Math Talk Worksheet:

Guide students in explaining their mathematical thinking and problem-solving strategies with a Math Talk conversation guide. Identify the key vocabulary you want students to use. Students work in pairs to describe their problem-solving and tally one another when they use key vocabulary.

Step 1. Solve the problem. Show your work.

Step 2.
How did you solve the problem? As you tell your partner what you were thinking and what strategies you used, use the key vocabulary.
Listen to your partner’s explanation. Write a tally next to any of the key words they use.

Step 3. Switch with your partner and have them tally you.

CCSS.MATH.PRACTICE.MP6 Attend to precision.
Mathematically proficient students try to communicate precisely to others. They try to use clear definitions in discussion with others and in their own reasoning. They state the meaning of the symbols they choose, including using the equal sign consistently and appropriately. They are careful about specifying units of measure, and labeling axes to clarify the correspondence with quantities in a problem. They calculate accurately and efficiently, express numerical answers with a degree of precision appropriate for the problem context. In the elementary grades, students give carefully formulated explanations to each other. By the time they reach high school they have learned to examine claims and make explicit use of definitions.