My goal as a teacher is to help my students become self-sufficient, independent learners who are able to problem solve using a variety of resources. Resources include, but are not limited to, their keepers, calculators, classmates, online websites and videos, and lastly, the teacher. I believe in student collaboration and want students to be able to explain their mathematical thinking and understandings to one another.
From the moment students walk into the door to the moment they leave, my attention is devoted to them. I use a variety of informal assessment measures (observations, listening to conversations, checking their work as they progress through an activity or assignment, ticket out the door, etc) to help me gauge their understanding and correct their misconceptions and misunderstandings prior to a more formal assessment.
In a typical classroom day, the lesson is a combination of background skills review, teacher directed instruction, exploratory activities, guided instruction, independent thinking, and collaborative conversations and activities. I want my students to personalize their learning and find what works for them. I will expose them to a variety of methods and let them pick the method that works best for them as much as I possibly can.
After a lesson, I strive to provide students practice time where they can work with their classmates or independently, check answers as they work, get one on one help, and ask additional questions. Answers to the practice are posted on the board so students can check their progress as they see fit and are encouraged to take a picture of the answer key before they leave to utilize outside of class.
During independent and collaborative practice, students often say “I don’t know how to do this problem” or “can you tell me what to do.” Please know that I will never just tell a student how to do a problem, instead, I will question them about what they do know and how they can use the tools they have to move forward, as well as, how to utilize their resources to problem solve. Strategies to encourage problem solving include:
Lastly, I am a firm believer of practice - just like a sport, musical instrument, or hobby. Students are given practice assignments after every lesson. The purpose of practice assignments is to give students the opportunity to practice what they learned, discover their strengths and weaknesses with the material, ask questions, and improve their math skills. They are expected to complete these, even though they are not graded. If students do not complete practice assignments, they are more than likely not going to do well on quizzes and tests (which are graded).
From the moment students walk into the door to the moment they leave, my attention is devoted to them. I use a variety of informal assessment measures (observations, listening to conversations, checking their work as they progress through an activity or assignment, ticket out the door, etc) to help me gauge their understanding and correct their misconceptions and misunderstandings prior to a more formal assessment.
In a typical classroom day, the lesson is a combination of background skills review, teacher directed instruction, exploratory activities, guided instruction, independent thinking, and collaborative conversations and activities. I want my students to personalize their learning and find what works for them. I will expose them to a variety of methods and let them pick the method that works best for them as much as I possibly can.
After a lesson, I strive to provide students practice time where they can work with their classmates or independently, check answers as they work, get one on one help, and ask additional questions. Answers to the practice are posted on the board so students can check their progress as they see fit and are encouraged to take a picture of the answer key before they leave to utilize outside of class.
During independent and collaborative practice, students often say “I don’t know how to do this problem” or “can you tell me what to do.” Please know that I will never just tell a student how to do a problem, instead, I will question them about what they do know and how they can use the tools they have to move forward, as well as, how to utilize their resources to problem solve. Strategies to encourage problem solving include:
- Questioning – Ask the student a series of questions to help guide their thinking
- Review a Similar Problem – Using their notes, I will review a problem we covered in class to see if they can apply what we did in the lesson to their practice problem
- Utilize a Classmate – I may ask a student to talk with a classmate first (typically a student who had the same question and was able to successfully complete the problem)
Lastly, I am a firm believer of practice - just like a sport, musical instrument, or hobby. Students are given practice assignments after every lesson. The purpose of practice assignments is to give students the opportunity to practice what they learned, discover their strengths and weaknesses with the material, ask questions, and improve their math skills. They are expected to complete these, even though they are not graded. If students do not complete practice assignments, they are more than likely not going to do well on quizzes and tests (which are graded).