Hey math students and parents,
Let’s have some fun with this ‘how to learn.’
I’ll ask you a question about something you’ve learnt.
You’ll give an answer that tells me what you did.
I’ll tell you that your answer is wrong.
You’ll tell me I’m wrong.
I’ll then tell you what you actually did.
You’ll then tell agree with me, that I was right.
My job is to know what a math student is thinking.
You’ll see that I know you very well even though I don’t know you. Let’s have some fun. Here goes:
Think about a skill you learnt well - it can be a sport, musical instrument, hobby, a course at school, or anything. My question - why did you learn it well?
Your answer is? I’ll predict what you’re thinking, “I worked hard,” or “I trained hard,” or “I practice a lot,” or some version of that.
Your answer is wrong, but you knew I would say that, as I wrote it in 3. above 😊.
Go ahead, now tell me I’m wrong. “You’re wrong, Edison.” There, that was easy.
Here’s what you actually did to learn it well:
1st You decided you wanted to get better at that skill.
I know, if you’re thinking, “Edison, that’s so lame,” then I hear you, but stick with me,2nd You were motivated to learn that skill, right?
3rd You understood the steps you needed to get better at that skill, right?
4th You practiced what you understood a lot, right?
5th Finally, you got a result that gave you feedback on whether what you were doing was working and then made changes to learn from any mistakes you made, right?
Thank you. I know you now agree that you were wrong with your ‘I worked harder’ and I was right. I’ll take a bow now. Lol!
One of the first things I do with students is tell them the 5-steps to learn* math, as most have never been taught the steps to learn! Knowing the steps gives them a substantial advantage in understanding what they need to do to learn math well and improve in any weak area. They realise, perhaps like you now, that working harder, studying more isn’t how you learn; you learn by following the 5-steps! And it’s always the same 5-steps, always!
You know you’ve learnt a skill well when you remember what to do.
Here is the 5-step strategy for learning:
#1 You decide what you want to learn or get better at?
#2 You’re motivated to achieve it.
#3 You understand the steps needed to learn or get better.
#4 You reinforce what you understand - this is the repetitions/reps to help you remember (sometimes called homework).
#5 Result & Feedback: Finally, you’ll get a result that tells you whether you’ve achieved it. That result is your feedback on how well you did steps #2 to #4. If you’re not happy, it’s time to “learn from mistakes’ by going back to #1 and restating the weak area to get better at. Or if you’re happy with the results, you’ve achieved your goal! Yay. Onto the next task 😊.
Think of the 5-steps as a strategy formula: Motivation + Understanding + Reinforcing = Result.
Quiz question: Think of a time when you didn’t learn something well or didn’t achieve an objective you set. Here’s the quiz, “Why didn’t you learn it well?”
And your answer is … hint/tip/clue … it’s not because you didn’t work hard enough. It’s because, drumroll, you were weak in one of the 5-steps - your motivation, understanding, reinforcing or learning from mistakes.
Learning always has 5-steps. Always!
Best in learning,
Edison
Edison Hopkinson BSc Mech Eng, B.Ed., OCT
Math Learning Strategist
Strategies to use when the usual isn’t working!