Thursday, September 07, 2017

Math Study: Getting Psyched for a Year of Math

I'll meet all my math students today for the first time.

We'll watch a Ted Talk about math. I'll tell them that one way that I begin study in any area is to watch a Ted Talk since that's a great inroad for me to new topic or a topic I will study in more depth. Typically the passion, background, and personal speech relayed in a TedTalk gets me psyched for learning more.

As we watch the TedTalk, I'll ask students to make a list of what matters when it comes to teaching and learning math well. After the talk, we'll share that information with one another, and then for home study, I'll ask them to complete an acrostic poem using the word Mathematician and writing a word, phrase, or sentence for each letter that relays a good way to learn and/or teach math.

I want to begin the math year by opening up their minds to the wonderful opportunities, new research, and learning venues in math today. I want to dispel old myths that only some can learn and that math is a paper/pencil subject only. I want to start big and sophisticated with my young learners as I think that will set the stage for a great math year to come. Do you agree?