Skip to main content

The Return

Coming back to the classroom is always a refreshing challenge. As a new teacher to Martin County West, I had to rebuild the tools I will use in the classroom.  After saying goodbye to Heron Lake-Okabena, I also said goodbye to the materials I developed, NOT because they weren’t any good, but because they catered to HLO, not MCW. Each culture deserves material that suits them, and I’m going to make curriculum work for my new assignments, Intermediate Algebra and Geometry.

I am not sure why the district wants to focus strictly on the standards, but I think I can get what I want, weaving them into the lessons I’ll give.  The students have given feedback already what they feel would work for them, and I’ll try to incorporate these ideas as I lead them.

They (my students at MCW) are definitely hungry for ways of learning.  Many have not had consistent instruction, not due to any fault of their own (or the district's).  Can't really go down that road without divulging private information so needless to say, they would love an engaging classroom I hope to build.

I started the week with Professor Jo Boaler and her students who created videos and lessons to transition students from merely participating in math, to becoming emerging mathematicians. As I go through these lessons (in 4 days), I am making them detect, and then explain, their own thinking.  Many have not become aware yet how they think mathematically, and some were just good algorithm memorizers.  The point was made that they CAN.

The next leg of the journey is to not only use tools I love to play with like Desmos, Google Classroom, any other manipulatives, but to see what math teachers are doing across the Minnesota borders (and some in the US) are doing to meet those 2007 standards.  The myNCTM discussion is helpful, as I can connect with those greater-US math teachers.  I admit I have not submitted any works to my local MCTM, even though I have been asked, because I want to devote to this new job.

My goal (and my principal's) is to find a way to get quick feedback to the students and help them deepen their understanding of mathematics.  This means redeveloping lesson plans to accommodate for device use.  From my inventory I handed out to them (via. Google Classroom), they responded quite sincerely (for the most part), and there are about 85% of the students have cell phones and/or electronic devices.  I am excited to augment this curriculum with my tech powers to try to accomplish this, as well as increase engagement from those students who have decided to just cross their arms and bear through it.  Not that I minded college level classes, I am so glad to focus on 2 subjects to really make relationships and connections with this year's students (and hey if it drives up the MCA scores, that's a bonus). 
What do you notice?

I have an idea to initiate Sara Van Der Werf's Stand & Talks, but will share details after I started it!

Here's a hint at the left...

Til I chalk again,

Mr. Shel


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Hope for the next standards....

  Though the picture represents a different reason for my mug smile (taken in May 2022), it makes me feel the same way to try to continue to hope for the future of math standards.   Currently we are working underneath the 2007 Minnesota Math Standards, and version III of the new standards have been out for comment by the public.  Before, there were general ideas what was supposed to be presented to Algebra 1, Algebra 2, Geometry, upper standards (advanced data and statistics), but yet did not account for the College Now or other preparatory math many schools have implemented to be competitive. Here's a case example of hope for improvement.  Currently I teach Algebra 1 to the eighth graders in our district.  The curriculum we have is very rigorous (that is to say, the book focuses on rational exponents), and gives students little practice with integer exponents to build their confidence.  This gap, paired with a low numeracy and low fraction exposure fr...
Post a Comment
Read more

Incognito

Oh my... I have operated under the radar for the last year . There are so many things that have happened. For one, my post from winter quarter disappeared. Can't remember everything, so here goes... The picture you see is of my daughter being ready for summer camp before I left her for the week.  I realize that I will yet again be teaching college now algebra (this was ladt fall). . Based on my last experience I was not excited to do what I had done the previous year. However when the school year started, I then realized how sweet a schedule I actually had.  Actually this year's college now class was very concerned about their learning. There were a few, of course, that tried to command my attention, and I reminded them of course, this was a college-level class which required college level expectations. There was also a question whether or not I would return the following year and if so what capacity would I be teaching. It made me look for other possibilities well still ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Times of Transition

  I used to DESIRE to dig into research and to experiment and try a hypothesis in my classroom.  Since COVID I have felt complacent and unsupported to try anything.  This is the danger of not just the pandemic, but ANY major situation. Then I also became involved with MCTM and worked with people whose desire was to make math more connected again.  There were several feeling the same way as I did, and for once that gave some comfort.   I've discovered through personal study and investment in my thinking habits, (as mentioned in previous posts) that I am an Architect.  Not by trade, but by mindful construction of the "Big Picture" and commanding the tools, resources, and assets I am connected to make it happen. Not to brag, far from it, for Architects also are behind the scenes people, and some have the opposite of superiority complex; that is to say, an inferiority complex.   This is a dangerous feeling to have, especially if one is in a competiti...
Post a Comment
Read more