Lesley Martinez-Silva

Student Teaching
Fall 2019

Topic: Adding and Subtracting Decimals

Grade Level: 5th
Subject: Math

Objectives
TEKS 111.7 (3) Number and operations. The student applies mathematical process
standards to develop and use strategies and methods for positive rational number computations in
order to solve problems with efficiency and accuracy. The student is expected to: (K) add and
subtract positive rational numbers fluently.

Purpose
To review what students have learned about adding and subtracting decimals up to the
thousandths place and to practice before their benchmark assessment.

Materials
For teacher
Whiteboard, dry erase markers, cloth to wipe
whiteboard, projector, computer, mobile
phone, Plickers question set
For students
Dry erase markers, tissues to wipe markers,
math journal, Plickers card, calculators (for
those with accommodations), Spanish
question set (for ELs)

Procedures
Introduction:
Math always starts off with Formative Loop, their five-minute math practice. During that
time, I’ll be passing out their math journals for them to use later. After Formative Loop, I
will transition to explaining that we will be continuing to review math concepts that
we’ve learned in the past few weeks. This lesson will be on adding and subtracting
decimals, so I will be going over the steps with the class. I will first put an addition
problem on the board and randomly call on a student to tell me what the first step would
be in answering the problem. They will have their math journals to use as a resource to
tell me the steps, so all students should be able to do it. We will go through that first
addition problem together, and then move onto a subtraction problem.
Model:
I will model for them how to answer a word problem question. I will project it on the TV
and solve it on the whiteboard so they can see all the steps and follow along.
Guided Practice:
Using the Plickers website, together we will solve a multiple-choice word problem and
practice answering it using the Plickers cards. Each student will have a card to use to
indicate their answer choice. They will also have dry erase markers to write their work on
Lesley Martinez-Silva
Student Teaching
Fall 2019

their tables, along with a tissue to erase. We would have already practiced with the
Plickers cards earlier in the week, but even so I will remind them of how to do it.
Independent Practice:
After doing the first word problem together, we will move on and they’ll answer the other
questions on their own. I will be reading the questions aloud to them, just for the sake of
any students that need accommodations and so I can ensure students don’t get caught on
words they may not be able to read/understand that aren’t really necessary to answer the
problem. I will tell them that we will take our time on each question, as each student goes
at a different pace and we must all answer the question. Each student must show me their
answer with the Plickers card before we can move on to the next question. They of course
can help each other, which may speed up the time we take on each question. There are
two questions sets, one with 5 questions that are simple addition or subtraction, and then
4 more in another set that are multi-step addition/subtraction word problems. If the
students finish the first set, we will move onto the second set. I will tell them that these
are multi-step problems, so they can be aware in the future of what those questions look
like. I will go through the first one with them as well, just to make sure they understand.
Check for Understanding:
I will be walking around to each table to check on the students as they work
independently. The Plickers app on my phone will also tell me if a student answered the
question correctly, so if I don’t get a chance to see their work before they show their
answer I can go over and see where they might’ve gotten mixed up. Also, by calling on
students randomly during guided practice, it will let me know if they are following along
and understand what we’re doing.
Closure:
Our class must switch over at 9am, so 5 minutes before I will end the lesson, even if we
haven’t finished all the questions. I will thank them for working with me, and if there is
time later in the day, perhaps we can finish the questions. I will let them know that we’ll
be reviewing adding and subtracting fractions with unequal denominators the next day,
which we just wrapped up the week before, and that will be all that we’ll be reviewing
before their math test on Friday.

Planned Modifications and Differentiation

For my ELL, I will have the math questions printed on a piece of paper for him, as the
Plickers website doesn’t allow me to fit the entire question in both English and Spanish on there.
I will explain the steps to adding and subtracting problems in Spanish to him as well. In case
students need more space than their table to answer the problems, I will give them scratch paper
to work it out. Students with accommodations based on their 504s will also get calculators to
help them when necessary.
Lesley Martinez-Silva
Student Teaching
Fall 2019

Assessment of Student Learning

I will be walking around to check students’ work, but since I won’t be able to see
everyone’s work, the Plickers app will collect the data on the students. I will be able to review it
and see how many questions the students got correct. Since this lesson is more for practice, I will
make sure to go to those students who I know need more assistance more often. Later in the day,
during snack time, I can work with the students one-on-one to give them more instructional time
before the test on Friday.

Resources
TEKS, Review Game Zone (for question set), Houghton Mifflin Harcourt ThinkCentral
Modules and Unit Assessments Guide (for question set), Plickers.com, Texas Go Math!