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4 Common Math Mistakes Teachers Make When Starting Guided Math Groups (And How To Avoid Them!)

Guided math is my jam now, but back in the day when I first learned about it, I definitely didn’t take the time to process how I was going to implement it with my students. It was through trial and error that I actually came up with a system that worked for me in my classroom. In this blog post, I’m going to share 4 of the most common guided math mistakes teachers make when starting guided math groups and math centers so you can learn how to avoid them!

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guided math mistakes

4 Math Mistakes Teachers Make When Starting Guided Math Groups and Math Centers

My first experience with guided math groups was less than ideal. My principal sent me to a half-day workshop over math centers. I left the workshop feeling confident that I could do it.

I thought that I could just go back to school the next day and get started. I had pretty good classroom management in place and my kids knew how to play games, so I thought everything would work. Well, that was NOT the case. Here are 4 of the biggest math mistakes I made when starting guided math groups.

Want to hear my honest thoughts on these mistakes and how to avoid them? Check out my YouTube video below!

Guided Math Mistake #1 – Not Implementing Routines & Procedures For Math Centers

The first guided math mistake I made was not implementing routines and procedures for guided math. Sure, I had a classroom management plan, but not one specific to guided math and math centers.

Just like at the beginning of a new school year, implementing routines and procedures for guided math is so important! We must take the time to teach our students how to do math centers, how to work in groups, how to complete independent work, and how to transition properly.

If your students are familiar with whole group teaching during your math lessons, and one day, you split them into random groups and rotate them around the classroom – it is NOT going to work!

You must take the time to teach your students how to transition, how to work with partners, and even how to work with manipulatives, because remember, we want to make math HANDS-ON! We have to teach students what to do and model what NOT to do.

My number one tip for training your students to successfully learn guided math is to have a TRANSITION SIGNAL. You can use anything from a simple bell to a wireless doorbell, which is my personal favorite!

Practice and model what students should do when they hear a certain chime from the doorbell to keep your math centers running smoothly.

Wireless doorbell for guided math transitions

I also found it beneficial to teach my students appropriate noise or voice levels to use for guided math groups. I trained students on and we practiced various noise levels for several weeks to ensure proper behavior.

It is not uncommon for it to take up to 5 weeks to properly train your students on how to successfully participate in guided math groups and math centers!

Here’s a quick breakdown of how the first 5 weeks may look:

Week 1: Practice routines & procedures. If a student does something incorrectly while practicing your routines and procedures, STOP. Show the signal. Call the students to the carpet to discuss what went wrong and discuss what they can do differently next time.

Week 2: Practice only 1 math center for the entire week. I know it may sound simple, but believe me when I say, it is better to start off slow!

Week 3: Work through multiple math centers. Begin by practicing 2 math centers while rotating from one activity to the next, followed by the third station.

Week 4: Implement technology. Students love it and it can be so useful during math centers, so don’t be afraid to use it! Boom Cards make a great technology center all year long!

Week 5: Begin guided math groups. Now that your students know the routines and procedures for how to transition and work together, it’s time to start guided math groups and let the fun begin!

Guided Math Mistake #2 – Over-Prepping Materials

My second guided math mistake is over-prepping materials. There is absolutely no need to run off copies for every single one of your students and spend an entire day laminating every piece.

That’s the joy of guided math. More then likely, your students will be working together in groups of 4-5 kids (I would suggest not going over 6 kids to a group). Therefore, they can share materials!

A few tips I would suggest is that if you are using task cards, print them in black and white on different colored paper. That way you know which set belongs to which group and you can easily differentiate.

Another hack is that if you are playing a game, you can put the game sheet inside of a plastic sleeve protector so that students can write on it and wipe it off so you can use it again!

write and wipe covers for math centers

Guided Math Mistake #3 – Never Switching Up Your Guided Math Groups

The next mistake I made was never switching up my guided math groups. Guided math is very different than guided reading because you don’t have to necessarily group your students by ability level. It is very important to constantly change up your math groups.

My suggestion would be to change your groups every 4-6 weeks or when a new concept is introduced. I use data from the pre-assessments in my guided math units and from ESGI to help me form my groups.

Then, I use my Guided Math Binder to keep track of my notes for each student and keep everything I need for my groups in one place.

Just think, a student might struggle in one area of math, but excel in the next. That’s why it’s important to use your math data and have mathematical conversations with your students to better serve them!

guided math binder for guided math groups

Guided Math Mistake #4 – Over-Planning

The last big mistake I made when starting guided math groups was over-planning. Have you ever bought a unit off of TPT that had a manipulative activity, interactive notebooks, games, crafts, and more, and you wanted to do it all in one day?

Those types of units are amazing, and in fact, my guided math units come with all of those components. However, they are NOT all meant to be done in one day.

When you plan so much into your whole group lesson, your students miss out on the core instruction that’s taking place at the small group table.

To make small group instruction successful, you have to condense your whole group instruction to make more time for guided math groups and math centers.

I knew that in order to fit in small groups and math stations, I needed to condense my whole group lesson to make more time for the “magic” component of small group instruction.

If you need help making time for guided math, I have a free training that can help you do just that. If you’re interested, you can sign up for the FREE Making Time For Guided Math Training HERE!

I hope that by me sharing the guided math mistakes I made when getting started, you can avoid them and have success with guided math in your classroom!

If you’re looking for more tips on getting started with guided math groups, check out the first post in my guided math series, Guided Math Break Down.

guided math mistakes

Have a blessed one,

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