Math has the potential to make a huge impact on student success in high school and beyond, as well as in their future careers. Yet, for many students, math can seem inaccessible, or even frustrating. Some students even struggle with math anxiety, believing they simply can’t learn math.
As teachers encounter students on their learning journey, ensuring that all students are successful and confident in math is crucial. And by performing math intervention, educators can ensure that students who need that extra support in math have it!
What is math intervention?
At its core, math interventions are strategies used to help students who may be struggling with math get back on track with their learning. All students should receive the support they need to succeed and overcome barriers in the math classroom. With intervention, teachers can provide specific targeted help to students who need it. Using a three-tiered system, teachers monitor student progress and identify challenges quickly in order to step in and offer additional support where needed.
Impactful intervention strategies for the math classroom
Math intervention can look different for each student and scenario, from dedicated classes to focused attention within a core math curriculum. No matter the individual needs of your students, the following intervention strategies can help your students build their skills and math growth mindsets. Implement these strategies in your one-on-one, small-group, or whole-group math instruction.
- Incorporate Math Journaling
Diving into new math concepts can be daunting for students, but math journals provide a safe space to explore and express ideas. Through math journals, students are able to explain and solve math problems using their own words and/or drawings. Journals can even be used to work on metacognitive skills, as students reflect on their mathematical thinking. When using math journals, make sure to provide a variety of prompts to encourage students to think and write about math. For example, pose problem-solving questions like, “How would you solve this problem?” and reflective questions like, “How does this math concept apply to real life?” Math journals are equally useful for teachers, providing insight into students’ strengths and challenges and can be used as formative assessments, such as exit tickets. - Introduce Math Vocabulary
Math terms like numerator, denominator, sum, and the difference might be unheard of for some of your students. So before you begin a new math lesson, make sure to introduce math vocabulary. Reviewing math terms allows students to activate prior knowledge and teachers to scaffold instruction. Instead of having students memorize definitions, invite students to define concepts in their own words in their math journals. Use graphic organizers, like vocabulary word maps, to help students create definitions and draw diagrams. That way, students will be able to visualize terms and be able to refer back to the concepts throughout the year. Also, display vocabulary on an interactive math word wall that students can interact with during small group centers. - Think Aloud During the Problem-Solving Process
A lot of math is mental, so you’re not able to see students’ thought processes as they’re working through a problem. Thinking aloud while working through a problem, or mathematical discourse, is a useful strategy to better understand students’ problem-solving process. When students verbalize their thinking, you’ll be able to better identify their challenges. Before probing students on their processes, model thinking aloud. Stop at each step of the problem and use mathematical language and reasoning along the way. Later, ask students to do the same. You can use this math intervention method during whole-group, small-group, or one-on-one instruction. - Provide Opportunities for Peer Tutoring
When students have opportunities to teach others, they build a deeper conceptual understanding of concepts. With peer tutoring, a higher-performing student is typically paired with a struggling student. Students are instructed on peer tutoring procedures and provided tutoring tools, like flashcards. Through peer tutoring, students are also able to engage in math discourse and build math confidence. - Use Math Manipulatives
Students exposed to various math models and visual representations will be more likely to comprehend math concepts. Tactile tools, like math manipulatives, are a great additional math intervention resource, as they help students explore math in different ways. To teach foundational math skills like math facts, use a variety of math manipulatives, like Unifix cubes and base-ten blocks, to represent numbers in the equation.
However, not all math manipulatives have to be physical representations! With the rise of educational math technology tools, powerful virtual math manipulatives are available. ExploreLearning offers three math solutions that build math skills through engaging games and explorations.
Discover math intervention resources
Find additional response-to-intervention resources for your classroom when you sign up for ExploreLearning Reflex and Frax. Both programs use evidence-based strategies to support students at all intervention levels. With Reflex and Frax teachers and students have access to:
- A Reflex Readiness Quiz to assess which students should receive intervention work
- Differentiated & adaptive instruction
- Opportunities for review
- Systematic instruction
- Powerful student reporting
- Offline activities
