New Ideas!!

After taking several SCED classes it has given me lots of ideas to think about. One of those ideas is how to handle the diversity that will be in my classroom. My plan for class is to teach them a little bit about the history of mathematics and research different ways that other countries teach math. Learning about math and how it relates to the world will make it more interesting. I know that I have found math more interesting when I know where it comes from. I have found that math is taught differently from other parts of the world.


I also liked finding out about different technologies that I can use in my classroom. From my text set there were lots of websites and apps that I found to help with teaching in the classroom. One of my favorite websites is http://patrickjmt.com/. He has lots of videos that I like to watch that help me figure out math and I will have my kids go there when they are home and are stuck with their homework.

This class has given me lots of good ideas to teach in my classroom!! Thanks for the great class!!

Talk, Talk and more Talk...

As I was reading through the text this week it reminded me of the way I want to teach Math...anyway I dream that math class can be full of meaningful discussion and learning. I think achieving this could be harder than it sounds, but I am determined to figure out how to make math fun.

One of the ideas that stood out to me was small group discussion and I thought about a teacher that I have been subbing for and helping in his class the last few years. I really like the way he involves students and shows them ways they can see math at a different level. He is always engaging students in learning and if he feels like he is loosing them he asks them a question that has to be answered right then. He has a program that connects to his class via his Inspire calculators and he will throw out a question and give them a time limit to answer the question. The reason I like this is because he shows the students their answers and knows where the class is at and who needs help with the concept he is teaching. I also like how he has his classroom setup...it's in tables. I don't think math is a subject to do by yourself and asking others for help is a great way to learn.

I think oral discussions are very helpful in math and I like the dice idea...it gives students a way to ask meaningful questions and learn from each other. From the van De Weghe text I liked the section on authentic questions. By asking authentic questions students get the idea that you care about their learning. I laughed when I read it because I answer my own children like that sometimes...your right or thanks, but by acknowledging their answer with a real response they know you are listening. A good example...when I ask my 18 year old what he is going to be doing with his friends he says going to the club. Instead of getting upset I just say not until your room is clean. He would never go to the club, but I don't just say you're never going there I just respond to his teasing with a good-natured response. Showing people that you are actually listening to what they say makes their opinions have meaning and they are more likely to respond the way you want them to. I want my class to be a place of learning and lecturing is not a way I feel you can achieve that, but asking questions and letting them discover the answers is a better way. You then have students that feel like what you are teaching them is important.

Here is a paper I found on ways to facilitate discussion in math:
Generating Interest in Mathematics through Discussion

Critical Literarcy

I imagine that if you walked into a math classroom and had an understanding of the word fraction with the context of using them to divide a pie and that was all you knew it might be hard to use fractions in the rest of math. Fractions have a lot more  meaning than just dividing a pie and so understanding fractions in many ways would be pretty critical.

There are so many ways to use fractions in math that if you don't understand the very beginning of fractions it's harder to ask questions that will help you critically think about fractions.

There are four things that students need to do in order to have an in-depth understanding of what they are learning about. Ask questions that will get them thinking about the content you are trying to teach them.

The first is de-coding.
• What are the different ways numbers are used and represented?
• What is the terminology being used and what does it mean?
• What are the key mathematical concepts?
• What are the key mathematical processes and procedures?

The second is meaning-making.
• What is the text about?
• How does it relate to what I already know?
• How can I use what I already know to help me explore further?
• How do the mathematical concepts make sense in this context?
• How do the mathematical concepts help me understand this context?
• What is confusing or misleading?
• Are there other possible meanings?

The third is using.
• In what ways are the numbers or mathematical concepts in this context significant or useful?
• What is the purpose of the text and how does it connect into a bigger picture?
• How might this text be used to promote different viewpoints?
• What are possible applications and likely impacts?
• How would I use this text and what decisions would I make based on it?
• In what ways am I now thinking about the issues and the mathematical concepts differently?

The fourth is analyzing.
• Is it true? — Are the mathematical concepts used appropriately in this text? What is the evidence? Is it based on reasonable assumptions? Is it logical and consistent? Is it researched appropriately? Does it have a reputable source? What do I need to know to be convinced that it is plausible?
• Is it fair? — Does it include different views, values, perspectives or types of research? What is missing? Who might be silenced? Where do I look for alternatives?
• How does it position me? — What do I think the authors' intentions, values or biases are? What do they want me to believe? How do they use the mathematical concepts or terminology to position me? • DO I BELIEVE IT?

While I loved all of these questions that I read from the article the one I loved the most was do I believe it. The teacher needs to believe it and pass that onto students so that they believe it. The ways that you have students believe what you teach them is to allow them to ask questions and explore. You can't just tell them what to do and have them like what they are doing. I always like to learn things more when I have taken the time to explore and learn at a deeper level the content that I am learning about.

JUST HAVE FUN AND EVERYONE AROUND YOU WILL!!!!

Digital Literacy

I had a lot of fun with this assignment. I like technology and it was exciting to be introduced to new ideas. I really liked the glogster idea, but I didn't want to pay for the subscription so I used a power point instead. I think it's the same idea, but it looked like there are more options for the glogster. For sure some day I will pay for that!!

I wasn't able to attach the power point page.

I decided to find a fun activity to go with my activity 2 and teach more about properties of math. I found a few videos and ideas to help them cement the ideas that they had already learned. I agree that students learn better with digital text because they are really good at it and use that all of the time. As a teacher I will need to keep up with that so they will be engaged in learning. I found it a little tricky to remember how to use the programs, but I don't really think it would be hard after being used in a classroom. I also think students would enjoy creating their own digital text because I think that when you do other kinds of activities you are able to commit those things to long term memory.

I have talked to several teachers because of subbing and they all have different opinions of technology. Some think that you should never use technology because then students don't learn and others think you should only use technology. I feel like you should use both because they will be learning how to use those things in the work force anyway...

EMBRACE TECHNOLOGY!!!!

For the "love" of Writing

I have to say that writing is my least favorite activity!! So the title of my post is very sarcastic. However, since the beginning of this semester I have realized that writing is everywhere and in every content area, including math.

When I went back to college five years ago I pretty much had to start at the beginning because it had been so long since I had gone to school. So one of the first classes I took was English 1010...I was scared to death, especially after the first night. I don't remember writing very many papers in high school and it looked like that was all we would be doing...scary!! The first night we were asked to come up with a thesis for a paper we would write the next time we came to class. I walked out of class wondering what the heck that word even meant. Good thing I had a daughter who liked to write and so I went home and asked her what it meant. She laughed at me because it was just a topic for my paper that I wanted to write about. That being said...writing has always been hard for me, probably because I had a bad attitude about it.

While in this English class I had to write a paper about any topic so I chose True Love. I feel like it still exists because of my long marriage history. I had to write several rough drafts and I think the paper was like 5-7 pages long...probably the longest paper I've ever had to write. I created the paper from the experiences that I had in my own life and is was reviewed by several of my peers first before it was turned in to my professor. I didn't get an A on the paper, but I did feel like I got a good grade based on my previous writing experience. My professor left detailed feedback on my paper that helped me write better throughout the rest of the semester. I can't say that I am any better at writing, but I feel like my knowledge of writing has improved. Not everyone agreed with the opinion I had, but it was interesting to realize that because of our different experiences in life we could share why we felt that way.

I was pretty happy with the paper I wrote and felt like it was a great accomplishment compared to the past. I have been thinking this semester that math is full of text and I have thought about it in a different way.

On a side note...I decided to research if there was a way music can inspire you to write better. Here's a video that I found: Study Music. I think I could actually write a paper to this music...it seems to be calming and lets your brain just explore different ideas. Music has always helped me study and remember things.

Crazy teenagers

I have the privilege of living with several teenagers who have friends that visit often. I have said for quite a while that my teenagers are my favorite part of parenting...then I had a grand baby and that is pretty amazing as well.

I gathered my children and about six of their friends to have them do the concept/definition map acticity with me. We of course had to talk about factoring...they all know of my love for math. Most of them at some time or another have asked for help with their math homework. It's a sight to see me and a bunch of teenagers at the kitchen table all working on homework.

Anyway, we started with factoring and then explained what it is like. You know, like, perfect squares, polynomials, quadratics and using the quadratic formula. Then came the hard part...giving examples. The group came up with four examples and it was actually helpful for them with the homework they are working on right now. Factoring seems to be hard for students and I think it's because they don't remember the properties...mostly because it's not that important to them.

I felt like we had a good discussion on factoring and the teenagers asked questions about how to recognize when to factor a perfect square or how to know when to use the quadratic formula. We also then talked about other ways to factor like completing the square and a perfect square trinomial. It was a productive evening with them and they all told me they actually learned something from having the activity. I think there is always room for improvement and felt like it wasn't as hard as it can be in a large classroom. My subbing experiences have taught me that. When you have a full class and are trying to help students understand these concepts it can become tricky since the learning level of the students will vary. I think a way to improve this lesson would be to help every student, no matter how much information they have, learn about factoring.

For the Love of Reading

I can not remember a time when I didn't have a book in my hand. My mom always had books around the house and I just packed them around. In kindergarten I would get my work finished quickly so that I could go to the play area. However, toys weren't at the top of the list. I would find my favorite book and climb into the beanbag chair and read. Most of the time I have enjoyed reading anything I have been given to read.

I can remember the first time I started hating reading...it was a sad day. I had a history teacher that had us read out of a textbook and then memorize dates to take tests. It was the worst and I started to not like history very much. It then continued on for the rest of my high school career. It's been interesting to read the textbook and watch the videos because it made me realize why I started hating those history textbooks. First of I was reading a book two grade levels higher than I could understand so it was hard to read. Secondly, there was not the reminder of background knowledge that I could refer to. We were just given the book with questions and expected to answer them without instruction. 

So the big question becomes...how do I foster a love of reading math and not make it the worst subject on the planet? Maybe expecting students to read the text and figure out math for themselves will make it an awful experience. I have a love for math and feel that students can at least learn math if they have an understanding of what they are doing. I find that math is a lot more fun if you are working with it not drilling it into your head. There are so many ways students can explore math and really come to understand why math is going to be part of their everyday life. I took a History of Math class a few semesters ago and the idea that I kept thinking about was sharing where math comes from with my students. I like to know background information because it helps me relate better and I feel like my students would feel the same way.

So...reading whether for pleasure or for knowledge is an amazing thing when you love what you are reading!!