Week 7 Math Reflection

©Breakey, D. 2015. Candy Patterns.

This week in math class we listened to presentations on patterning and algebra. The presentations were done in order of progression based on grades in school so each presentation built on the one before. I really enjoyed the fact that they progressed logically because it helped demonstrate how you can build on prior knowledge and previous lessons. It is also important, when using the Ontario curriculum, to understand the different expectations in each grade. The example today showed how in grade 4 curriculum students are learning to represent and communicate mathematical thinking by using models, numbers, pictures and so on. Whereas in grade 8 students are expected to build on their prior knowledge and now be able to use algebra to represent linear growing patterns using concrete materials. They should also be able to model linear relationships graphically and algebraically and be able to solve and verify algebraic equations using a variety of strategies. 

It is interesting, especially in class like math, to see how fundamental skills and understanding is extremely important. It is very difficult to progress through the curriculum and onto more complicated processes if a student does not successfully complete and understand the building blocks. Falling behind in math is something I believe is a reality for many students and should be a serious concern. If students fall behind and begin to feel lost it can be very difficult to catch up and learn new mathematical concepts because so much depends on what a student has previously learned.

I remember feeling like this at school. When I got lost in a lesson I found it difficult to ask for help. When I was unable to get assistance I would continue to fall farther and farther behind. It wasn't until I had a teacher take me through some of the fundamentals and ensure I had those core understandings that I was able to move forward successfully. 

In class today the activities chosen by my peers were extremely effective. The first introduction to patterning was done with candy as shown in the picture above. Immediately, this had the class's attention and we used a manipulative we could eat! Students were engaged and eager to complete the activity as there was a reward at the end. The second activity used a theme in their pictures. In the case of our activity, we were given a handout with Halloween themed patterns and asked to complete the sequence. Students often get excited about holidays such as Halloween, Christmas, Valentine's Day and Easter so using themes can be a great way to get them excited about an activity or assignment.

The final presentation used really good manipulatives. My classmate created a mystery box which would have one number in one end and then push out another number from the other end. We had to solve for what operation the box was using to produce the number. He also used a scale shown below and overall he was able to keep our attention by using a variety of interesting examples. I'll definitely use some of these strategies and themes when it comes to my own classroom in the hopes of getting my students excited and ready to learn!

©Breakey, D. 2015. Patterning Handout. 

©Breakey, D. 2015. Presentation Scale. 

Music Madness

©Pixabay. 2014. Music Notes. [online image]
Retrieved from https://pixabay.com/en/music-notes-staff-violin-key-song-306157/

When I was in middle school one of my favourite classes was music. It was something I looked forward to everyday and I continued to play the tenor saxophone well into high school. For this reason I was extremely excited to shadow the school music teacher in week 2 for my observation day. The vice principal said following a music teacher for a day shows you how to execute good classroom management as you have 20-30 students all trying to learn an instrument!

The best way I could describe the music teacher would be: Jack Black in School of Rock. I say that as a compliment as this teacher was passionate about music, excited to work with his students and had a quick witted self demeaning sense of humour. He immediately told me I was in for quite a day with 4 grade 8 music classes on the schedule. He sat in his office and attempted to hit the top two notes on the clarinet in the b flat concert scale. He said that many of his students struggled with those two notes and if he couldn't do it himself how could he expect it of his students? He told me that at least this way they could struggle through it together. I thought that approach was pretty neat because he was putting himself in the shoes of his students and was able to empathize with their struggles.

It was clear that the music teacher understood his students and this connected directly back to my textbook Interweaving Curriculum and Classroom Assessment and the section on knowing your students. He understood that there were some students who were new to the school and some new to the country who would be at various levels of music. He did a diagnostic assessment at the beginning of each semester to find out what prior knowledge students had about music and what level everyone was starting at. This was critical for his lesson planning and deciding how to proceed forward in the year. His ability to know his students allowed him to empathize with his students, plan accordingly and make the music room a positive learning environment.

During the day I simply observed. I watched as students entered the room, knew immediately that they were to setup their chair, get their instruments, rinse their mouth pieces and start practicing their scales until the class was ready to begin. It was evident the teacher had practiced these routines several times and that now they were easily executed.  I watched as he stood quietly at the front of the room waiting patiently for their attention. He told me that attempting to yell over a bunch of instruments was a losing battle and that waiting quietly was much more effective. 

The class didn't aways go smoothly and at time it was noisy and chaotic. It is easy for students to get distracted when they have instruments in their hands but patience was certainly the key and being prepared to adapt as the lesson progressed was important! Another great week under my belt and I'm excited to see what next week holds!

SERTainly In The Know

Ever heard of a SERT? I hadn't before I arrived at my placement school. SERT stands for special education resource teacher. These are teachers that will work with students with exceptionalities, students on individual education plans (IEPs) and with teachers who need assistance in creating differentiated lesson plans. I spent the day with the intermediate SERT who takes care of students in grades 6, 7 and 8. The woman I was with was absolutely incredible. She was welcoming and immediately made me apart of her day. She took time to answer any and all of my questions (and there were many!), gave me an overview of what SERTs do and took me through a day in the life of her job.

What blew me away was learning about the different resources and assistive technology that students have access to for all kinds of needs. In this school iPads are used for students in grade 5 and below for several reasons. If a student needed assisted reading or a scribe they can use applications on the iPad to assist their learning. In grades 6 and above students have access to chrome books in which students can work with online tools to assist their learning. Some students struggle in writing and putting their thoughts to paper. Sometimes, the ability to type and use corrective spelling tools can help them communicate what they know while removing the barrier of having to manually write it out. 

At one point in our day we did classroom drop ins where we checked on students that may need assistance. Specifically, I met two boys who have severe autism and who are currently in regular grade 8 classes. Often, parents will choose to put their children in a life skills programs but, in the case of these two boys, their parents opted to keep them in regular classes. My mentor SERT explained to me that all students have the right to participate in core education and it is our job to ensure they get what they need to develop through their learning. In the case of these two boys, they had modified curriculum expectations and evaluation methods. This inclusive approach stems from Growing Success which is a policy document we learned about in our assessment course. This document emphasizes that educational programs should be designed to accommodate needs and facilitate a child's growth and development. Using resources like the ones photographed above, a SERT helps to design these accommodations and support both parents and teachers in creating an equal and successful learning environment for all students.

Learning about SERTs and what an incredible resource they can be for teachers and students alike made me thankful for their service. These teachers are extremely busy and care deeply about their students. They do a special job removing barriers and making the classroom a place where all students can get equal opportunity to learn. They advocate on behalf of students and ensure that they get the tools and technology they need to be successful. I left with a deep appreciation for SERTs and I even got to thinking that I might be interested in doing that one day. My first day was enlightening and exciting and I can't wait to see what the next week brings!

Ready, Set ... Back To School!

©Bruce Trails. 2015. [online image]

I've been in my placement once a week for the last 3 weeks. We need to back up a little bit and talk about how it all started. After all the anticipation of where I'd get placed I found out I'd be at an elementary school in Milton. The school is relatively new and not too far from my house so all in all I was pretty excited to get started. 4 of my classmates are also placed at this school so on the first observation Wednesday we arrived early filled with nerves and anticipation. 

From the moment I arrived I knew I was lucky to be placed in this school. We were greeted by the vice principal who had food and drinks ready for us in the conference room. In a school of 1200 students Jane is one of 2 vice principals. She spent the entire morning getting to know each of us as people, asked what we hoped to gain from our experience and told us with pride about her amazing school.

The school is beautiful. The facilities are new and they have state of the art technology. It is evident that everyone in the building takes pride in their school. There are Apple computers in the library, new instruments in the music room and science tools in the labs. The school is extremely multi cultural with 80 percent of the students from the middle east, Asia and Europe. With that said, there is very little diversity on the staff but this is something the school is extremely conscious of. As an example, they understand that many students cannot see themselves in the teachers so during the lunch hour they bring in volunteers from the community to be classroom monitors. This allows the students to have adults who they can identify with. This is an excellent attempt to close a gap between students and instructors. 

While we toured the school my jaw continued to drop based on the sheer size of the school and the resources the students had access to. The school has two full time ESL (English Second Language) teachers, 4 SERTs (Special Education Resource teachers) and 2 LTOs (Learning Resource teachers). I wasn't even sure what all of these teachers did until I shadowed them on later observation days. What was clear was that students were put first and every attempt is made to give each student a chance to be successful.

I am beyond excited to do my placement at this school. The staff cares about the students and one another, there are amazing resources at their disposal and there is a culture of acceptance and passion for learning. I found out that my mentor teacher is a grade 7 language and arts teacher. I look forward to becoming apart of this school community and can't wait to document my experience!

Reading Reflection

ASSESS Bump It Up Wall from LearnTeachLead on Vimeo.

In week 5 I explored the website LearnTeachLead which is designed to provide resources for teachers and educators in different subjects and acts as a collaborative space for learning. Specifically, I watched a video and learned about a strategy called "Bump it up wall". In this strategy students complete a piece of writing, edit it, have it peer reviewed and then put it up on the wall. The teacher then reviews it and asks the students to create a good copy. The students put a good copy on the wall and the teacher provides feedback for students. The next time they do a writing piece they are to incorporate the feedback. This wall shows the students' progress and gives them a chance to improve their work. 

This particular video aims to improve students writing ability but in the process they are using their reading skills. First, they are editing their own work which means they are evaluating the writing for good vocabulary, punctuation, clear content and good use of information. Then their piece of writing is peer reviewed. This gives a student the chance to read someone else’s writing and again look for elements which need to be improved. In the curriculum students are expected to grasp ideas communicated in a text and apply them in new contexts. In this particular resource video, students must understand the ideas of their classmates and evaluate if what they are reading is well written. Students are also expected to read for a variety of purposes and so this activity has students reading in order to peer review which is something they will have to do as they progress through school.

As a teacher, if I used this strategy I would have the student edit in a different colour pen so I could clearly see their understanding of the different elements of writing (sentence structure, punctuation  spelling ect.). I like the idea of having a student submit their rough draft, peer edited draft and good copy. It would show them how much work can go into a single piece of writing and you could even turn that into a lesson on reading. I could find an article and have my students read it. After, we could talk about how many drafts we thought a particular piece might need and what things they would change or edit in the particular article. This would teach them to think critically about something they are reading and apply a skill they use in writing to evaluate an article while reading. 

The entire LearnTeachLead website was extremely useful. You could search a specific subject and find specific resources that relate to your search. The videos are a great way to get a good overview on what is being taught or suggested. The “Bump it up wall” showed me that I can get creative with how I introduce reading to my class. Of course, my students will have to read age appropriate books and do more traditional learning activities but I can also get creative with how I incorporate reading. Peer review is just one way to get students reading in another subject or unit.

The Great Games - Ratio Martian

©Arcademics. 2015. Ration Martian. [online image]
Retrieved from http://www.arcademics.com/games/ratio-martian/ratio-martian.html

©Arcademics. 2015. Ration Martian2. [online image]
Retrieved from http://www.arcademics.com/games/ratio-martian/ratio-martian.html

The game I chose to evaluate this week was Ratio Martian. This game is good for grade 6 and 7 students who are practicing recognizing ratios in different forms. Specifically, in grade 6 this game would be good in the probability unit when students have to represent the probability of an event using a ratio and in grade 7 when they look at proportional relationships. The game is based around a martian who is hungry and only eats ratios. Numbers come across the screen and students must click on ratios for the martian to eat and pass on numbers that do not represent ratios. Correct and incorrect answers are tracked and students can see their results at the end of the game. Students also have the ability to gain achievements by completing a rate of 10 ratios per minute at each stage of the game. 

Overall, I think the game is effective as a starting off point for students to ensure they can recognize ratios. I don’t believe this game is good for learning beyond that. With that said, the game provides feedback on which answers students got right and wrong so they can evaluate their work and learn from their mistakes. 

The game is clearly not something students would enjoy for a long period of time since it is very simple and there is little depth to it. However,  as a short introduction activity it could be a good way of engaging students into the subject. I also thought it would be useful as a quick evaluation of prior knowledge in grade 6 or 7. Are all your students at the same level or do you have some students who cannot recognize ratios consistently? If that is the case, it would give teachers that information and would allow them to adjust their lesson accordingly. Anything beyond introductory and I think this game would lose its value. For that reason, I think the game is a good tool for gaging where a student is at in their understanding of ratios.

Week 6 Math Reflection: A Lesson In Lesson Planning

©Othmar's Trombone. 2015. [online image].
Retrieved from https://othmarstrombone.wordpress.com

I am halfway through my first semester of teacher's college as week 6 comes to an end. As we push forward in our development as teachers a common theme continues to arise... lesson planning! This is an essential tool for teachers everywhere who are preparing activities for their students. Why create lesson plans? Why not just have the big picture in your head and show up to class with that in mind? The simple answer is preparation sets up for success. When you are facilitating between 20 and 30 students over the course of a semester or entire year of schooling, planning and preparing is key to their continued development. 

Big picture ideas are great but the trick is in the details. If plan A doesn't work you need to be at the ready with plan B. You have to know what areas of the curriculum you are covering, if you're building on the lessons previous, where a particular lesson is intending to take your students, what materials you require and strategies for propelling your students forward. It sounds like a lot and it is! As someone who has yet to put into practice her lesson planning skills, I was nervous. 

Finally, my big worries were addressed this past week in my math class when we went through a lesson plan together as a group and thank goodness since I have 3 lesson planning assignments coming up in several classes! There were 3 key things I took away about what I should do as the teacher:

1) Always do the math! (Be sure you are ready and able to complete the problems you're handing out)

2) Ask open ended questions. (You want to prompt your students to find the answers themselves)

3) Check for understanding. (The job is never done. Create an exit ticket or reflection activity to see if what you've taught has been absorbed)

It sounds easy but these are some simple rules that could get overlooked if you weren't completing a lesson plan. Another important thing I learned was that lesson plans are for you, the teacher! Sure, having a good plan in place will benefit your students but it is a tool used to help you stay on track and be the most effective teacher you can be in any given lesson. A lesson plan is also critical in deciding how you will evaluate. You may not use the same evaluation tools each and every lesson. In fact, it is good to evaluate in a variety of ways and so planning your evaluation is just as important as planning the lesson. 

Ultimately, as we discussed in class, the goal of any lesson should be for students to make connections and extend their knowledge beyond the classroom. They need time for independent practice and using examples that they can relate to can really help them get engaged in a subject. If my students are able to take the concepts and skills they are learning in my class and extend them beyond into their everyday life I'll know I've done my job. The best way to do my job is to make sure I'm prepared with a great lesson plan!

TechKNOW Teacher

It's official, I completed my first course in teacher's college. It was only a 6 week course but in that time I learned so much valuable and applicable information. My digital learning course was jam packed with new online tools, tips for improving your online identity and information on how to use technology effectively in your classroom. With the format of class being gamified there was no getting around using and improving my online skills. 

After spending some time in my placement school I know that many of the skills I learned in class will be useful. My school has tons of technology and students have access to all the devices and media they could ever need. There is something for every type of learner and students are encouraged to use online tools to further their in class learning. If I am going to do my teaching block at this awesome and forward thinking school then I am going to have to be prepared to introduce and use new tools. These students already know what it's like to have teachers who bring media into their classrooms and so the bar has been set ... very high.

Luckily, I feel ready. I'm confident that I can use more entertaining and engaging presentation tools then I would have previously thought. I'm ready to create PowToon presentations and gage what my students know by using real time quizzing applications like Kahoot! Even the creation of this blog can be credited to my digital learning course. I'm grateful that a course like this was created so I, as a 21st century teacher, would be prepared to face tech savvy students. I'm thankful for my professor DJ Dave who came to class with passion and excitement about the subject while remaining patient as many of us struggled through learning something new.

With one class under my belt I feel like my journey to becoming a teacher is truly underway and I'm moving forward as a #techknowteacher!

Week 5 Math Reflection

©Breakey, D. 2015. Math Blocks 1.

©Breakey, D. 2015. Math Blocks 2.

©Breakey, D. 2015. Math Blocks 3.

In Week 5 of Math class we explored the unit on integers. Student presenters once again took turns teaching a specific focus of integers such as division, multiplication, square roots and perfect squares.  The presentation on square roots and perfect squares by my classmate Bennett specifically interested me. I thought he was an example of what a good presentation should look like. He was clear, concise and well informed on his topic. He understood how to use the tools he was incorporating into his presentation, such as the smart board, and he had an excellent activity for the class.

I took away some tips about what I would want to do in my presentation and feel that picking an engaging activity for the class is key to keeping their attention. His locker problem activity had us solve the problem of which lockers would remain open after following several steps (shown below). The first thing I liked about this problem is that it was relatable. Lockers are something students will use everyday and it is a visual they can have in their head and something they can understand manipulating. The second positive piece about this problem is the fact that you could play it out in real life. If you wanted to make this more active for your students you could have them act out the real problem on a real set of lockers. This would not only get the students up and interacting with their environment but it would also keep them involved in solving the math problem. 

The other very important thing I reflected on this week was the lack of technology we used. So much focus has been placed on bringing media into the classroom. As a teacher in the 21st century it is important I explore and use new tools and applications to engage my students. Exploring the great games in an example of how we are learning about math technology for future use. This week we didn't need to use technology to be engaged. In fact, shown in the pictures above, we used regular snap cubes to demonstrate square roots and perfect squares. Using a manipulative was a great way to explore the unit and help in solving some of the math problems we examined in class.

With all the focus on technology I think it is important to remember that manipulatives, and other physical resources, are just as useful and important as technology and mobile devices. Everything has its place and it is up to the teacher to create an engaging and creative lesson. Technology does not automatically equal better. The presentations this week proved that as they used very little technology but were very effective in teaching their respective units. 

Finally, we touched on lesson planning last week. Lesson plans will become a main focus throughout my teaching career. They are designed to ensure you have planned explicitly which areas of the curriculum you will focus on, how you will execute your activity or lesson and demonstrate how you will evaluate you students. I know I am going to need to gain experience creating strong lesson plans but I look forward to my placement where I know I will get to practice and prefect lesson planning.

©Breakey, D. 2015. Locker Activity.

Techknow Teacher

©Breakey, D. 2015. Genius Hour Worldle.

I've said it before, I feel very comfortable using technology. I'm young enough that I still grew up with media being apart my life and my schooling. At least that's what I thought! Laptops were just starting to come to school with students when I was in high school. University was my first big introduction to online learning. We used a forum called CourseLink where I would login and see all my courses displayed. Each of my professors would add things to their course page that students needed to know. I could find my course syllabus, powerpoint presentations, class notes and whatever else the professor felt was important. Some classes would have videos of lectures posted while others were sparse and rarely used. For the first time I completed quizzes online and submitted assignments to an online dropbox.

It was efficient but at times isolating. In university I took my first completely online classes. The irony is that those classes were more expensive even though no class time was required! I'll save that rant for another day. Online learning was great because I could do it from anywhere at any time. While volunteering for a summer in Dominican Republic I was able to access my courses online and complete summer school. That being said, it was difficult at times as you had very little access to a professor. The technology overwhelmed me and exploring these tools alone was tough.

Now that I'm in teachers college I'm learning about a whole new world of online learning for students as young as grade 1. Technology, for them, is second nature and there is so much access to applications and tools that directly relate to specific ages and learning levels. I thought I was ahead of the game but I am just beginning. The good news is, my students do not have to feel alone in navigating technology! Using mobile devices doesn't have to mean being far away and separate. By bringing media into my classroom and apart of our world I can connect my students with one another and with me.

They can use so many learning platforms that meet their learning needs. Today, in class, I discovered a number of new tools that will make teaching so much more interactive. The days of boring powerpoint presentations are out and the days of interactive PowToon presentations are in! I'm looking forward to making use of these tools and applications in my classroom in the very near future.

Media Studies Reflection

For the past several weeks my language class has been examining media in the classroom. We've looked at the benefits and some of the challenges that may arise when using technology. In particular, we have focused on how media in the classroom will impact us as teachers. Are we prepared for the digital classroom? Can we adapt and make technology a useful tool for our students? Are we comfortable enough when using technology ourselves and how might we adapt our lessons to include more tech? All of these questions revolve around the theme of digital literacy which is a key focus in the Ontario Curriculum. 

This week I explored Edutopia which is a website designed to share educational knowledge with an online community for the purposes of adoption in the classroom. Specifically, I read a blog post called "Social Media Can Be Your Ally" which discusses using social media in the classroom. The big question is, should teachers be communicating with students outside of the physical classroom? The answer I've come to after reading the blog and watching the TVO video above is YES! Using social media can be a great way of connecting with your students in a way that is both comfortable and convenient for them. A majority of students are comfortable using devices and are familiar with social media. They probably know more about the digital world then we do!

As an educator I want to connect with my students and cultivate connections between them and their learning. This is challenging while students are hidden behind computer screen and mobile devices. We have to get creative and make those connections on a platform they understand. Twitter is an excellent tool for reach students at home. Teachers can post homework, class reminders and tips for homework. Blogging is another effective tool for teaching. Students not only write blogs but comment on them. It becomes an online forum where students and educators all over the world can interact and learn from one another. 

The easy access to information and online tools has created an endless possibilities for students and teachers alike. It has become critical to understand how to use media effectively. So much so that the Ontario curriculum sets media literacy expectations for each grade. In grade 6 students have to be able to create a variety of media texts for different and audiences. Social media is the perfect forum to teach this. 

Social media is an ally. Teachers have to recognize it and be willing to embrace it. If we can do that we can reach our students and take educating to a new level of success. I want to reach students on a level they understand and if that means adapting my teaching style to embrace media then I am willing and ready! 

The Great Games - Puppy Chase

©Arcademics. 2015. Puppy Chase [online screenshot].

This week I examined a math game that students could use to practice a specific unit or skill. The first game I played was Puppy Chase. What initially drew me to trying this game was the name. For kids, puppies would be a great way to hook them into a game. This game revolves around decimal conversion. Students create a username and are assigned a puppy. Students then race against other puppies to complete the race first. The more answers they get correct in the shortest amount of time leads them to win. The game is fun, engaging and uses something that kids love to get them excited to play (i.e. puppies). 

I enjoyed playing and felt the interface was great for young students. This game targets grade 5's and along the way they can level up and achieve the power to unlock new characters. A challenge to this game is the time factor. Students are under pressure to decide on the right answer and the math is done purely in your head. For students, the time crunch could create stress and result in them choosing the wrong answer because they feel rushed. The multiple choice option allows students to make educated guesses or discover patters in the game. For example, when a student sees 1 1/2 and 2 1/2 they will start to realize they are looking for .5 as the decimal. I think this is a positive thing because conversion will become innate and they will learn to calculate simple decimals more quickly.

This game is not ideal for working through a problem or showing your work.

What it does do is allow students to get more comfortable at recognizing patterns and consistency in conversions. Educated guesses and estimation is a critical tool in mathematics and the good news is, the game tells you what answers you got wrong at the end allowing you to review your mistakes. Seeing where you went wrong is another great way to fix mistakes in the future. If students get comfortable with changing 1/2 into .5 or 1/4 into .25 they'll be more equipped when it comes time to showing their work in class. Mental math is important and the strength of this game is providing a tool for students to practice that mental math in a really fun and engaging way. I could see students playing this outside of class simply because they enjoy it and because you can play other people such as your classmates!

Team Building at Teen Ranch

©Breakey, D. 2015. Team Building.

Last week I talked about applying the Genius Hour concept to my hockey team. This past weekend I got the chance to put it to the test. I designated 20 minutes of my practice for "Gryphon Time". During this time players got to decide what they needed to practice and were given the freedom and support to focus on that. Coaches went around assisting players, giving them instruction and observing their collaboration. Each player had set individual goals for the season and they are rarely given time to work on these individual things. Applying the concept of Genius Hour into my practice was a great way to get the girls excited to learn about something they felt was important.

By now, if you've been keeping up with my blog, you know I am exploring how team building impacts the success of a hockey team. This past weekend I used my own team as research! The team travelled to Teen Ranch where they stayed as a team in a beautiful cottage, rode horses, did team building activities and spent time establishing what they wanted for the upcoming season. If you've never heard of Teen Ranch check them out because this place is amazing! The property is beautiful and big enough to host several teams. There is a hockey rink on site and there are plenty of fun activities to choose from.

Getting away from the hustle and bustle of home was a great way for the girls to focus solely on the team. We had a campfire one night and even did a fun relay race where half the girls were blindfolded and the other half had to lead them by only using verbal cues. They had to tape a hockey stick, lace a skate and find a hidden hockey puck! They had to learn to use clear communication and trust their teammates. It was a great team building activity and without a doubt the girls came away feeling closer and more united. I noticed a difference in our next practice as the energy seemed higher and the intensity was better. I attribute this to the team building weekend. My team is ready to tackle this upcoming season!

Before our first season game the girls have one more team building day to complete. On Sunday they will travel to McMaster University where they will spent a day at Altitude. This is a day spent completing trust activities. The girls will climb a rock wall, complete a high ropes and low ropes course, make their way up the " Alpine Tower" (a 52 foot climbing tower) and spend the day getting through challenges as a team. I bet that our next practice after we complete Altitude will be even better. Stay tuned!

©Breakey, D. 2015. Horseback Riding.

©Breakey. D. 2015. Relay Race. 

Week 4 Math Reflection

©Breakey, D. 2015. Jessica's Presentation. 

Week 4 was filled with more student presentations. This week our topic was fractions and decimals. I am still really enjoying learning from my fellow classmates and I am learning a lot about what makes an effective lesson. My presentation isn't for a few weeks but seeing the different strategies my classmates are using is certainly helping me decide what I want to include in mine. The smart board seems to be an essential tool. There are so many ways you can use this tool to further the lesson. At first, I felt some hesitation in using the smart board because it seemed like using technology just for the sake of it. What can I do on a smart board that I can not do on a white board? This week I was shown exactly that when my classmate did her lesson on adding fractions.  

The photo above is blurry but I managed to snap it with my iPhone during the presentation. Jessica (the presenter) used images of lego blocks to demonstrate how to add fractions. Different sized lego blocks represented different fractions and she was able to layer the lego pieces on top of one another simulating what students would do with lego in real life. She took into account students potential interests, used a visual they could relate to and used it to explain a unit in math while making it entertaining for her students. I could not draw this on a white board but the smart board added was the perfect too to add an entertainment factor that kids need to stay engaged.

Another presenter this week used manipulatives to demonstrate the subtracting of decimals. She used base 10 blocks for her example but I realized that teachers can be more creative. The virtual lego blocks got me thinking that lego would be a great manipulative to actually bring into the classroom to tie into what was being taught and shown on the smart board. Having students solve certain problems by showing their work through lego would be a great way to get students excited about math and a good way to see if students are understanding the concepts being taught. One suggestion by our textbook was to use money as the manipulative. Money is something that students already have some understanding of and so it would be applicable in teaching a unit such as decimals. Students are able to understand cents in the decimal place and use this concept when adding or subtracting decimal places. 

More and more I am realizing that teaching math is really about being creative and finding ways to engage students in their learning. The more ways we get students interested in what their learning the more successful we will be as teachers! Using real world examples is another great strategy for teaching. Students are more likely to build on information they already have. Odds are students haven't made the connection between money and decimals but once that connection is made the understanding will be that much better. If you want some creative ideas to use on the smart board check out this Pinterest account.