Bringing your students’ attention to details that differentiate specific numbers, or groups of numbers from the crowd makes it easier for your students to remember those number bonds and math facts. The details give your students additional information to hang on to.
The more we know about cognitive load and its impact on working memory, the better off our students will be. Cognitive load is the amount of information competing for a students' attention. Students can only hold so much in their working memory. When there is too much new information for students to keep in working memory, then some of it will get lost. Teachers who reduce cognitive load help students learn math.
Incidental learning, also known as play, can have advantages over more formal settings. Students who may worry about their performance, behavior, or achievement level in typical school settings, can benefit from the lower expectations and more relaxed atmosphere.
Spaced practice goes by many names, such as spaced repetition, spaced retrieval practice, and spaced presentation. Whatever you call it, spaced practice is used with students of every age and in every subject area. It is especially useful when memorizing content such as vocabulary words or math facts, after the ideas and concepts have been understood. Spaced repetition is the opposite of massed presentation usually called ‘cramming’.
Context helps students imagine circumstances which require logical thinking and mathematical reasoning. It gives students a reason to practice calculations and a big picture rationale for spending time and energy to become proficient in the skills they are learning. Contextualizing math problems encourages youngsters to make deep personal connections with an academic subject which can be intimidating to many students.
