Select and Discuss a Shift
Shift Toward… (Shift 2 and 5 )
 Students shift from working individually towards a community of learners
 Shift in content being taught in isolation toward content connected to prior
knowledge
Grade Level: 3
Lesson Topic: Two and Three Addition
The Task
How might you adapt the task
to reflect the shift?
I would adapt the task by
focusing on the learning
objectives and goals. I would
guide children to use prior
knowledge from place value,
base ten blocks, a number grid,
number lines, and partial sums
to answer two and three digit
addition.
I would also adapt the task by
encouraging students to talk
with each other and share
their different strategies and
understandings of the
problems instead of just
working independently.
Lesson
How might you structure the
lesson itself to align with the
shift?
The lesson will be adapted
from a 45 minute lesson to a
shorter 15 minute mini-lesson
where I focus on the learning
objectives and goals. During
the lesson, I will allow the
students opportunities to see
the connections between prior
knowledge (place value, base
ten blocks, number grid,
number line, partial sums, etc.)
and two and three digit
addition. After the mini-lesson,
students will then receive
differentiated instruction in
small groups at their
individual needs. Students will
be encouraged to have
discussions with others and to
explain their thinking and
strategies.
Classroom Environment
How might you organize
students in ways that reflect the
shift?
*Students will be sitting in
groups rather than
individually so they can have
peer conversations and
discussions to share their
strategies.
*For small groups, students
will meet with me at a U-
shaped table for differentiated
instruction. This instruction
will be in small groups or
individually, depending on
student need.
*Math supplies, tools, and
resources are easily available
and students know where to
find and use them.
Discussing the Task
What questions or questioning
strategies would demonstrate
this shift?
Asking questions such as:
*What other strategies have
you done in math that may
have helped you solve these
problems?
*What was your thinking when
you solved this problem?
*How did you arrive at that
answer?
*Turn and talk with the person
next to you.
*Discuss in your group the
strategies you used to solve
the problem.
*If there is a disagreement,
encourage students to discuss
their strategies with each
other and do the problem
again until they both can agree
on an answer.
*Does your answer seem
reasonable? Why or why not?
Setting Up the Task
How might you pose the task to
reflect the shift?
Rather than just teaching the
students a procedure for two
and three digit addition and
having them practice it
independently, I will pose the
task of giving them a problem
and guiding them to use prior
knowledge and different
strategies to solve the
problems. I will encourage
students to discuss their
thoughts and strategies with
others.
Assessing
What formative assessment
might reflect the shift?
Analyzing student work and
observing which strategies
students use during small
groups will help me know who
does and doesn’t understand
the objective.
This will allow me to modify
instruction so that I can plan
for future lessons. These
future lessons include whole
group, small group, and
meeting individually so that I
can meet the needs of all
students.