I am writing a small piece for another project on how important it is for students to be able to offload complex mathematical tasks onto the environment, and how free play with manipulatives before using them to help problem-solve allows for a more flexible mindset and easier offloading. It brought me back to a conversation in the "twitterverse".
Now the one thing you need to know, is that when you teach outside, being a minimalist is an advantage. However, there are some common pieces of equipment like first aid kits or large cloth "10 frames" that many educators carry, and here is where the controversy arose.
Basically it went like this: A well-meaning outdoor education site (I am sorry, I do not remember who, so I can't give proper credit) was showing how "10-frames" can be used outside for sorting, unitizing, or engaging skip counting (ie, placing five items in each box, then counting by 5's).
Well, the outrage of some - how dare we encourage flexible use of a 10-frame? They will never learn to use it properly. Think of how it will affect their ability to subitize!
SO I no longer take 10 frames outside, rather I carry large cloth grids so that we can use them to explore a variety of concepts in a way that is easy to organize and create clear visual representations. If my kids were less capable, maybe I would worry more, but I teach pretty smart humans.
Books that explore these ideas: The Extended Mind by Annie Marie Paul and Thinking Classrooms by P. Liljedahl
Now the one thing you need to know, is that when you teach outside, being a minimalist is an advantage. However, there are some common pieces of equipment like first aid kits or large cloth "10 frames" that many educators carry, and here is where the controversy arose.
Basically it went like this: A well-meaning outdoor education site (I am sorry, I do not remember who, so I can't give proper credit) was showing how "10-frames" can be used outside for sorting, unitizing, or engaging skip counting (ie, placing five items in each box, then counting by 5's).
Well, the outrage of some - how dare we encourage flexible use of a 10-frame? They will never learn to use it properly. Think of how it will affect their ability to subitize!
SO I no longer take 10 frames outside, rather I carry large cloth grids so that we can use them to explore a variety of concepts in a way that is easy to organize and create clear visual representations. If my kids were less capable, maybe I would worry more, but I teach pretty smart humans.
Books that explore these ideas: The Extended Mind by Annie Marie Paul and Thinking Classrooms by P. Liljedahl