I have AT in My Classroom - How Do I Use it in Math project spotlight: GSP at Scarborough Village Alternative School

As our project entitled “I Have Assistive Technology In My Classroom…How Do I Use It In Math?!”, continues teachers are finding new and exciting ways to use their assistive technology to deliver math curriculum in differentiated and engaging ways while also providing students with opportunities to use assistive technology to demonstrate their understanding of mathematics concepts.

Ms. Polidoro using her Promethean IWB to review vocabulary with her students.

 One of our most recent co-planning/co-teaching opportunities was with Cristina Polidoro from Scarborough Village PS. Cristina co-developed a lesson about angles to start her Geometry unit with her students. Using the Promethean Interactive Whiteboard, Cristina guided her students through a review of geometry vocabulary such as acute, obtuse, right, and straight angles as well as line segment, ray, and vertex. Ms. Polidoro used video clips to enhance and engage students as well as her ActivExpressions to allow all students to respond, thereby honouring each of their voices. Students also had several opportunities to come to the board to measure angles using the protractor tool and engage in discussion on what angles are.

A student in Ms. Polidoro’s class shows how to use a protractor to measure an angle.

In order to consolidate their learning, students then used Geometer’s Sketchpad to create several polygons. As part of their learning task, they were asked to measure each of the angles of their polygons as well as label what each type of angle was. 

An example of a student’s work using Geometer’s Sketchpad.

In subsequent lessons, Ms. Polidoro intends to have her students also use Read and Write Gold’s Vocabulary Builder tool in order to create a vocabulary list of geometry terms as a reference tool.