Category: reflection

Goals for 2016-17

This year will be an adventure, no doubt. Here’s what I’d like to focus on in my classroom.

Some of this year’s goals take precedence over others, so I’ve numbered them in order of priority.

  1. Emphasize mathematical structure by implementing two specific instructional routines on a regular basis. This summer I spent four weeks taking a course with New Visions for Public Schools where I learned about the instructional routines Contemplate then Calculate and Connecting Representations. I have lots of routines in my class, but these feel different since they provide an explicit framework for learning. David Wees wrote a great post arguing for these types of routines and  how they can impact teaching and learning.
  2. Bring more cultural relevancy into my practice. I’ve given so much thought to equity and identity this summer. It all began by reading This is Not a Test and my subsequent post this spring. For years I thought, ‘Yeah, yeah, I’m doing a fine job honoring cultural and race in my teaching.’ I was wrong. I think I was always cognizant of equity issues, but I never took a deliberate approach to helping my students overcome stereotype threat, oppression, and other related issues. This summer I realized that I’m not close to doing right by my students.
  3. Honor my students through my lessons. This is closely related to #2. Sara brought this to my attention a little while back and it has stayed with me. I hope to take steps early in the year to learn about my kids beyond what they understand about content. Going beyond establishing relationships, translating this knowledge into tangibles that are evident in my lessons is the focus here.
  4. Develop interdependency amongst my students. I have thought out some group norms that I want to use for this. Hopefully the end result is a meaningful shift from relying on me to relying on each other.
  5. Strengthen my parental outreach. I have plans for a bi-weekly parent newsletter and an improved class website that provides a more transparent experience for my parents. Plus, I just want to put much more effort in making phone calls home.
  6. Get acclimated to my new school. I know that this will happen over time no matter what I do, but I am mindful of the process. This will be a completely new experience, and a significant part involves me discovering my role in the building and fostering relationships with new colleagues and students.
  7. Promote growth mindset through mistakes. My SBG does a fairly solid job because of the integrated retake exams, but I want attack this from the angle of honoring mistake-making as well. This goes beyond merely saying that mistakes and struggle are prerequisite to learning. I need to systemically embed mistakes into my lessons to fully convey and develop a risk-taking culture in my classroom.
  8. Homework. I need to get this right. Last year my system was pathetic. Admittedly, this is a work in progress, but I hope to find something that makes the most sense for my students. This may even include excluding.
  9. Assign projects. I’ve never been one who teaches through projects, but this year I want to take some baby steps in this direction. Maybe I don’t assign traditional projects with all the bells and whistles, but simple tasks that span a given unit and that go beyond homework.
  10. Assessing skills using a SBG approach. At EdCampNYC last spring, there was workshop that focused on this sort of thing. This seem far-fetched for me to accomplish, but it’s something that seems like the next logical step in the SBG process.

 

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Why I’m #MfAProud

#MfAProud

Two years ago I drafted a post entitled “MfA and its Impact on My Career.” I knew at the time that I had a lot to say, but I could only compose one sentence, a thesis of sorts: MfA has spurred my professional growth and connection with like-minded educators. I revisited the draft many times since then with the hopes of publishing it, but never did. In fact, I wasn’t even able to add a second sentence, let alone complete a paragraph. Every time I wanted to, it seemed far too challenging to articulate what MfA meant to my career.

Fast forward to the present. With the start of a new school year, Math for America has outlined a campaign for its corps of teachers to share why they are proud to be a MfA teacher. Given this, the time is ripe for me to finish that initial draft and showcase my relationship with MfA. Besides, I’m long overdue.

I’ve hinted at this proclamation before; other than deciding to become a teacher, MfA is hands-down the best professional decision I’ve ever made.

For many teachers, including myself, MfA is a dream come true. Seriously, I’m still waiting to wake up. When you realize the woefully complex system in which we operate and contrast it with the die-hard passion for teaching that all MfA teachers possess, MfA is a breath of fresh air. I have met MfA teachers that have cried when discussing their relationship with Math for America. I can relate. Math for America changes careers in unforgettable ways.

When I think about it, MfA’s success doesn’t hinge on anything that’s all that extraordinary. They do something simple, really well: honor teachers. Period. Positively impacting teaching and learning in today’s cutthroat educational climate isn’t like brain surgery. MfA figured this out long ago…and it’s the root of my pride in being a Math for America teacher.

On the most fundamental level, they do this by providing community, structure, and a space where teachers can exchange ideas and resources, all the while feeling valued and trusted. MfA’s teacher-organized, teacher-designed, teacher-led workshops have transformed my classroom to a risk-taking laboratory. I’m constantly working with the best STEM educators in New York City and, I would argue, the country. In addition, I’ve been called on to lead colleagues like never before, which has helped me extend the arm, and mission, of MfA to empower my colleagues. I have also been fully funded to attend a conference. I have a paid membership to NCTM. And though nowhere near an expert, I have even been asked to speak at a research-based institute.

I’m also distinctly proud of the little ways I’ve been able to give back to MfA. To contribute to such an outstanding community (the gold standard in teacher development, if you ask me), means so much to me. Over the years, a certain responsibility has surfaced within me to help maintain the integrity of what MfA stands for and help it evolve over time. Best of all, I know that I still have so much more to give.

But, most of all, my pride shines every time I walk out of a MfA workshop at 7:30pm on a school night. During these moments, I am reminded that my job is a top priority, that I make all other professions possible. I am reminded that I am not an island unto myself. I am reminded why I never want to be an administrator. I am reminded that my students’ futures depend on my continuous development. I am reminded that I am a learner first, a teacher second.

I am reminded of why I am a teacher.

 

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Write me a letter

I need to improve how I get to know my students at the beginning of the school year.

I already knew that I was weak on this front, but when Sara VanDerWerf detailed launching tasks by creating context that honors students, it really inspired me to get the ball rolling.

I already have a couple of routines that allow me to connect with my students. Namely, personal notes, Friday letters, and end of year letters that I open at the start of the next school year. But what I’m missing is something substantial at the start of the year that will help me design the class around my students (that’s not content-based).

So this year, during the first week of school, I’m going to have students write me a letter. It can be handwritten or an email and serves as an opportunity for students to personally communicate whatever it is about themselves that they think I should know. I may provide prompts for those that need guidance, but I want the letter to be somewhat open-ended. I want them to tell me what they feel is important. Some prompts I’m thinking of are:

  • What’s something about yourself that I wouldn’t know by looking at you?
  • What’s your family’s background? Do you speak any languages other than English?
  • Who do you live with? Do you have any siblings?
  • In all of your years of school, who is/was your favorite teacher? Why?
  • Who is/was your least favorite? Why?
  • Was mathematics invented or discovered? Why do you think that? (Thanks Elizabeth.)
  • If you had to be any number, which one would you be? Why? (Thanks Matt.)

What’s more, over the course of the first few weeks of school, I’ll write every student a detailed letter in reply. This way they can get to know me on a more personal level as well. It’s a significant time committment, but one that I feel will be worth it in the long run.

Speaking of Sara, she also wrote about how she uses name tents during the first week of school, which I hope to adopt this year. This is a crafty, yet simple, way of not only learning student names, but also learning all that is behind those names.

 

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TMC16 Reflections

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Twitter Math Camp 2016 has officially come and gone. Its impact will be felt for years to come.

This is the type professional development that stays with you. Some of the best minds in mathematics education from all over the world come together and, for three four and a half days, form a mosaic that’s impossible to duplicate. And at the center of it all is a deep-rooted passion for mathematics, pedagogy, and improvement. What happens at TMC changes careers.

This year was no different.

The keynotes by Sara, Jose, Tracy, and Dylan set the tone. Their themes of evangelism, social justice, K-16 collaboration, and deliberate practice all struck chords because they are all things that I’ve been thinking about lately. I found myself constantly referring back to them throughout the conference.

The morning sessions provided a calm, relaxing space to reflect deeply on a specific aspect of my practice: questioning. I rediscovered the power that a question holds – especially when it comes from your student.

The My Favorite and afternoon sessions added some valuable new tools to my toolbox. I am now fully equipped to jump off some cliffs take plenty of risks next year.

I can’t go a word further without thanking Math for America for supporting my TMC16 journey through their Impact Grant. Once again, they have demonstrated why they are the best thing to ever happen to my teaching career.

Everything below is not intended to be summary of TMC16. Instead, it is a collection of personal discoveries and relationships that I made over the course of those four and a half wonderful days in Minneapolis, Minnesota. There are many.

 

Day 0 (Desmos Preconference) – Friday, July 15, 2016

  • Damn. Dan Meyer is tall.
  • The collaboration document containing all pertinent links.
  • Desmos is now accessible for visually impaired users. This is huge. Desmos understands that as teachers and students become more and more dependent on their product, the calculator needs higher levels of accessibility to avoid disappointing the masses. Kudos to them for continually aiming to please their users.
  • I don’t sit and play with Desmos enough. This day gave me the opportunity to muck around via the scavenger hunt. Two standouts: learning how to use lists and regressions with draggable points. Good stuff.
  • Sara Vanderwerf challenged us all to be evangelists. This was pure inspiration. She’s all passion…one of those educators that I aspire to be. Takeaways: a) find your evangelical goal, b) read The Art of Evangelism by Guy Kawasaki, c) have students use the Desmos app in class (a lot) – especially at the beginning of the year…equity and access, and d) minimize visual noise in the classroom (read more about her math wall of shame). Notes.
  • I met Abby Rosa, who teaches at a correctional facility. This rocked my world. I had so many questions for her.
  • I chatted with Paul Kelley who is on the board of directors at NCTM. Pretty cool.
  • We can now create marbleslides and card sorts ourselves in Desmos. The collective uproar on this was deafening. I tinkered and created a card sort on relations.
  • Desmos socks. Finally.

 

Day 1 – Saturday, July 16, 2016

  • Started off by scouring the area for a decent breakfast spot. I hate hotels without complimentary morning grub. It’s a crime.
  • I chose my morning session because I’ll be facilitating a book club in the fall with Math for America and wanted to get my feet wet. The group only consists of four of us. Norma Gordon is the facilitator. The focus of the day was A More Beautiful Question by Warren Berger, which I have read before. We spent 45 minutes reading the book followed by discourse around inquiry and why it’s so vital to student achievement. Takeaways: Get students to ask the questions, ask students questions that Google can’t answer, that students are the “research and development division” of the human species, game-changing ideas stem from a cycle of What?, What if?, and Why? questions, and teaching inquiry through experience and not merely because the teacher says to. Notes.
  • I spent the majority of lunch with Tina Cardone, who is also part of the book club morning sessions. I’ve known of her for a long time, so getting the opportunity to have an extended conversation and get to know her better was a real treat. We talked about our schools, why we teach where we do, the transparency that’s needed with students with special needs, and our mutual love for root beer. She even introduced me to Pokemon!
  • My Favorites. Jonathan Claydon’s Varisty Math is outstanding. He’s turned learning mathematics into a brand. And he’s marketing it. Next year, I’d love to start off with stickers/patches and possibly lead up t-shirts at some point. Brilliant stuff here from Jonathan. Also, I should read into Ms. Pacman transformations from Robert Kaplinsky and other teachers that have used it. Notes.
  • Jose Vilson‘s keynote was full of candid talk (video). After my recent post of my own inspired by his book, I was excited to hear him speak. He message was clear: I need you. His call to the whole of MTBoS was direct. We need to place more of a focus on social justice and equity for the students that need it most. We need to go beyond mathematics. No matter where we teach, your students are my students and mine are yours. He fielded questions and challenged us all to deliberately seek to address issues of race and social class. Notes.
  • Next up was the Talking Points session with Elizabeth Statmore. I think she’s my new hero. Backed by research, she demonstrated why quality exploratory talk amongst students is the number one predictor of effective group work. This is especially pertinent to me because of my goals for group work. Talking Points are a simple way to promote flexible thinking, vulnerability, and listening. Here are some examples. I also loved Reader’s Theatre…it is a fun way to introduce it (or any other structure) in a way that is friendly and inviting. Maybe I should read the book this summer? Also, Glen Waddell mentioned Open Middle problems, which I had never heard of. Notes.
  • Julie Wright closed the day with her talk on using feedback quizzes to promote low-stakes learning. She described her system of providing detailed, written, unscored assessments. I pondered this idea of (efficient) feedback last year. It involves scanning students exams as a single PDF, inserting typed feedback (no scores), and handing them back to students for revision. Feedback is colored-coded for the teacher, but students only see black. All students receive equal amounts of feedback. Notes.

 

Day 2 – Sunday, July 17, 2016

  • Cereal in my room. A solid decision.
  • My favorites. David Sabol, a Clevelander (!), used some pretty cool data to illustrate his usage of maps and voronoi diagrams to promote engagement, modeling, and low-floor, high-ceiling mathematics. Anna Blinstein highlighted her commitment to flipped assessment (feedback meetings) with students, which really interested me because I considered (private) the same thing last February. She wants to maximize the time spends on feedback and conferencing with individual, pairs, or triads of students is her way of doing this. I see value here and want to pick her brain more about her system. Notes.
  • Day 2 of the book club kicked off with an hour of reading A More Beautiful Question followed by using the Interview Design and Dialog protocol. I felt good about the protocol. Takeaways from the day’s reading: how student-generated questions from underserved youth can evoke social justice, why the “professionalism” of asking questions serves to maintain the status quo of those in authority, and the potential impact of a “Be a Skeptic” theme for my classroom next year. Notes.
  • I spent lunch getting to know Sandy Ketterling, a.k.a. the queen of baking. She teaches on an Indian reservation. Sweet lady. Go warriors!
  • My favorites. Sam Shah again amazed me with his work on explore-math.weebly.com. Connie Haugneland made my weekend by sharing her uplifting story about sponsoring a student and building a school in Rwanda. Her experiences have inspired her to move to Rwanda and dive even deeper into this work. Connie, thank you for embracing a cause that many of us distance ourselves from. Notes.
  • I caught up with Andy Pethan. A cool dude. Down-to-earth. Relatable. Smart. Shame there was no frisbee this go around.
  • In her keynote, Tracy Zager did a lot to open up the collaboration pathways between elementary and secondary mathematics teachers (video). Her passion called on us to do a better job of bridging the divide that exists between us. Interestingly, I’ve recently given thought to this. We have so much to learn from one another and she provided several examples of mathematical pedagogy that prove that we are stronger together. When we make our learning and vulnerabilities public, amazing things happen. Let’s be intentional and move beyond the self-imposed boundaries we call grade levels. And please, don’t call elementary mathematics the “basics.” Notes.
  • Dylan Kane and Nicole Hansen supplemented the New Visions course I’m taking this summer by exploring mathematical structure, Mathematical Practice Standard 7. I’ve long admired Dylan as a humble, well-articulated, knowledgable source on teaching and Nicole proved likewise. Through this session I realized the need for a routine (ahem…New Visions) to surface structure for kids and help them to leverage it. The shift from procedural to structural thinking has caused me to rethink so much of mathematics and how I teach it. The goal is getting kids thinking flexibly using structure within a problem and between problems. I feel the earth moving on this one. Oh yeah. Big improvements on the way. Notes.
  • The day wrapped up with Jonathan Claydon and his unorthodox approach of implementing curriculum. He is so damn inspiring. Last week, by happenstance, I stumbled upon his post that motivated the session, so I had a pretty good idea what was on tap. He shared how and why he decided to hack the traditional curriculum to pieces. His centers his planning on skills rather than content. This allows for more continuity throughout the year and less disjointed learning. It’s a really interesting structure that I’m looking to adopt. The inception button and marble races were also outstanding takeaways. Notes.

 

Day 3 – Monday, July 18, 2016

  • A breakfast disappointment. Although, there was fresh fruit was involved – so it wasn’t a total meltdown.
  • My favorites. Joel Bezaire discussed an incredibly simple game that he uses with his students. I want to try this. It’s straightforward, but can get deceptively challenging. Sort of reminds of a Sudoku or KenKen. He has a website dedicated to the game and an archive of versions he’s already created. Gregory Taylor blew everyone away with his math song about the cubic formula based on a hymn from Sister Act. And Edmund Harris delighted us all by revealing that his new coloring book, Visions of the Universe, will debut on November 29, 2016. To ice the cake, there will be four lesson plans written by MTBoS teachers (Sam is one) that will align with the two coloring books. Notes.
  • The final day of the book club opened up with an informal discussion about protocols that digressed into teaching strategies. Tina showed us a “step-by-step” activity similar to this one, but in her case students fold the paper backwards to hide all previous work before passing it left or right. I feel desk surfaces are underutilized spaces, and Norma made a great point that whatever is attached shouldn’t be static because, over time, students will simply ignore it. Shop ticket holders were brought up as a possible solution. Takeaways from the day’s reading/discussion: stay away from answers – live in the questions, we must stop doing and knowing in order to ask, we know far less than our intuition leads us to believe, ask why five times, and Tina’s idea of having a reflection question based on the day of the week (e.g. Tuesday: What’s one good thing that happened to you in the past week?). A possible MTBoS book exchange was also brought up, which I love. Notes.
  • My Favorites. Denis Sheeran discussed his initiative I See Math, which encourages us to step back, simplify our approach, let student misconceptions come forward, and frame real-world situations with mathematics. It’s a structure consisting of three slides: title, image, and question. He also showed us two cool games to play with Google Maps: Geoguessr (old) and SmartyPins (new), both of which are really fun. Notes.
  • Dylan Kane was the last keynote of the conference. Dylan detailed his first few years teaching by admitting that he tirelessly searched for and tried out so many resources he found through MTBoS. What he learned was that despite being extremely dedicated to improvement, he wasn’t deliberate. He constantly referenced the elements of deliberate practice as outlined in Peak by Anders Ericsson and Robert Pool (a superb book): getting out of your comfort zone, being specific, including feedback, and being goal-oriented. His inspiration seems to stem from asking the question, “What would MTBoS do?” when stuck between a rock and a hard place. He mentioned that we can meaningfully improve our practice by about 10% each year. Call to action: How will I distribute that 10% and how will I be more purposeful about it? Notes.
  • I missed out on the Assessing What We Value (Experience-First Mathematics) afternoon session. I want to read up on this.
  • The awesome Alex Overwijk was up next with Go With the Flow. His speciality is accomplishing flow in the classroom and references the work of Peter Liljedahl with vertical non-permanent surfaces (VNPS) and visible random groupings (VRG) to accomplish this. He recommended the book Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi and an article by Peter. He proceeded to demo the strategy with the taxman problem which left me in awe. Critical note: The brilliance behind this strategy goes far beyond using vertical whiteboards. The majority of the impact lies in how one facilitates student work and keeps them in an optimal state of engagement. He challenged us to give students less and allow learning to happen naturally. Now I know what all the hype is about with VNPS. At some point, I must try this next year. Notes.
  • Minnesota-based teacher Annie Perkins brought folks together in her flex session to talk about how she introduces students to mathematicians that look more like them in terms of ethnicity, LGBT, etc. Here is an example. It’s a form of social justice that she calls “The Mathematicians Project.” She uses Wikipedia to research mathematicians and dedicates 5-10 minutes each Friday to present one mathematician to her students. She polls her students to determine who to present. The impact on her students has been remarkable. She is looking to post all the mathematicians she presents in her classroom and even see if she can get some living ones to pay a visit to her students. The close of the session included a discussion about how to advance social justice within our classrooms and the MTBoS. The hashtag #sjmath was mentioned and Radical Math was shared for mathematics-based, social justice-themed resources. Sheila Orr and Wendy Menard are also great ambassadors of this work.  Notes.

 

Day 4 – Tuesday, July 19, 2016

  • I ate the hotel breakfast!
  • My favorites. Amy Zimmer shared a really cool ice breaker that focuses on the collective interests of the members of the group. What stood out to me was how she highlights the process the groups use arrive at their choices. This turns into a great class discussion about group chemistry and teamwork. Max shared his a congruent triangles example of his work on ARCs, each of which consist of NCTM resources pieced together in single coherent resource. He’s going to share those with me, which I’d like to play around with. Glenn Waddell received a standing ovation for sharing how he has faced his fears…and how it has completely changed his life (video). Megan testified on how a boring moment at a PD can lead to presenting at a State Fair with the likes of Christopher Danielson. I appreciate her humility. And what an interesting exploration she developed! Hannah Mesick gave me a really good idea about displaying birthdays as functions (video). So intuitive. Notes.

 

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