FAQs (and some comics)

How do I help my student succeed?

Research shows that the biggest factor in student success in a math class room is their time in the classroom. Make sure your student is ready for class every day. They should have a planner, notebook, and a pencil. Well rested students learn better than ones who are tired just as well rested teachers teach better than ones who are tired.

Research also shows that a big predictor of student success in math is their own mindset. I work hard in class to instill self-belief in all students so that they believe they can grow and improve their own math ability. You may have loved Math class or hated it, but your student is discovering it for the first time. Please encourage them to try even when it feels difficult for them. I try to let students experience productive struggle where they face a novel task and have to develop their own approach to it. If students are open to it, this provides the best path to growth. They're in control of their learning

I don't know how to do this 'new math'/there's no book for me to read.

Math instruction has changed a lot since you or I were in school. I remember a lot of what I refer to as "Drill and Kill" lessons where we were taught something and asked to do a large worksheet of repetitive examples. (The "kill" refers to defeating a students interest in math.) Another common model was the "Chalk and Talk" where a teacher or professor lectures students while drawing inscrutable examples on the board.

Since I was in Mrs. Stewart's 6th grade classroom almost 20 years ago we've gotten a lot better at teaching math the way that students learn. Repetition has its place, but now we think of 5 strands of mathematical proficiency.

Conceptual Understanding: Students need to understand the 'why' of mathematics. We'll be drawing lots of pictures in class in order to help students understand 'why' the math makes sense, rather than just giving them the rules to follow.

Adaptive Reasoning: Students need to be able to apply the skills they already have to novel situations or problems. When some aspect of the situation changes, how does that change the problem?

Strategic Competence: Students need to be able to pick efficient strategies for solving a problem. Math is all about moving from inefficient strategies to more efficient strategies, like moving from counting to addition to multiplication.

Productive Disposition: Students have to believe that math makes sense and is useful. My favorite question is often "When will we ever use this?" I rarely use calculus in my daily life, but I definitely use skills I learned in Middle School such as fractions and decimals. And you can't use what you don't know.

Procedural Fluency: Students need to be able to perform calculations and algebraic manipulations. This used to be the primary focus until it was understood how much it intersects with the other strands. Being able to do math fast requires understanding.

I will post examples of how we're thinking about the math we're doing in class on this website.