Team Roles and the Manage Mat Tool

Mary Fox
Second-grade math teacher, Lovejoy Elementary School, Des Moines Public Schools, Iowa

This year I have made growth with teams of four. As a team, we implemented new team roles that gave everyone a stake in their learning and a voice in their group. Tasks were planned to cognitively challenge students and engaged them in the content. In this activity, students were using the UPSE process to solve word problems using a strategy of their choosing. At this point in the year, students had become comfortable enough in their roles that they assigned them independently and made a small visible mark on their board to distinguish their job within their team. The manage mats were an excellent way for students to show their work independently and then process and coach as a team to come to an agreed upon answer. This also gave me a great opportunity to walk around and verify learning.