For 14 years I have been reinventing my instructional wheel each summer to build student achievement. I’ve used creative images and rhymes (anchors), interactive games (engagement), 3-Acts, Notice & Wonder, Front Loading, and constant review. However, I am not happy with just high scores on state exams. What I teach, too often, doesn’t stick in … More 5 Concerns for Inquiry-Based Instruction
The American Psychology Association beautifully summarized the “Top 20 Principles From Psychology for PreK-12 Teaching and Learning” in a 2015 white paper. Somehow I missed seeing that back then, but I have seen papers that echo the same principles and have observed them in my own practice. Here’s my Reader’s Digest version: Ability Principle … More Math Ability: Where it comes from
Who contributed to this post: Cris Saldaña https://onestepedu.wordpress.edu Aubrey Patterson https://www.nohea.info/blog Lori Harvie https://www.nohea.info/blog Matt Foster https://mafost.blog/ A tweep I admire posted a link to attend a webinar about, “The Opportunity Myth,” a study that was recently released by TNTP. The study examined 1,000 students and reported on their lack of preparation for going to … More “The Opportunity Myth:” yes and no
High school math curriculum tends to be far too dense to divert much time to off-content activities. Yet, math is the M in STEM; so it seems to me that some of the responsibility for STEM connections rests on my profession. After all, who has more access to more students than core teachers? Students who … More Three ways to integrate STEM in High School Math
In the past two years, I have been using an inquiry-based resource for a dozen different reasons, some of which include: furthering retention in content, developing problem-solving skills that transfer beyond the classroom, developing social-emotional skills in a traumatized culture, teaching them to “reach” for information instead of waiting for me to force-feed them, and … More Building Competence in the Unfocused Student: It’s all in how we say it
Will your school be in the market for a new textbook anytime soon? Teacher buy-in is hugely important; so finding out what teachers like makes a lot of sense. And I don’t think it is very helpful to read old posts on this topic because resources are changing dramatically. There have been, and will continue … More New Math Textbook?
I had huge concerns shifting my classroom from mostly direct instruction to piloting an inquiry based algebra textbook; but after researching the pros and cons, I dove in and haven’t regretted the journey. Mathematics curriculum is typically very dense, and I have been determined that any changes I make not detract from content mastery in … More Inspiring Social-Emotional Growth in Collaborative Learning Teams
Salaries and retirement benefits in educational settings are typically based on longevity and degrees completed. However, the personal benefits from that formula of compensation seem to work against professional growth. I recently stumbled upon this Forbes article that made me wonder if teacher growth is often stymied by incentives that keep teachers in the same … More Teacher Voice: when majority & seniority are not enough
