The Five "E's"

ENGAGE (Hook) – “The Mystery Multiplication Bags”

Objective: Activate prior knowledge of equal groups.
Activity:

  • The teacher shows 3 small bags with different quantities of counters hidden inside each.

  • Students shake, guess, and then open the bags to count and create equal groups using counters.

  • Discuss:

    • “How can we show these amounts in groups?”

    • “Could this be represented as multiplication or division?”

Materials: Small bags, counters (beans, cubes, erasers), chart paper

EXPLORE – Stations for Meaning-Making 

Objective: Students model multiplication and division in multiple ways.



Students rotate through 4 hands-on stations:

Station 1: Arrays with Tiles

  • Build arrays (e.g., 4 rows of 6).
  • Write matching multiplication and repeated addition equations.

Materials: Tiles, grid paper

Station 2: Equal Groups & Division

  • Use counters to create groups and solve sharing/partitioning problems.

Materials: Counting cubes or small objects

Station 3: Strip Diagrams

  • Students draw bar models to represent multiplication/division stories.

Materials: Whiteboards, markers

Station 4: Fact Family Triangles

  • Use triangular cards to connect 3 numbers into multiplication/division sentences.

Materials: Fact family cards

Formative Check:

  • The teacher uses a checklist, observing:
    • Correct use of models
    • Grouping accuracy
    • Equation matching

EXPLAIN – BuildingFormal Understanding

Objective: Connect concrete models to abstract equations.
Teacher leads a mini-lesson:

Teacher Actions

  • Model how arrays, equal groups, and strip diagrams connect to equations.
  • Clarify the difference between # of groups and # in each group.
  • Solve 2–3 example problems together.

Student Actions

  • Share strategies used at stations.
  • Justify thinking verbally or with drawings.

Formative Assessment

  • Whiteboard quick check:
    Students draw an array for 3 × 4 and write the matching division fact.

ELABORATE

Real-World Application Problems

Objective: Apply multiplication and division to word problems.
Students work on differentiated tasks:

On-Level Example

  • “There are 5 shelves with 4 books on each. How many total?”

ELL-Adjusted Example

  • Provide visuals:
    • Shelves drawn
    • Numbers highlighted
  • Sentence frames:

“I multiplied ______ and ______ because ______.”

    Special Needs Scaffold

    • Pre-highlight key words
    • Provide manipulatives + simplified text
    • Allow partner support

    Enrichment Example

    • Two-step problems:
      • “A teacher has 4 baskets with 6 balls. She gives each student 3 balls. How many students can get balls?”

    Materials: Word problem cards, manipulatives, math journals

    EVALUATE

    Formative Assessments Throughout

    • Station checklist

    • Whiteboard responses

    • Turn & talk explanations

    • Teacher observation notes