Finding it hard to differentiate math for advanced students? You are not alone. Many teachers find it difficult to differentiate math for all the different levels in their classrooms. We often think about the struggling students as we lesson plan. We build in support, especially extra teacher time during class as we think about how we are going to avoid the “I don’t know how to do this” statement we sometimes hear from struggling students.
What about the students who are ready for a challenge? They often grasp the grade level material quickly, or they’re already proficient at grade level material and the regular activities just don’t excite or challenge them.
Before we get started with the nitty-gritty teacher talk, if you are working on transforming your math classroom into a space where students actively engage in their learning to practice fluency and math concepts, grab my 10 Free Math Activities. No gimmicks, no sales, no nonsense with this freebie- just one way I can help with making math hour the favorite part of the day for every student!
How To Plan For Students Who Are Ready For A Challenge
The goal is to move all students along in their math journey. Once students are proficient with math skills, we want them to start putting them into practice so they can make all of the rich connections that make math so enticing. There is nothing like dabbling in the Base 5 number system to gain a deeper understanding of our Base 10 system.
A different activity is not always necessary to add some complexity to a problem. Sometimes just changing the number or adding in certain conditions will make the problem much more challenging. I like to see if there is a way to create a problem where there are more than one correct answer and to have students find all the possible answers.
Since students who learn easily tend to be great at independent learning, we can use that to our advantage. We can plan an activity ahead of time, front load students with the basic information to get them started and let them take off. It’s even better if you have more than one student who needs a more complex experience. They can check in with each other, compare problem solving strategies and talk through the problem.
What Should a Challenge Activity Look Like?
Ideally, you want an activity that will engage students and motivate them. The best challenge project will ignite a student’s need to figure something out. They will be willing to try different strategies, and won’t give up if their first attempt is unsuccessful.
Another attribute of a great challenge activity is the type of product it will produce. Since students will be working on their own, or with a few other students, there needs to be a visual outcome that will show the steps taken, or the math completed, to solve the problem.
An example of this is an activity I use with students where students match the number of items and cost. They can guess and check and do the math in the margins, but I will be looking at the initial guess and whether they are using number sense to come up with better guesses. And of course, the math has to work for the final answer!
When I am creating an activity for students who need a challenge, I keep these traits in mind:
- Minimal directions needed
- Clear description of the problem being solved
- Problem that can be solved using different and varied strategies
- Minimal new learning expected
- Can be solved within a reasonable time frame
- Uses a context familiar to students
How Can Students Work Together Effectively?
Every student intuitively has a different style of working. Some students want to be left alone to delve into a complex activity. Once they have some work recorded on their paper, they may want to have a conversation with a peer working on the same project to compare notes and ask questions. For more ideas on different ways to have students work collaboratively, check out Alicia Springer’s blog post How A Collaborative Classroom Enables Deeper Learning
Other students like to talk it through, or verbally process before they engage in actively working on the solution. The better you know your students, the more complimentary the groups you can make. I tackle this head-on in the beginning of the year with a discussion. I want students to recognize the optimal conditions for them so they can advocate for themselves. There is nothing worse than trying to concentrate and having a learning partner distract you!
How Should I Introduce a Challenging Activity for Students?
Creating great extension activities and experiences for students who are ready should fit into your math routines just like accommodations you use with struggling students. Maybe you want students to work for half the time on the practice from what you taught the whole class and the rest of the time they can spend on a more challenging activity.
The key thing to remember is that you aren’t trying to challenge students by giving them more of the same work, but that it is slightly different, more challenging and there will be some independence and self-reliance expected. Not to say you can’t assist students who get “stuck”. Another thing to remember is that you don’t necessarily need an exciting, out-of-the-box challenging experience every day. Maybe twice a week will be enough for students. It really depends on your students’ abilities and dispositions.
Will My Students Like Being Challenged In Math?
Some students will thrive by being challenged. This may be the first time ever that their needs have been planned for during math class. They will come to math class excited and other students will see their enthusiasm. They will finish quickly so they can get to the “exciting” stuff. They will often share with their families what they are doing in math.
Other students, although perfectly capable, may be resistant to being challenged in math. These students don’t have a lot of persistence and aren’t used to having to work hard at math. It is almost as if their identity is wrapped up in knowing math without having to work at learning math. These students will be more challenging because they will often be less productive and want more support.
For these students I start out slow. Give them activities to work on to build their confidence and focus on the process of math, not the end product. If I can get them to sit with productive struggle, then identify how it feels when they find the solution, they can begin to enjoy the process of tackling more complex problem solving.
Where Do I Find Challenging Activities?
The best advice I’ve gotten is “start with where you are”. In other words, start with what you are currently teaching and think about ways to make it more complex. There are many activities that can be found online but sometimes it is difficult to find just the perfect fit for your students.
For activities that work well, I keep them and use them over again each year. If I know students have a particular interest I build an activity around that. One year, my class was wild about baseball. I used baseball stats as a starting point for more complex problem solving. Then I built a performance task around designing a baseball stadium, ordering team uniforms and stocking the concession stand. I have found that if I create a project (with a lot of math involved) and put students in charge, it takes on a life of its own.
Just to get you started, I’ve included two activities that you may want to use to see how students do. Creating An Art Mural is perfect for 3rd and 4th graders. I use this activity in the beginning of the year to see how their stamina is for trying different solutions for the same problem. A perfect challenge activity for 5th grade is The Swimming Pool Problem. This is the perfect extension activity when you are teaching volume. If you enjoy these activities, check out more resources at Math – It Works
Final Words on Differentiating Math For Advanced Students
Have fun with trying your hand at differentiating for you highly capable students. In the meantime, don’t forget to move all of your students toward higher level mathematics. I always tell my students, “I don’t know, but let’s try it!” I want students to be adventurous and curious as they learn math by doing.
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