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HOW TO TEACH ROUNDING: NEW INTERACTIVE 'ELEVATOR ROUNDING' METHOD




Rounding is a simple concept to catch, but students seem to struggle because:

  1. They need a better understanding of where a decimal visually lands between two midpoints

  2. They need to follow a strategy where they interact with the decimal they are rounding

In addition, it is always helpful to attach some type of story element or identity to mathematical concepts so that students can engage with them more personally. Since rounding is all about whether a decimal is closer moving Up or Down on the decimal scale, I attached the idea of rounding and connected it to the way elevators work.


Below, I will explain the entire strategy on how to round to the 10ths and 100ths place using a new method I call the 'Elevator Rounding' method. You will be able to use this in the classroom when introducing rounding. If you'd like to save time, I have a complete Step by Step Guide for students to follow-along as they learn how to round, with interactive elements throughout and moveable elevators to make rounding fun. I also will list a matching Elevator Rounding Game where you can assess them using these same manipulative elevators.


STEP 1: IDENTIFY WHAT PLACE VALUE YOU ARE ROUNDING TO

It sounds simple, but students consistently rush through rounding questions and forget entirely what place value they are even aiming for. It is important to have students follow the habit of underlining or highlighting what place value they need to round to in any math problem. Better yet, have them write a GOAL for each math problem they encounter which might look like this when they write notes near their problem.



STEP 2: CIRCLE THE DIGIT IN THE PLACE VALUE YOU ARE AIMING FOR

Write the decimal value you are rounding to on the side of your word problem in large print and then CIRCLE the digit that is in the place value you are aiming for.

STEP 3: UNDERLINE THE DIGIT TO THE RIGHT OF THE CIRCLED DIGIT

Draw a line under the digit to the RIGHT of the digit that you are rounding to (on the right of the circled digit).



STEP 4: ANALYZE THE UNDERLINED DIGIT TO CHANGE THE CIRCLED DIGIT

Look at the underlined digit to see whether you will ADD 1 digit to the circled digit OR if you will keep the circled digit the SAME.


If the underlined digit is a 5, 6, 7, 8, or 9:

You will ADD 1 digit to the circled digit and every digit to the right of this will turn into a zero.


If the underlined digit is a 4, 3, 2 1, or 0:

You will keep the circled digit the SAME and every digit to the right of this will turn into a zero.



The above example is the most complicated that rounding will get when you carry over. If you're looking for a complete product with rounding tied into elevators, you can view them below and visit the product page here:


HOW TO TEACH ROUNDING TO THE 10THS AND 100THS PLACE: INTERACTIVE ELEVATOR ROUNDING METHOD:



INTERACTIVE ELEVATOR ROUNDING GAME: VISUAL ELEVATOR METHOD FOR FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT



INTERACTIVE MULTIPLE CHOICE TASK CARDS: FOR WORD PROBLEM SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT



NOTE: ALL PRODUCTS COME WITH 24-7 SUPPORT AND SIMPLE CUSTOMIZATION IF YOU NEED SOME ADJUSTMENTS TO THE PRODUCT THAT MAKES YOUR TEACHING EASIER


EMAIL: CREATIVECLASSCENTER@YAHOO.COM


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