UNDERSTANDING MIDDLE SCHOOL

By Group:
1. Nuruk Audhifa Tami (17029172)
2. Rita Fajriati (17029180)
3. Fadhilatul Husna (17029090)
4. Dila Novita (17029010)
5. Yossi Jelia (17029052)

Lecturer: Mai Sri Lena, S.pd, M.pd

MATHEMATICS DEPARTMENT
FACULTY OF MATHEMATIC AND SCIENCE
PADANG STATE UNIVERSITY
 2018Lets be candid. Almost 99% peoples do not like math. Math like a monster that
should be damaged. So how do we (as math teacher candidates) to overcome this?
Based of the experts Harvey and Goudvis, agree that while context cues can help build meaning
of passage, they are no substitute for reading the full text and using powerful reading
comprehension strategies such as :
1. Making Connection
2. Visualizing
3. Determining Importance
4. Metacognitive monitoring
5. Asking Question
6. Inferring and Predicting
7. Syntehsyzing

The Tall Tale of the Two Texas Rachers

At the Longhorn Saloon many years ago, two Texas ranchers were overheard having the
following argument.
Racher 1: I don't know where you got your information, mister, but I've been told i have the
largest ranch in this here country.
Racher 2 : Well, i just reckon you've been told wrong. My ranch is the biggest in the country.
Why, my triangle T Ranch is so big, it takes 48 miles of barbed wire to go all the way around
it.
Rancher 1 : Well, ain't that somethin'. It takes 48 miles of barbed wire to go all the way around
my ranch, too. My wright triangle ranch is in the shape of a triangle and the 3 sides are 12 miles,
16 miles, and 20 mil.
Rancher 2 : My Triangle T Ranch is shaped like a triangle, too. Its side are 10 miles, 17 miles,
and 21 miles. Well, i guess our ranches are the same size, then.
Rancher 1 : No, i still think mine is bigger.

Are the two ranches the same size or is bigger than the other ?

We can use the tale above to improve students' brain performance. The rule is we tell the
story of it and ask them to guess what the problem is about. The brainstorming students do is not
off-task. it is time well spent because they are warming up their imagination engines.
Brainstorming helps motivate students to try to understand the problem. It helps to counteract
years of not reading the problem, making wild guesses and giving up.
 On this situation, we use KWC process to relief it.
1. Student's read one sentence at the time and imagine the situation being describe. Then
we ask them somes question like “what are the basic facts here?” or “what do we know
for sure ?”
2. Keep track of student's answers on the board and see typical student responses
3. Provoking answers from students
4. If the student is already convinced of the answer, reward him / her if the answer is
correct, and give directions to the correct answer if the student is wrong

KWC

KWC is the ways to realizing learning especially in the field of mathematics, in order to be
well understood by students in a fun way.In Michelle's Junior HSP class they've begun to tackle
problem solving in a way that makes a math / literacy connection: A K-W-C chart.

A K-W-C chart uses three different headings to help students make sense of the information in the
problem that they are working on. Each heading has a specific purpose:

K - stands for "What do I know from the question?" This could be specific items such as "There
were 4 cats and 3 birds" or "Each scarf was 100 cm long."

W - stands for "What is the question asking?" Basically, you have the students restate the question
in their own words. Sometimes this is really a short sentence, sometimes it is a bit longer.

C - stands for "Are there any special considerations or conditions?" This section can be a little
tricky to fill out because sometimes the conditions are also things that we know. When doing the
chart with your students, feel free to go back and forth between the K and the C when you first
start. Eventually, you can move onto the discussion of is that a K or is it a C? A condition would
be something that must be remembered in order to complete the problem. For example, a condition
could be "there were 20 pairs of shoes in total" or "You can not create the same shape more than
once."

In using this tool when problem solving, it helps students to comprehend the problem better, and
then solve it better. The first few times you complete a K-W-C chart with your students may be
difficult, but in time they will really adapt to it and find it a useful tool in problem solving.

This idea was taken from Arthur Hyde's book called "Comprehending Math: Adapting Reading
Strategies to Teach Mathematics, K-6" it is filled with other good teaching strategies and problems
to use in your classroom. He has a second book called "Understanding Middle School Math" which
focus' on Grades 6 and above. Basically, in to teach math the best way to instill an understanding
of mathematics in kindergarten, elementary school, and junior high school is to use their
imagination in solving problems. Do not make the math class into a class that always has to look
serious and creepy. Occasionally interspersed with jokes that make them not think that math is a
monster to avoid.

In fact even in Indonesia even abroad, many math teachers feel irresponsible for material that
students do not understand. When asked "Why do not you show them what to do?" they will
respond with emotion "That's not my job, that should be done by the junior high school teachers"

Thats one! That is a big deal in our culture, thinking that all the misconception is the mistake
from the prior knowledge. Even its the truth, we still must to correct it, although its not easy. Thats
what teacher made for.

Please remember, our students need to learn how to learn and part of our job as teachers is
to help them do just that, whether they are kindergarteners, middle schoolers, or graduate students.