Reflection on environment task

According to Van de Walle (2009), "Rather than building on prior knowledge, teaching for problem solving often starts with learning the abstract concept and then moving to solving problems as a way to apply the learned skills."

Thus, from the activtiy we have created, we have made used of the children's prior knowledge of the concept addition with the incorporation of the concept of counting money.

In my group's activity, we have decided to use  the supermarket to allow children to carry out their tasks as it is an environmet that allows children to experience hands on and relates to their everyday life. The task for the children would be to purchase a particular brand of loaf of bread that cost $1.75. They are given $2 in coins of 50cents, 20 cents, 10 cents and 5 cents. They would be asked to use the coins that they have to purchase the bread by giving the exact amount to the count.

Using the features of a problem for learning mathematics, I have broken down the environment task that my group has planned accordingly to these features.

• It must begin where the students are.

           My group has chosen the supermarket as it is a place that most children would visit almost once a week with their family members. In addition, most centres would have a dramatic corner that allows children to dramatise grocery shopping. Also, for kindergarten 2 children, they are learning the concept of money. Thus, it would be fun and interesting for them to take charge of paying at the cashier and experience it in real-life situation instead of just acting out in their dramatic corner.  

• The problematic or engaging aspect of the problem must be due to the mathematics that students are to learn.

          The problem in the task for the children would be trying to use the coin to add up to the specific amount given to buy the bread which is $1.75. This is because they are not given the exact amount. Thus, the children need to work out on the number of 50 cent coins, 20 cents coins, 10 cent coins and 5 cents coins needed to form $1.75.

• It must require justifications and explanations for answers and methods.

The children would be able to justify for themselves and with their partners how they derive to the cost of $1.75. This is because the children are free to choose the method that they would use to come to the cost of $1.75. For instance, some children may immediately understand that 3 fifty cents make up $1.50 while there are children who would slowly add up the coins individuly to amount it to $1.75. Also, they need to be confident of their own counting as the teacher would not check the amount of money that they have counted before making payment at the counter.