Mind Shifts

We have spent the better part of a year looking at new curriculum resources that will best support our students to become the best mathematicians they can be.  

A few takeaways that have been identified or reinforced after looking at a variety:

Each curriculum says it is aligned with the CCSS and math teaching practices.

Each curriculum resource has good and bad pieces to it.  

If people just rely on the text in the teacher's manual to deliver instruction, they will not consistently be giving students what is best.  

Books are a RESOURCE. The standards and math teaching practices are what is best, and the book is just a sequence and guide.  Other resources should still be included. (Just because the book doesn't say to pull out a visual or manipulative doesn't mean you shouldn't...most students need these!)

Choosing the resource is not going to mean fabulous or not fabulous instruction. It is what is done with the resource that will make the instruction meaningful to students.

Math discourse does not just mean having students turn and talk more.

Pages of practice problems do not build problem-solvers.  They are not a necessary component of a curriculum resource.

3 Act Tasks are still important even though they are not included or referenced in most curriculums.

Students need time to make sense in their own way first.  Once they have an idea of where to go, they may change that as they discuss and listen to classmates.

Culture has to be built in a classroom.  It begins in August but is reinforced throughout the year and throughout all subjects.  Telling students to persevere in September does not mean they will be able to in April.  It needs to be part of every day with students.

Math should be an adventure--a combination of puzzles, games, practices, talking, and surprising connections that students make--not test scores.

The person delivering instruction still has to make the necessary shifts in their instruction in order to use a curriculum resource in a way that is fair and equitable to all students.  

Have you been through this process?  Have you found these to be true, too? Teaching shifts need to occur no matter what curriculum resource teachers use. 

A new puzzle to consider

Recently, a friend introduced me to this game/puzzle, and I wanted to be sure to share it with you.  It might be a great thing to use your PTO money or ask a generous parent to pick up for the class.

The only problem I really have with this game is its name: Genius Star.  I hate for that to cause students to believe they aren't capable of solving it, or vice-versa, that if they are able to solve it, it makes them a genius! 

This puzzle explores spatial relationships which for so many of our students can be a challenge.  It also offers students the opportunity to distinguish pieces they should prioritize as well as a trial in perseverance!

Here's how it works:

Roll the die that come with the game:

Lay the little white triangles onto the corresponding triangles on the board:

Now, I usually solve these on my own, and I don't recommend that it becomes a racing game, but students then take the 11 game pieces and place them on the board to cover in the star.

Students can compare their solutions to see what they did the same or different.

Students can also reflect on what made the puzzle challenging or easy. 

The box comes with two black trays to solve the puzzle on, but you could maybe get more than one game so that more students could work to solve. I find it quite fun, and it highlights the spatial skills of math.  The company makes other similar games that will show up when you follow the above link to this game.

Students can solve the puzzle in pairs and discuss their findings, they can investigate the dice and the regions of the board that each one covers, they could create their own puzzle numbers that they think are unsolvable and ask classmates to prove them wrong, they could create fractional questions about the puzzle or its pieces, or you could use two solutions for the same numbers as a same/different discussion. It seems to me like there are a lot of ways that this little puzzle could be used!

Let me know in the comments if you have found or find other ways to use this puzzle in the classroom!

Building Math Culture

 I often talk to teachers about the importance of building a learning culture in their classrooms.  It is so important that students feel safe and valued in their learning ideas.

Recently, I came upon this website, which gives tips and has videos to guide teachers and families in promoting a growth mindset in students.  I especially liked  the examples within the section on Celebrating Mistakes.

It reminded me of a teacher I recently listened to excitedly explain the building of culture in her classroom.  She talked about how she and her students cheer for each other's  mistakes, how students grow in their ability to talk about math through the constant exposure to thinking problems, and how her students love math time in the classroom.  There was no doubt that this excited teacher was talking from the positive experiences happening in her room, and that her students, too, had wonderful experiences as growing mathematicians!

Everyone in the room could feel the joy that this teacher exuded, and I'm sure, like me, they were wishing to have students (or be a student) who were a part of this classroom.  As students grow and content becomes more and more, I think teachers find it more difficult to create this type of atmosphere, but by visiting the website, teachers might find just the motivation to build a stronger classroom learning culture. Even in October it is not too late!