The ‘Dekho’ of Maths : Bulletin and Display Boards

In addition to adding colour to a classroom, defining classroom goals and policies, and showcasing student work, bulletin and display boards can be interactive teaching tools. They can be “another teacher” in your classroom. Boards that change periodically to reflect new lessons help visual learners better understand new material, reinforce new words and concepts, and challenge students to participate in new ways.

I try to introduce a new math concept by writing a little interesting note about the concept at hand on the bulletin board a day prior to introducing that topic. Another simple, interactive and learning activity that I like to do on the board is from Algebra. I pose an interesting question sometimes in a riddle form, sometimes in a real life simulated problem manner to the students on the Display Board. Students work out the solution in their different ways. We discuss a few of those in the math class. Later the students in groups are encouraged to create a problem with that answer.

Bulletin boards are also self-teaching tools for students. The visual impact of getting a problem to think about is very strong and motivates a greater number to think and solve than a problem given as Home Assignment in the Maths notebook. Students can add their own procedural and conceptual understanding on the bulletin boards or respond to prompts given by me or sometimes even by their peers. Students can also voice their opinions on bulletin boards, voting on favorite books and recommending reading material to others.

I personally prefer using Bulletin boards as word walls. They have the power to be effective vocabulary-building tools. I enjoy talking and I encourage my students to talk! Talk Maths! I motivate my students to create definitions of all the important terms that they come across everyday in the maths classroom, the Maths textbook and their everyday encounters with people. Whenever students are exposed to new vocabulary, key vocabulary words are added gradually to the wall. Time and again, I facilitate review activities to practice the new words. The visual impact is again put to great use.