Why work in pairs or groups? Day One...

There were four PROBLEMS presented to us today, the first one being "Which letter counted 99".

My way of getting the 99th letter...

When I was working alone, I only saw one method, but when i work with my group mates, more methods were revealed.

My group mate's way of identifying the 99th letter.. counting from 1 to 99. 

And then, when you put the entire class together, more methods came up such as, counting in 10's till you reach 100, and you take one step back to 99th.!!! Talk about the effectiveness of working in an appropriate environment/classroom and peers.

Then came another PROBLEM... The Tangram challenge... Look at the picture on the right.

We had to something along this line, creating rectangles with 5 and 7 shapes. It was difficult, but with peers assistance and ideas, it was made possible.  

Working together with peers in an appropriate environment is important. Teacher's often engage children in pair or group work, and it is not just to enhance a child's social skills, but to deepen his/her level of thinking. As i have seen today, one problem, many methods, many solutions. Getting the answer is not important, but how you get it matters! Exploring, discussion with friends, persistence and looking out for patterns do go hand in hand...

As quoted by Dr.Yeap, "As you share, you will reflect, and that is a formation of knowledge."