Day 14 - Problem Solvers

I know I wrote about math yesterday, but there is another aspect of our math instruction that is so crucial, I felt it needed its own post.  As teachers, our goal is to teach our students to become confident problem solvers by applying the strategies and skills they are learning in class to new situations and challenges.  One of my favorite strategies is drawing bar models, as seen in this example:

Drawing a bar model is a great way for kids to process a math problem and see it on the paper in a picture to help them understand how to solve it.  
This video clip explains how it works for addition and subtraction problems, but we use this strategy all the way through fifth grade even when we are doing algebra. 
Enjoy!
Bar Modeling for Parents