acknowledgements
 
Publisher's Acknowledgements
 
Letter to 6-8 Teachers
 
Letter to Middle School Principals
 
Letter to Mathematics Coaches
 
Letter to Preservice College and University Instructors
 
How to Use This Book
 
Part I: You are the Architect of Your Classroom
 
Chapter 1: Surveying Your Site: Knowing Your Students
Why Is It So Important to Know Your Students?

 
What Do Access and Equity Really Mean?

 
What Is Prior Knowledge in Mathematics

 
What Do Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students Need?

 
What Do Students Living in Poverty Need?

 
What Are Learning Needs?

 
What Are the Common Themes?

 
 
Chapter 2: Your 6-8 Blueprint: Planning Mathematics Lessons for Coherence, Rigor, and Purpose
What Is Coherence?

 
What Is Rigor?

 
What Is the Purpose of a Lesson?

 
How Can You Ensure That You Plan Lessons for Coherence, Rigor, and Purpose?

 
Lesson-Planning Template

 
 
Part II: Drafting Your 6-8 Blueprint
 
Chapter 3: Laying Your Foundation: It Starts with Big Ideas, Essential Questions, and Standards
What Are State Standards for Mathematics?

 
What Are Essential Questions?

 
What Are Process Standards?

 
Building Unit Coherence

 
Sixth Grade Snapshot: Big Ideas, Essential Questions, and Standards

 
Eighth Grade Snapshot: Big Ideas, Essential Questions, and Standards

 
Under Construction

 
Chapter 4: Reinforcing Your Plan: Learning Intentions and Success Criteria

 
What Are Learning Intentions?

 
What Are Mathematics Learning Intentions?

 
What Are Language and Social Learning Intentions?

 
How Do You Communicate Learning Intentions with Students?

 
What Are Success Criteria?

 
How Do Learning Intentions Connect to the Success Criteria?

 
When Should Learning Intentions and Success Criteria Be Shared With Students?

 
Building Unit Coherence

 
Sixth Grade Snapshot: Learning Intentions and Success Criteria

 
Seventh Grade Snapshot: Learning Intentions and Success Criteria Decision-Making Snapshot

 
Eighth Grade Snapshot: Learning Intentions and Success Criteria

 
Under Construction

 
 
Chapter 5: Deciding on Purpose: Why Are You Building This Lesson?
What Is the Role of a Conceptual Understanding Lesson?

 
What Is Procedural Fluency, and How Does It Build from a Conceptual Understanding Lesson?

 
How Do You Know if You Need a Conceptual Understanding or Procedural Fluency Lesson?

 
How Do You Create a Transfer Lesson?

 
Building Unit Coherence

 
Sixth Grade Snapshot: Lesson Purpose

 
Seventh Grade Snapshot: Lesson Purpose

 
Eighth Grade Snapshot: Lesson Purpose

 
Under Construction

 
 
Chapter 6: Choosing Tasks: The Heart of the Lesson
Why Are Tasks Important?

 
What Is a Worthwhile Task?

 
How Do You Adapt to Tasks?

 
What Are Some Sources for Worthwhile Tasks?

 
Building Unit Coherence

 
Sixth Grade Snapshot: Task Selection

 
Seventh Grade Snapshot: Task Selection

 
Eighth Grade Snapshot: Task Selecetion

 
Under Construction

 
 
Chapter 7: Choosing Materials: Representations, Manipulatives, and Other Resources.
What Is the Role of Representations in Mathematics Lessons?

 
What Is A Manipulative?

 
How Are Manipulatives Used?

 
What Are Other Resources?

 
Building Unit Coherence

 
Sixth Grade Snapshot: Material Selection

 
Seventh Grade Snapshot: Material Selection

 
Eighth Grade Snapshot: Material Selection

 
Under Construction

 
 
Chapter 8: Cementing the Cracks: Anticipating Student Thinking
What Are Misconceptions, and Where Do They Come From?

 
How Can You Plan to Minimize Misconceptions?

 
Building Unit Coherence

 
Sixth Grade Snapshot: Student Thinking

 
Seventh Grade Snapshot: Student Thinking

 
Eighth Grade Snapshot: Student Thinking

 
Under Construction

 
 
Chapter 9: Framing the Lesson: Formats
How Do Middle School Schedules Affect Planning and Instruction?

 
What are Some Different Lesson Formats?

 
Building Unit Coherence

 
Sixth Grade Snapshot: Lesson Format

 
Seventh Grade Snapshot: Lesson Format

 
Eighth Grade Snapshot: Lesson Format

 
Under Construction

 
 
Chapter 10: Evaluating Impact: Formative Assessment
What Is Formative Assessment?

 
What Are Specific Formative Assessment Techniques?

 
Building Unit Coherence

 
Sixth Grade Snapshot: Formative Assessment

 
Seventh Grade Snapshot: Formative Assessment

 
Eighth Grade Snapshot: Formative Assessment

 
Under Construction

 
 
Part III: Pulling All the Pieces Together
 
Chapter 11: Planning to Launch the Lesson
What Is a Lesson Launch?

 
How Can You Launch a Problem-Solving Lesson?

 
What Kinds of Lesson Launches Focus on Mathematics Concepts?

 
What Are Number Routine Lesson Launches?

 
What Di You Anticipate Students Will Do?

 
Sixth Grade Snapshot: Launch the Lesson

 
Seventh Grade Snapshot: Launch the Lesson

 
Eighth Grade Snapshot: Launch the Lesson

 
Under Construction

 
 
Chapter 12: Planning to Facilitate the Lesson
What Is Mathematical Communication?

 
How Do You Facilitate Meaningful Mathematical Discourse?

 
How Do You Plan for and Pose Purposeful Questions?

 
How Do You Facilitate Productive Struggle?

 
How Do You Make Sure You Engage Students in the Process Standards as You Facilitate the Lesson?

 
Building Unit Coherence

 
Sixth Grade Snapshot: Facilitate the Lesson

 
Seventh Grade Snapshot: Facilitate the Lesson

 
Eighth Grade Snapshot: Facilitate the Lesson

 
Under Construction

 
 
Chapter 13: Planning to Close the Lesson
Why Do You Need Closure in a Lesson?

 
What Are Some Different Closure Activities?

 
Building Unit Coherence

 
Sixth Grade Snapshot: Close the Lesson

 
Seventh Grade Snapshot: Close the Lesson

 
Eighth Grade Snapshot: Close the Lesson

 
Under Construction

 
 
Chapter 14: Surveying Your Results: Lesson Reflection
Why is It Important to Reflect Upon Lessons?

 
What Kind of Reflection Cycle Supports Teacher Growth?

 
 
Epilogue
 
Resources
 
Appendix A: Complete Lessons for Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth Grade
 
Appendix B: Lesson-Planning Template
 
Appendix C: Further Reading/ Resources
 
Appendix D: Glossary
 
References
 
About the Authors

Supplements

“This book is a step-by-step guide for building a cohesive lesson. It is research based and relevant to what teachers are being asked to do.”

Ann Thomas Lewis
Stanfford, County Public Schools, Fredericksburg, VA

“Williams, Kobett, and Harbin Miles’s book, The Mathematics Lesson-Planning Handbook, Grades 6–8: Your Blueprint for Building Cohesive Lessons, begins by sharing the importance of building relationships with students to the mathematical process standards and everything in between! The cohesive research-based book should be the pillar for teachers aspiring to be math teachers and for every teacher that is currently teaching mathematics. The mathematical architecture behind this well-designed book is truly a blueprint for teacher and student success. The information in this book will support me in guiding teachers on what it takes to create high-quality and effective math lessons.”

Sharon Shrum
Frederick County Schools, Winchester VA
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