Tagged with 'Problem Solving'

As a part of my undergraduate education, I took a class called Mathematical Problem Solving. The professor presented us with a list of problems from which we chose at least five to solve and demonstrate to the class over the course of the semester. As a part of our solution, we had to choose and identify a problem-solving strategy (from George Polya’s list of strategies) that we would then apply to the problem. This was both a good introduction to a wide range of problem-solving strategies and a powerful example of how different students see and solve problems in different ways. When I started teaching, I sometimes tried to incorporate the strategies into my instruction. The challenge was providing a variety of problems that spanned both the standards and the strategies, giving students the opportunity to practice both in a meaningful way. To help teachers address this challenge, Didax now offers Problem Solving Practice Cards for grades 3 through 5 that provide both a problem and a suggested problem-solving strategy.