ED:Burkina Math Literacy Project/Testing

From The Collaboratory

Based on the objectives that we set at the beginning of this project, we were able to reflect on the things that we are doing correctly.

• We are helping the students establish one-to-one correspondence by touching the raised bugs on the frog’s tongue.
• We are showing that the last number named in a sequence represents the last object counted, and the total number of objects in the group.
• By placing the bugs in the same position on the frog’s tongue except for the new bug that is added, students should be able to understand that the current number is one more than the previous whole number. (Perhaps the first page could start with zero to help show this concept).
• By showing more than one instance of a number, our book can show conservation of quantity, and that the number can describe a variety of objects.
• As they read this book many times, the students may be able to recognize the amount of something in a group without having to count each individual object.

We read Chapter 4 from the book Principles and Standards for School Mathematics and we found some things that we weren't doing in this project but could do in future projects. Future projects could include:

• We could use basic principles of addition and subtraction to help the students be more familiar with the functions and meanings of these operators.
• Instead of using whole numbers, we could teach basic fractions, and how to divide a whole into many parts.
• Use numbers that are greater than ten to develop a greater familiarity with the base-ten number system and the concept of place value.

• In the article it talks about the importance of children exploring their world. For instance, when a parent cuts a sandwich into triangles, rectangles, or any other shape, the child is encouraged to think mathematically. I think these geometric concepts are something that would be a great addition to this counting book in the future (74).
• Following directions is a concept that a lot of American children do when reading books. For instance, they have the books where when you’re reading, you see a picture, and then you press the button that has that same little picture on it. It then makes a noise that goes along with the story. I think those kinds of “following directions” books are very motivational for students, and it’s definitely something that we can consider if and when we make other books for the students in Burkina (74).
• Fluency is when students can “compute efficiently and accurately with single digit numbers.” I think that after this book, fluency might be the most important thing we would want to include in a follow up book. It would require knowledge of the whole first book, and it would stretch them to just the right level (84).