4 Secrets to Increase Engagement with Student Centered Math Warm Ups

One simple step to make your classroom more engaged is by using student centered math warm ups. Often teachers think warm ups have to be review or rote activities. Instead, student centered math warm ups can engage students in deep thinking at the start of class!

What are Student Centered Practices?

A student centered classroom is where you center your students’ thinking. Basically, the focus is taken off of what the teacher is saying, and rather put into what the students are saying. The students’ thinking guides the learning. You can read more about student centered practices on this blog post.

The teacher steps away from the notion of being the knower and the show’er and moves into being the facilitator and question asker. 

Students are allowed to think, explore, try first– then guided toward solidifying their understanding in ways that they can replicate. It is learning by doing. Not learning by being told what to do.

When students have to figure out something that learning sticks. Think about it like this– if I show you how to make a paper air plane, you might remember all the steps and be able to replicate it, but in 2 weeks you might not remember it at all.

However, if I give you a piece of paper and tell you to fold it in to a paper airplane you’ll use your background knowledge and scheme, you’ll try several different designs, you might collaborate with a friend to see what they know, and you’ll test and tweak your design. The teacher might come by and ask you a few questions about what you’re doing and just the process of explaining what you’r trying gives you a few new ideas of things to try. Then, maybe the teacher drops off a few photos of successful paper airplanes to give you inspiration in a moment when you’re stuck. 

The likelihood of you remembering what worked and what did 2 weeks later is pretty high. The experience of problem solving and learning from your own mistakes is very valuable in terms of creating learning that lasts. 

Inquiry, exploration, hands on learning– these are all buzz words. However, the idea is that students thinking is at the center of the learning experiences. That’s what I have found works best for students in math. With these types of experiences they are… 

-more engaged

-more motivated

-increase their participation 

-ask more questions

-collaborate better

-reflect and set goals

One Small Change- Student Centered Math Warm Ups!

Your entrance routine for your Math warm up.

In many classrooms warms ups are a time for review or practice problems. We want this routine to be quick and easy for students to get started right away. Additionally, we want it to be simple to plan.

However, I urge you to try and make this time where students are engaged in deep mathematical thinking. There is really little need for rote practice, especially in class. Students can always do that rote practice or spiral review at home for homework or extra practice.

Instead, try using an open ended math warm up that will engage your students in deep, critical thinking from the moment they walk into math class. These math warm ups will help students start to think about the concepts you’re covering in the days lesson and get them using math reasoning right away!

Choosing a Student Centered Math Warm Up

You’ll want the student centered math warm up to be effective if you’re going to spend the first 10 minutes of class on it. Also, you’ll want to make sure the routine is successful and the task is a big part of that.

Here is a list of what to look for in a student centered math warm up:

-attainable – you want your students to be able to accomplish the task within the timeframe of 10 to 15 minutes.

-relevant- the goal of the student centered warm up should match that of your goals for your students. This could mean a relevant goal to your current unit, a past unit students need more practice in, or a future unit to preview concepts.

-open ended- this allows students to access to the task, while also allowing students to extend as needed.

-practices skills and concepts OR gain experience with a new concept- the purpose of a student centered math warm up can vary, making it a great way to engage students in deep math thinking right away.

-practice with Standards of Mathematical Practice -provide evidence to justify reasoning, attending to precision, and making sense of problems are all great places to focus when incorporating standards for mathematical practice to your math warm ups.

How to Teach Student Centered Math Warm Ups

1. Routine. Create a structure that your students can execute independently. This allows them to waste no time during the transition into math class and start engaging in the work immediately. Spend time teaching your students the expectations and parts of the routine so they can be completely independent and consistent. When students know what is expected they are more likely to jump in and participate. The routine empowers students to take the lead in completing their work without help from the teacher. 
   
2. Support Grappling. Build your students capacity to work on tasks independently. Talk with students about what it means to grapple and why it is important to the learning process. Use math affirmations and norms to guide this conversation and keep it going all year. The message of a student centered math warm up is… this is the time to make mistakes and learn from them.
   
3. The Right Format is Key. Math warm ups come in all shapes and sizes. A crowd favorite in my classroom is Number of the Day & Decimal of the Day. It allows students to practice several skills in a predictable format while still giving the flexibility to solve the problems in with their own strategies and models.
   Which One Doesn’t Belong is another engaging math warm-up because there is truly no right answer. Instead, a case can be made that any option does or doesn’t belong. Another reason Which One Doesn’t Belong works well as a math warm-up is because of its versatility. You can create a Which One Doesn’t Belong to match nearly any concept. In fact, this website has several hundred pre-made, free WODB’s. 
   
4. Predictable lesson structure. I like to use 4 steps. Launch, grapple, discuss, revise. Listen to episode 6 of Honest Math Chat for exactly how I use these 4 simple steps to teach anything.  

Start Simply with Student Centered Math Warm Ups

This simple shift in your teaching– trading that page of practice problems that students do at the start of class for a student centered math warm up will

increase your students critical thinking & math reasoning

give students an opportunity to build deep mathematical connections… all in just the first 10 minutes of class!

Student centered math warm ups engage students in more than just following the steps to finding an answer, but they practice how to think like a mathematician. 

Don’t wait to get starting on making your classroom more student centered.