Activities for Tackling “Yucky” Math Topics
Bob Lochel
7-12

Participate in games and activities designed to build classroom conversation and excitement for traditionally stale math topics. We’ll make compound inequalities competitive with a dice game and participate in a lively shared-work task featuring rational expressions.
Salon B

No Time? No Problem: Build Math Vocabulary in 10 minutes or Less!
Dr. Laurie Zaring
4-9

This session introduces quick, high-impact math vocabulary strategies that can be implemented in ten minutes or less. Participants will actively experience each strategy and discuss how consistent, intentional, and purposeful vocabulary instruction strengthens mathematical communication and confidence.
Salon C

Teaching to All: Implementing Low-Floor, High-Ceiling Tasks to Reach Every Learner
Samuel Taylor
4-12

Kids enter the classroom with a variety of skills, ability levels, and experiences. Low-floor, high-ceiling tasks are accessible and engaging to ALL students, and push their thinking to build deeper conceptual understanding. Let's look at some effective low-floor, high-ceiling tasks that will benefit EVERY learner.
Salon D

Moving from "Do Now" to "Think Now" Leveraging Tools and Strategies to Achieve Specific Engagement
Denis Sheeran
All Grades

How do you start class? Homework review? A “Do Now” question? Does this truly engage the thinking minds of your students, or does it just fit into a section of the lesson plan template. This session will improve existing tools and provide new techniques and technology for moving your students from Do Now to Think Now!
Salon E

Multisensory Math Instruction for Students with Language-Based Learning Disabilities
Devon DeJesus, Lisa Auther
K-6

Language-based disabilities (dyslexia, dyscalculia, and dysgraphia) impact how the brain processes information, affecting reading, writing, and math. Traditional math instruction often exacerbates confusion due to inconsistencies in language and symbolism. Multisensory methods, such as CRA and visual scaffolds, help students with language-based disabilities develop a deeper conceptual understanding.
Interstate


Every Graph Tells a Story: Empower Students to Visualize and Generalize
Dewey Gottlieb, NCTM President Elect
10-12

For a discipline that is often focused on representing and explaining change, why should our visualizations remain static? This interactive session will explore how the Desmos Graphing Calculator makes abstract concepts visible, interactive, and intuitive. Integrating dynamic visualizations with impactful instructional strategies, we’ll experience how Desmos supports teachers to promote curiosity and nurture mathematical reasoning skills. Participants will leave with tasks and ideas for meaningful classroom implementation. While this session is designed for someone with some prior experience and knowledge of the Desmos Graphing Calculator, all levels of expertise are welcome.
Monongahela

See It, Do It, Use It: Modeling a Thinking Classroom in Mathematics
Dr. Tara Diehl, Dr. Amanda Stutzman
All Grades

Experience key components of Building Thinking Classrooms in Mathematics through hands-on problem solving and collaboration. This session models research-based strategies such as visibly random groups, rich tasks, and vertical non-permanent surfaces, allowing attendees to see how these structures promote student thinking and engagement and translate seamlessly into classroom practice, K-12.
Ohio

Let’s sketch diagrams to solve word problems!
Fawn Nguyen
All Grades

In this session, you'll be asked to resist the urge to write equations to solve problems and instead create meaningful diagrams that show your understanding. You'll experience firsthand how a good diagram can reveal an elegant solution. This approach matters because many students struggle with word problems not because of weak math skills, but because the language itself creates a barrier—they never get to the mathematics. Diagrams lower that language hurdle and give students a way in.
Salon B

Leveraging Culturally Responsive Pedagogy to Build Rapport and Support Mathematical Problem-Solving
Joanne Ward
7-12

This session explores how secondary mathematics teachers leverage culturally responsive pedagogy to build classroom rapport and strengthen students’ problem-solving skills. Participants examine strategies for designing relevant, meaningful mathematical tasks grounded in accessible, real-world contexts that reflect students’ lived experiences and support deeper reasoning, engagement, and persistence across diverse learning communities.
Salon C

Using Improvement Science to Strengthen Student Outcomes: A Middle School Team’s Story
Jami Packer, Kelly Eggert, Dana Stoll
4-9

A team of West Virginia middle school teachers shares how they use Improvement Science to strengthen student learning and engagement. Learn how student voice helps define classroom problems, test targeted change ideas, and connect local improvement work to a statewide professional network for feedback and shared learning.
Salon D

Geometry Do-Dads and What-Nots
Marian Avery
10-12

Insight on how to set the stage for student minds to comprehend the uniqueness of the study of Geometry and learn the language in the first week of school will be discussed with examples.  Teaching strategies and hands-on activities that help students to visualize geometry, gain understanding, and attain high success will be shared.  Examples and activities include Hidden Pictures, Mazes, Hocus Focus, Word Searches, Colored Co-op Cards, Inside-Outside Circle, Magic Bag, Patty-Paper, and more.    
Salon E

Number line outcomes
Elizabeth Peyser, Curriculum Associates
K-9

Number lines are a powerful sensemaking model from elementary through secondary mathematics.  In this hands-on session, explore strategies to help students build and use number lines to establish linear number sense. (Enhances the NCTM February 2022 article: "Linking Number Sense to Linear Space")
Interstate

MATHstream Unleashed: Supporting Student Success Through Adaptive Learning
Barbara Kuhn, Carnegie Learning
6-12

Come discover the formula that makes MATHstream different. In this interactive session, participants will explore how MATHstream extends learning beyond the classroom by providing students with additional opportunities to engage with high-quality math instruction while experiencing individualized, adaptive learning pathways. Participants will examine practical ways to integrate MATHstream into daily classroom routines as a tool for re-engagement, targeted practice, and differentiation. The session will also highlight how teachers can leverage MATHstream’s data insights to better understand student thinking, identify learning gaps, and make informed instructional decisions that support all learners.
Monongahela

Thinking Over Telling: Building Classrooms Where Students are THINKING
Rob Baier, Innovamat
1-6

What does it truly look like for students to think in math class? Grounded in the research of Peter Liljedahl and Building Thinking Classrooms, this session explores practical, high-impact strategies that shift classrooms from passive learning to active problem-solving. Participants will experience routines that promote student discourse, persistence, and deep reasoning, while learning how to create a classroom culture where thinking is visible, valued, and shared. Walk away with immediately usable, actionable math thinking tasks you can bring directly into your classroom to transform engagement and elevate student thinking.
Ohio

Conference menus will be available closer to the conference date.

Visual Patterns, Math Talks, and Problem Solving
Fawn Nguyen
All Grades

We will work with the routines of visual patterns and math talks to develop algebraic reasoning and flexible thinking. We will experience productive struggle through rich and challenging tasks. We will implement a curriculum to make math social, value collaboration, and encourage play and risk-taking. We’ll intentionally implement our mathematics curriculum to cover a range of “critical thinking demands” to invite all students into a relevant and challenging program that values procedural skills and conceptual understanding.
Salon B

Revising Lesson Planning for Demonstrating Mathematical Knowledge for Teaching
Brandon Schadle
7-12

Designing lessons that provide opportunities for students to learn concepts according to standards of mathematical practice is a critical component of good mathematics teaching. This session will discuss ways in which reflecting on the lesson planning process can be used for demonstrating mathematical knowledge for teaching.
Salon C

Gamify Your Math Classroom
Amy Maher
4-12

Participants will examine how gamification can be used in math. They will complete several sample challenges. Participants will also examine various ways to organize a gamified class; logging points, creating and changing teams, and incorporating challenges, side quests, and sabotages. Participants will experience the engagement, fun, and excitement of gamifying!
Salon D

Math in Motion: Programming TI Calculators to Control Robots and Drones
Dana Morse, Texas Instruments
7-12

Math class is no longer a spectator sport. Get the students driving and flying through code. We will learn to code in Basic and Python to drive cars and fly drones in this hands on session. Engage your students in new ways and experience STEM in new ways with your TI classroom solutions.
Salon E

Are We Helping, Hindering, or Hanging them out to Dry? Examining Scaffolding in Math Instruction
Teresa Brown
All Grades

Sometimes we scaffold so well that students don't need to think. Other times we step back so far they're lost. And occasionally, our "help" just gets in the way. Come ready to analyze real examples, wrestle with tricky scenarios together, and practice making better in-the-moment calls.
Interstate

Developing Receptive & Productive Language Skills in the Math Classroom
Daniel Kaufmann
4-12

This session will take participants through a variety of routines that they can easily implement in their classroom. The routines will highlight how students can deepen their understanding when there is a focus on both receiving and producing language.
Monongahela