Writing About Math Expressions

Explicit Instruction/Teacher modeling

• Review the vocabulary terms and distribute the Vocabulary Cards to each student.
• Assign a group of five, mixed-ability students a new vocabulary word they will use to complete a Frayer Model worksheet. Use the words "greater than," "less than," "times," and "double" and allow words to repeat if you need more than four groups.
• Model presenting your Frayer Model for the word "greater than." Write the sentences on the board and then write the sentence frames that correspond with the descriptions you shared.
  • "The meaning of the word ____ is ____."
  • "I drew the picture ____ because ____."
  • "An example of ____ is ____."
  • "A non-example of ____ is ____."
• Assign the five students in each group a number 1–5 and have them label the boxes in the Frayer Model 1–5 (excluding the word). The student with the corresponding number will present that section of the Frayer Model to the whole class. (Note: choose students who are confident in their understanding of the new term, and allow the listeners to turn and talk to their partner about the new term after the brief presentation.)

Guided Practice

• Model using the new vocabulary terms with the expression 34 – (32 ÷ 8) (e.g., "The expression 34 – (32 ÷ 8) is (32 ÷ 8) less than 34.").
• Write 2–6 more expressions with more than one operation on the board. Model another expression (e.g., "The expression (8 x 2) + 5 is 5 more than (8 x 2).). Choose volunteers to use the sentence frames to help them say more comparison sentences using the terms "expression," "greater than," or "less than."
• Write another expression (e.g., 4 (8 – 4)) on the board and have students turn and talk to their partners. Have partners take turns saying sentences that compare the two expressions (e.g., (8 – 4) and 4 (8 – 4)) using one of the phrases on the board.
• Choose a few volunteers to share their comparative sentences orally. Throughout the whole activity, write sentence frames for each of the types of comparative sentences for student reference.

Group work time

• Have students complete a carousel activity.
  • Create partnerships and distribute two copy papers and one construction paper to each partnership.
  • Have partners write one mathematical expression on their construction paper that involves two separate operations and parentheses. Tell partners to leave their construction papers at their desks.
  • Tell partners to rotate to the left and review a different partnerships' expression. Instruct them to write a comparative sentence like those from the Guided Practice section. ("The expression will increase three times," or "The expression will decrease by three.")
  • Repeat a new partner rotation to the left if time remains. Have them write down the comparative sentence of the new expression on their copy paper.
• Ask students to form new partnerships and have them share their sentences with each other, taking turns reading the whole sentence aloud. Tell the listening partner to share aloud what operation will apply to the expression in the parentheses (i.e., divide, subtract, multiply, add).