Satisfaction Leads to Failure - Let's Be Great!

Satisfaction leads to failure

I saw this quote on a basketball training site I was checking out and it really spoke to me.  This is where I think we are as a society . . . and the reason why so many people are weak mentally and physically.

I am very focused on becoming stronger physically and have been really working out hard . . . I am the strongest and fittest I have ever been in my life.  But I can't settle.  I'm not satisfied.  I will continue to become stronger; not just physically, but mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.

Satisfaction leads to failure.

The high school I teach at just found out that we are "excellent" on the state report card.  We also got positive comments from an accreditation group last week.  Two years ago my school was struggling to improve its Annual Yearly Progress . . . now we are "excellent".

Satisfaction leads to failure.

To be honest, I question the level of my teaching every day and every week.  I don't feel "excellent".  I like to think of myself as a pretty good teacher, but I feel I can be a stronger teacher and in turn help my students to become stronger.  Yet, through it all, our students score well on the OGT (which measures basic skills) and we are rated "excellent" as a high school.

Satisfaction leads to failure.

At what point do we all say,  "Great, but we can do better!  We have to do better"?  And when will someone start asking people, "What are you doing today to make us better?  Great?  The best?"?

For me, it's time to move beyond "satisfaction" and even beyond "excellent".  But, I struggle from a teacher point of view as to what I can do to become better.

Can I in my one classroom make the change needed to be great?  Can I get my students to be great?  Can I help the math department to become great?  Can I do this on my own?  If not, how do I rally others to join me in the push to be great?  Who will challenge me . . . because I need to be challenged.

I'm tired of being satisfied. . . 

itslearning - Systems of Equations

itslearning.com - Systems of Equations

Any math teacher knows the struggle teaching Systems of Equations can be.  And, that's where I am in Algebra and with my first journey through itslearning - so far, though, it's been a pretty positive go of it.

Update - my students are about 6 weeks into the itslearning journey and are finally beginning to "catch on".

Students are diving into the videos . . . pausing them to make notes . . . copying down helpful information.  Then, they are looking back at the notes and using them as a resource.  Discussions between the students is a daily occurrence now!  And, I am able to give the attention to those who truly need it . . . while my stronger students continue to roll on and gain even more confidence in the ability/independence.

The one thing I love about itslearning is the ease that I can make changes on the fly . . . student comments help control the direction of my lessons and this is such a great option for me when using itslearning.

Now does that equal understanding?  The material is still difficult but I have been pleased with the overall effort/focus level this week.  The itslearning LMS seems to give students a feeling of "extra support" so very few are completely giving up and shutting down.  For some, this is a huge step in the right direction.

I have been looking a lot at lesson set up and have found that an intro video / practice problem / assignment set all being one page eliminates issues of what link to click and where to find this and that. Also, because Systems of Equations covers a lot of ideas I have broken them down into Levels.  The Levels are tabs on the main page so it's really easy for students to go to Level 2 when they complete Level 1.

I am still trying to "control" the speed at which the classes are going which I know is still hindering my stronger students and is something that I need to look at more in the future.  The opportunity for my strong students to take off and do amazing things is there.  But, I'm not sure what the best way to go about that is . . . without losing touch with them and them feeling like they have no support.

As I move forward:
The adaptability as I move forward is something that excites me and opens up the idea of differentiated lessons . . . different levels in regards to difficulty so those that are stronger take the upper level work and the average student will work on the lower level.  This is something I plan to look at as I move forward in the semester . . . creating lessons that fit better with my individual student groups within my classes . . . right now I am trying to fit all my students into one style of set up (which is working for the majority but . . .).

Responsibility & itslearning

I continue my journey with itslearning . . . and again have learned a lot about myself as a teacher and about my students.  I enjoy my students and I enjoy the different personalities and talents of each.  But, this week, I thought I had a great plan of attack.  But, sadly, I found that things just didn't work out as well as I had hoped.

I wanted to give a midterm to my students, so I create an itslearning lesson that would allow the students to work through some review material with a deadline of taking the midterm being today, Thursday, Valentine's Day.

A group of my students (the top 30%) rock and rolled through the review topics and either took the midterm on Tuesday or Wednesday.

My middle 30% did a couple topics each day in preparation for today's midterm, while the bottom 30-40% wasted their classtime and didn't take advantage of any opportunities such as homeroom or study hall to get the work done.

What is severely lacking here?  One word:

The students bombarded me with question after question on the midterm - and it would be one thing if the questions were quality questions, but many were not.  Frustrating to say the least.

Now, I also put some of the Reponsibility on me.  I created the learning opportunities, but as many teachers find out, many of them are geared for the top 30% to be successful while the rest flounder.  Many of the students felt that because they completed the assigned problems (with help from peers/teacher) that equaled understanding (mastery) - so I pick you up, throw you over a hurdle and you want me to call you a hurdler now!?!?!  Doesn't make sense . . . and doesn't make sense in my math class either.  But that's what I saw this week.

So, it's back to the drawing board!  Things I am pondering:

• Forget pampering to the crowd and let the top 30% roll baby roll!
• Create a checklist of topics that must be completed by the end of the quarter.  Already mastered those topics?  Well, then, begin on the next topics in the next quarter.  Why not?
• Ask students:  Are you ready to take the assessment?  Can you show me that you understand the material? - maybe those two questions become the assessment.  The student must create some type of "display of understanding".
• I can make practice assessments (checkpoints) that students can then use as "reference points" for showing understanding.
• Understanding - that's what I want for my students.
• Rather than me tell them to be ready by a certain time . . . the student decides - I am ready!
• But, what if they're never ready?  What do I do then?
• itslearning - it's on the internet . . . how can I get my students to begin accessing material outside of class?  Students could have completed the review material in one day if they worked in class and at home . . . questions? easy, email me and we can have a digital conversation about the material.
• Hand holding:  Do I do too much hand holding?  It's not fair to me and it's not fair to the students.  But I love success . . . but at what price?
• I will be a Champion with itslearning.

"Kicking my butt" - itslearning

This morning, I was asked in my teacher-based-team (which deals with Tech @ EHS) meeting:

"How is itslearning going?"  My remark . . . "It's kicking my butt!"

I have thought about that remark all day since.  At first one would think that the remark means itslearning has been some horrific experience for me and my classroom.

But, that's far from the truth.

"It's kicking my butt!"  Think about when someone is talking about a new workout they are doing and they say, "It's kicking my butt!"  What's that mean?  It was awesome!  It was a challenge!  It was going to make them better!  It was giving them ownership!

That's what itslearning is for me . . . students are engaged, students are asking me questions, students are working with one another, students are looking to see what they need to do next, students are learning.

Is it easy?  A quick fix?  No way!  And I love that . . . I was overwhelmed this past week with paper work as students were moving through the topics swiftly and smoothly, so I thought I'd go "traditional" for the last 3 days of the week.

And you know what?  I have disliked the past 2 days with a passion (1 more to go tomorrow!).  Why?  Students off task, students motivation noticeably dropped, student effort inconsistent, and my patience shortened!  And students who want to work ahead are frustrated, as am I.

"Kicking my butt!" - That's what I need to motivate me, to challenge me to create better lessons, better opportunities for my students to learn and be engaged in my classroom.  Does tough mean it's not worth it?  I think most who have busted their butts are happy in the end.  And, I too, will be happy in the end.

I hope itslearning keeps "kicking my butt" and I will continue to become a better teacher!

ItsLearning - Week 2/3 "Classroom Chaos"

Yep, that's my classroom the past two weeks . . . there are students watching video notes, completing feedback assignments, working through practice assessments, taking final lesson assessments, collaboration amongst students, students asking teachers for intervention, students asking if they can move on to the next lesson/activity.

It all can be overwhelming at times, but for the most part I absolutely enjoy the experience.  I sent out a google form survey to some students to get their take on ItsLearning so far.

 

I  hope to share those insights in a future blog post.  I selected students who have done well all year to see if they like itslearning more/less than what we were doing first semester.

The one thing that I am finding is that my set up on Itslearning and my entire classroom set up is continually changing . . . hopefully for the better.  I have had some days where we have worked on "whole class" activities to focus on one particular area of weakness that seems to keep creeping up in a lesson.  This is something I am going to look at incorporating more into my weekly lessons - whole class activities that allow the stronger student to "review", the ones who get the gist for the most part to "gain confidence", and those who are struggling to "fill some gaps."

This video by @math_johnson is a great visual summary of what I think I need my classroom to become.  Take a moment and watch it:

Things I need to get better at:  video - right now they are very boring and to the point.  I am trying to keep them simple and stress to the students that it's not the video, but the work that they complete that helps them learn the material/topic.  But, I think I could put a little more pizzazz into the videos but that means a better screencast program and that means $$$$.  Maybe my school district will . . .

On to week 4 of itslearning!!

itslearning - Week 1

Well I made the plunge - itslearning learning management system (itslearning.com) - in all 4 of my Algebra I classes.

I have been spending the past 6+ months reading, researching and checking out flipclass teaching and teachers . . . and finally I took the leap!

I was really hesitant about making the leap.  I was worried about student apathy, lack of motivation, poor effort, poor comprehension & retention, etc. . . . but the opposite has occurred.

Students are collaborating, revisiting the video notes, asking lots of good questions, and overall have been motivated and consistent with their level of effort.  My stronger students are ripping through the material, and have the freedom to continue moving on . . . it's differentiated learning!

In one week, though, I have changed the layout, looking to streamline things and make each lesson more user-friendly.  And I think it helped a lot.  And I am finding myself continually tweaking and changing things daily.

Things I have learned:

1.  It's nice to have all the videos out there already made by teachers, but I have found that my students miss those "details" and special "explanations" that I use that help fill in gaps of understanding.  Moving ahead - I will make my own videos.  Will probably be a little rough at first but I think this will help the students a lot at the front end of the lessons.

2.  Your bottom 10% who struggle in class now - lack of effort, apathetic, low ability, behavior issue - they are still a "headache"!  Looking for an alternative option to use with these students . . . I have roughly 100 students in Algebra I and approx. 12 students who just haven't gotten on board.  Each has shown signs at times in the past of doing work, but it is a hard balance for me as I have so many students working and progressing and asking questions and doing great things that I find my time with the bottom 10% is even more annoying when I see the success of the other students.

3.  It is going to take time.  But, blended learning will work.  itslearning will work in my classroom.  Is this true for all classrooms?  I don't know.  But, I do know that the leap was well-worth it!

4.  Freedom for me!  I am able to create my material and post it on itslearning and then it's there.  I can edit as I need.  Whereas I always felt like I was creating new lessons and worksheets and activities every single day for my classes . . . I was burning out from all the planning.  Now, I can put the time in at the front (prior to the students seeing the material) and then allows me to be a teacher - giving feedback and direction!  Yes!

****On to week 2!

Special thanks to @math_johnson (Graham Johnson) for all his insight/input this past week - he was great answering all my questions about blended learning!

Teacher Identity

I am struggling with who I am as a teacher . . . it's an identity crisis!!

Look, I am not the hardcore teacher who says "my way or the highway" and all students will learn this material this way and if you don't get it, oh well.

I understand that students learn in different ways and at different paces.  I know some students enjoy repetition & worksheets, while others crave hands-on activities.  And then there's technology - lovers, haters, and whatevers.

We are a 1:1 tablet school now so I feel the pressure to use the tablets consistently in class.  But I struggle with the daily routine of creating quality online material with all the links and whistles.  Then, I know I need to differentiate in my classroom . . . ahhhhhh!  Oh yeah, and then there's COMMON CORE (echo echo) looming around the corner.  And new teacher evaluations for the state of Ohio.  And . . . IDENTITY CRISIS!?!?

Project Based Learning - love it!  Is that the teacher I should be?
Technology = flipped class - love it!  Is that the teacher I should be?
Standards Based Grading - love it!  Is that the teacher I should be?
Follow the textbook one section at a time - dislike this with a passion.  Is that the teacher I should be?
Lots of assessment and feedback - love it!  Is that the teacher I should be?
Work more closely with my colleague next door - she's awesome and has great ideas and she's so stinking organized it's sickening (but she's not me and I'm not her) - Is that the teacher I should be?

With all these questions and more circulating in my head it leads to . . . bog down.  I freeze, I end up tripping my way through lessons which are inconsistent & I'm sure frustrating for some students.  IDENTITY CRISIS!

Don't get me wrong . . . I truly enjoy teaching and the students are learning and are showing maturity and all that great stuff (as much as 9th graders can!).  But, I feel like I am short of my potential as a teacher.  But, I don't want to put all my time and effort into a certain teaching identity and find that it was a waste.  I want my identity to motivate me and my students.  I want to be energized.

And I want my students to enjoy math and to feel some ownership over their learning and progress as a math student.

IDENTITY CRISIS

My New Assessment Plan

I am trying to really turn my focus in class to assessment.  The idea is to get the students to focus more on what they know and not so much on "how many points did I get"?  I am trying to work on some type of structure for me and for the students to follow.  The steps incorporate multiple feedback steps for students to help identify problem areas and areas of strength.

I am hoping to tweak this over the next few weeks leading up to the end of first semester (and Christmas break!).

Here is what I have so far . . .  do you do anything similar? different but works?  thoughts/suggestions?

My Assessment Plan

1.  Feedback Assessment - check for right answers / circle wrong answers

2.  “Fix it” Assignment - watch video / complete form explaining mistake / create “good ones”

3.  Feedback Assignment - “review assignment” - teacher comments

4.  Graded Assessment - grade that goes into progressbook

5.  Individual Reassessment (if needed)

IDK

IDK - that's the response I got today on my Parallelograms Pre-Assessment.

The students had to find slope of a line on a graph, slope of a line given two points, and then do the same using the distance formula.  They also were asked to sketch a parallelogram on a coordinate axis and explain why the shape was a parallelogram.

IDK - that was the answer I got the most on the pre-assessment.

That's not what bothers me or even caused me to write this blog post . . . IT ENDED THERE!

There were no "freak out sessions" or "how do I do this?" or "show me how to do #2!".

Did I miss something?  Where's the intrinsic motivation?  These students are "ahead" of their peers . . . ?

So, I worked with one student who actually knew how to complete the problems (referencing the pythagorean theorem!) and another student asked for help with her polyhedron project.

Yet once again . . . it is me who is stressed and frustrated with the progress of the students.  The students are just hunky dorie!

Let me think about what to do . . . IDK!

Assessment - Tried something different

I have been reading all of what Shawn Cornally (shawncornally.com @thinkthunkthank) has to say on assessment and standards based grading.

This week . . . my plan was to try a different angle with this week's assessment in Algebra.  I gave the assessment Thursday . . . graded the assessment but only made comments and circled areas of weakness or mistakes.

No points, no percentages, etc.

Then, I emailed each student so they knew how they did on each problem (standard).

Friday (today), the next day, I gave the assessments back to the students.  Then, I had the students do the following:

1.  If they got the problem correct . . . then they created 1 problem on their own and worked the problem out (showing me that the first time was not a "fluke").
2.  If the student got the problem incorrect . . . then they created 2 problems on their and worked them out (giving them multiple opportunities to show success).

The student could ask questions, but only about the original assessment from Thursday (the one with comments/circles) which helped students focus on their weaknesses and make connections to help them create and complete their own problems.

Things went really well overall.  Good discussions, students seemed to make progress and better overall understanding.

Issue:  How do I put this in to the gradebook as a percentage?  Do students who got the problems correct on Thursday earn a higher percentage than those who needed Friday to find success?  Or, does it really matter when they show success?  Success is success, right?  Do I make another assessment as a final follow up - maybe only the ones who needed the Friday strength day?

Pros - I love email and the ability to give immediate feedback to students.  This has been an issue for me in the past and something I want to improve upon this year.  Also, the assessment style I used took the focus off the points and percentages and rather on knowing the material - win in my book!

Cons - it takes a lot of time to email each student individually (but I think it was worth it overall).

Assessment - There's got to be more to it!

I have been really interested in Standards Based Grading (SBG) and Standards Based Assessment and Reform (SBAR) . . . over the summer I got all into the twitter chats and subscribed to numerous blogs via google reader.  So this school year, so far, I have focused my grading (or gradebook more like it), but now feel a void in my current set up.

My struggles come from the fact that I have students who are not good at some skills, but I have not truly given them an opportunity to become better at their weaknesses.  For instance, I workout and I keep a log of all my workouts so I can see my progress . . . in April my bench press was about 185 lbs. while now I am over 200 lbs. . . . there are programs that can take my lifts and let me know if I am a beginner, intermediate, or advanced lifter based on my strength.  I can see where I am weak and can focus on those areas in hopes of making them strengths.

Re-assessment.  That's what I am missing . . . also I think I am missing great opportunities to communicate with my students what I feel is their strengths/weaknesses.

I am currently focusing my attention on one "guru" of SBG:  Shawn Cornally (@thinkthankthunk / http://shawncornally.com/wordpress/).  This guy is awesome and his posts are not only informative but amusing.

Something that has caught my attention from his posts is the idea of on-going assessments . . . I have been assessing my lifts since the spring.  I didn't just lock in a final weight mid-summer and call it quits.  Now I do have cycles that I lift through, then re-evaluate where I am and where I want to go.  In the classroom . . . how about I keep the standards/scores from first quarter and continue them in the second quarter allowing students to work on previous standards that they struggled with.

This would give a more overall picture of the student's ability in class . . . because that's what I'm supposedly assessing.  Right?  Not who is responsible with regards to keeping a notebook or completing homework assignments . . . my ultimate goal is to create the strongest math student I can.

With my school going to gmail and all students having an account I am looking at ways to really communicate with students about the standards, about opportunities to take weaknesses and turn them into strengths, to push my stronger students to higher levels and bust through plateaus.  Plus, how many times have discussions or surveys or exit slips given you a deeper glance into the thinking of your students?  I know I need those one on one interactions with students where the formality of a quiz or test are not evident and the student can speak candidly about the topic at hand.  Email is a great buffer for this . . . what a great way to find gaps in understanding and to develop an action plan moving ahead and to build trust and support with/for your students!

Think about it . . . it's the end of May, end of the school year, and each of my students gets a list of all the standards we have covered and gets a break down of weak areas, strong areas, areas of average strength.  Wouldn't that be more valuable to my students?  What does a C with a comment of consistent effort in class do for the student or parent?

I really want to attack this idea . . . I think my teaching fits well with this idea . . . I think I need to put more time into my feedback for students and begin to create more conversations about the progress of each of my students.  I think the time and effort will be worth it.

Comments?

Math App Competition (MAC) #1 - Pick A Path by NCTM

click here to download/install app Pick A Path by NCTM

Math App Competition #1 - Pick A Path by National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM)

Started my first Math App Competition (MAC) with my all my students today.  And it went really really well.  There are 7 levels, each with 7 sets of puzzles to be completed . . . the scoring system is similar to Angry Birds & Bad Piggies . . . you have a goal to reach and receive stars depending on how well you do in your efforts to reach that goal.  So, if a student completes a perfect level they will earn 21 stars.

For the competition, for the students to earn "points" they must complete an entire level of 7 puzzles, screenshot their scorecard, and email the scorecard to me.

Then I post the scores on the MAC Leaderboard (click here).  The MAC Leaderboard is a google spreadsheet . . .

Here's the best part . . . I have students of verying abilities and effort levels and motivation levels and so on and so on.  All of them are competitive and want to do well in this endeavor.  Here's an example:  student is going to receive a C for the first quarter in my Algebra class.  He just sent me his scorecard screenshot of level with a perfect 21 stars!  Here's the bonus:  he sent it at 5:30 this afternoon (which by the way is a Friday!).  So, here is a student whose been inconsistent in regards to effort and comprehension at times and he's working on these puzzles 2 hours after school has let out!  That's AWESOME!

That is the biggest lesson I am taking from this competition already . . . all my students from Algebra to Honors Geometry were getting frustrated with the puzzles . . . they are not straight forward and can take multiple tries to complete.  What a great reminder and eye opener for the students to force them to work through sticking points and to finally have SUCCESS!

The competition will run through the Friday prior to Thanksgiving Break (November 16th).  But, I have a feeling that some students are going to complete the 7 levels well before that date.  Right now I am looking at crowning a champion and the top 10 . . .

Math App Competition #1 - Pick A Path by NCTM

I am hoping to do more competitions throughout the school year - if you know of any other good mathematics apps for Android, please share!  Thanks!

First Quarter Review - One Week Left

First off . . . the Android Acer has changed the whole dynamics of my classroom.  I have gone nearly paperless for close to two weeks now!!  And I love it.  The students are doing really well with the new software programs and the numerous steps that are being thrown at them.

This coming week is the final week of the quarter so . . .

Algebra - end of quarter assessment!  Here's a link to the topics / practice problems:  click here
This quarter has been about developing student confidence in their ability, creating trust between students and between students and I, as we move onto the second quarter and more difficult material.

Geometry - my focus in here has really been on the use of projects to fill in the gaps for the students.  Battering students with notes & worksheets becomes tedious and I really question how much the students are learning in this type of set up.  So, students are creating and creating and creating some more.  I will share a picture of my Honors Geometry Amalgamation projects when I get a chance.  They are awesome and we made a "visual quilt" out of them!!

Next quarter tech goals:  student google sites!  use progressbook with students!  use socrative on the Acer!  continue to create a better google class site!

Check out my class site if you get a chance . . . I would love feedback as right now all I am doing if throwing stuff on it, but am looking for a better more fluid way to present material.

tinyurl.com/flippingmathboyle

Week 4 Reflection - Let's talk SALSA!

Algebra - man oh man the range of abilities in my Algebra classes!  And that's in terms of effort, motivation, comprehension, so on and so on.

So, here's what I tried and it worked out really well - Tiered Tasks.  Tiered tasks is the idea of working on the same topic but setting up activities which work at varying levels.  I called it . . . SALSA!

Unit Focus - Solving Equations
Problem Set A - mild salsa (one step equations / two step equations)
Problem Set B - spicy salsa (two step equations / distributive property / combining like terms)
Problem Set C - inferno (solving equations of all sorts, sizes, and shapes).

This set up was awesome as I went around as the "waiter" and got the students' order - if the problem set they chose was too easy, then I gave them the next one up . . . and it could work the other way, but students didn't take this option = motivation/increased effort when stuck.  Win win!

Then to top it off, I gave the students "desert" - a quick summary question/worksheet to tie it all together.

The students joked that I didn't give them an "appetizer" so will need to work on an opener next time.

Today I had students asking to do the A,B,C activity again.  That's what I'm talking about.

I need to come up with some more variety in terms of set up, but the premise of having tiered tasks is something that I think will be a consistent in my lessons.

Might use it for this week's assessment coming up.

Next topic ahead - inequalities.

Geometry

Focus this past week was on midpoint, angle bisectors, segment addition, angle addition.  Lots of algebra here . . . amazing how they freak out about solving for x!

Still don't feel like I have gotten into a groove yet with the classes, but they have some awesome personalities and effort/creativity has been great.  Check out some of the avatars they created.

Avatars - Honors Geometry

Once we get our tablets, google acounts, etc. . . . it's on!  I can't wait.  Neither can the students.

Busy weekend ahead . . . soccer games for the kids Saturday and working at the Bengals on Sunday.  If we can't beat the Browns, then it's gonna be a long year.

Remind101 & PollEverywhere

Here are two online programs I am using with my classes.

Remind101 (https://www.remind101.com/)

Started to use this program with my Geometry/Honors Geometry classes.  How it works:  I type a message and click send.  The message is sent to my students' cell phone via a text message.  Great way to remind the students about assignments, materials to bring to class, etc.  Also, it's a one way messenger . . . meaning the teacher doesn't receive any random replies (which I think is great!).

There is also an option to send the message to email (I like the text option because it's instant - easy for last minuter reminders).  Student sign up was easy and so far has worked great!

PollEverywhere (www.polleverywhere.com/)

I am planning on using this for warm-ups & quick-checks during class periods.  I have not used this program yet and plan to use it in all my classes in some form or another.  So, I will update this post with my thoughts on PollEverywhere.  UPDATE:  My students and I had our first experience with polleverywhere today and it was interesting . . . I really like the multiple choice option.  The open ended question scares me with the students being in control of the responses that get posted.  But I think it's going to be a great class opener and ender for sure.

I will say that the set up of my account, polls, grouping them, etc. has been super easy.  Hopefully the same can be said for my students and the classes. 

Til then . . . happy teachings!

Variety with students grouped @ tables (Algebra)

One of the issues I am dealing with in my classes is the fact that I have grouped my students around tables.  This means that there are 5 students all within ear shot and eye shot of one another and each others' work.

I have a wide range of abilities in my classroom and sometimes it's hard to really see where some of my students truly are . . . especially my lower performing students.  I know it's natural to try and "look" like you know what you are doing, but as a teacher you know that's not what's best in the long run.

So, I came up with an activity that I used in my class the other day.  I create a set of practice problems for each student at the table and I placed the problems on the paper in the "spot" that the student is sitting in respect to the table.

Each student worked through the five problems in their "spot" - each set was different than the others.  The trick - I made each of the answers end up the same . . . but students couldn't copy right from their neighbor.

How'd it work?  Better questions from the students and some started to finally give in and say, "I'm not sure how to do this problem."  That's awesome.  These first three weeks have been so much about developing trust with the students so they will let me and Mrs. Harvey (co-teacher) give intervention and help.

Here's a pic of the problem set I created (I used photobooth which takes pictures mirror image style! #dealwithit):

Week 2 Reflection - Algebra/Geometry

Week 2 Reflection:

Go Cougars!  Beat Milford!  Let's go 2-0!

Algebra - gave my first assessment of the year this week (Algebra translations, rewriting expressions using exponents, evaluating expressions, distributive property, combining like terms) - the majority of students did pretty well overall - lots struggled with Algebra translations so I focused on that on Friday, the following day.

Now?!?  Differentiation - I need to find a way to keep those who are doing well moving forward while giving the intervention to those students who struggled.  Algebra always seems to have the biggest range in abilities/motivation/effort - how do you deal with this difference?  Create individual plans (sounds great, but a lot of work for me as a teacher!)?  Make up tiered activities and assign them to groups of students?  Please share!

The next unit focuses on solving equations and this is usually a better understood section of material overall, and I have an easier time creating problem sets.

Again, the lack of technology (interactive whiteboard not a go / Acer tablets not a go) has slowed things down quite a bit.  Of course, the scary thought is how all over the place students can end up once the technology is in place.  We will see.

Effort/motivation has been good overall student-wise.

Next week - solving equations (1 step, multi step, variable on both sides)

Geometry - spent this week on more constructions - overall the two classes did well.  A couple students struggled, but that was more of a lack of being able to use the compass consistently well more than an understanding of what to do.  I gave my first assessment of the year (constructions - copy segment, perpendicular bisector, perpendicular through point on a line, perpendicular through a point not on a line).  I could have done more if I had the tablets/internet access - *fingers crossed*

Students have homework over the labor day weekend - line design - opportunity to use straight lines to create some cool curvy designs, and the first "test" of responsibility as it is due on the Tuesday that we return.

Looking at creating some assignments that require the internet and see if students are able to complete them.  I can't go another week without some technology being involved.  And since I only have the 2 Geometries I think that'll be a good starting point.

Next week - Angle pairs (include Algebra), create student Avatar, begin the Geometry Rank system Ranks google doc (click here) (note: list will be edited since I have been unable to use GeoGebra at this point - again *fingers crossed*).  Also, going to try and introduce some more technology programs that we'll use throughout the year (twitter, etc.).

I will look at the Geometry Rank system closely over the weekend to get a better feel of the "flow" of topics for the next few weeks.  I'm ready to take things up a notch in these classes.

Week 1 Reflection

Week 1 Reflection:

Overall - a great group of students with lots of energy, good senses of humor, and a lot of the same strengths/weaknesses of classes I've taught previously.  I really need to look at how I want to differentiate the students, the activities, assessments, etc.

Cons:  Technology is slow at this time - missing some connectors for my whiteboard and students do not have the Android Acer Tablet as of yet.  It surprised me this week how much not having access to my interactive whiteboard threw me off.  It allows so much flexibility and adaptability on the fly during class.

Geometry / Honors Geometry - focused on isometric drawings / basic constructions (daisy designs, angle bisectors / perpendicular bisectors).  I so want to rock geogebra with these students but will have to wait on that once the tech stuff is worked out.

Algebra - mixed it up throughout the week - focused on algebraic translation, evaluating expressions, calculator basics, and a handful of various activities to see student personalities, effort, motivation, understanding, etc. - there are definite, noticeable levels in these classes - some very strong, and some not so strong students.

Things to think about for next week - pre assessing / creating parallel tasks / creating "I can statements" = SBG grade set up.

What's the deal with the Teacher Desk?

 What's the deal with the Teacher Desk?

This is something I am pondering as the new school year begins in just one week.

 Here's the situation:  brand new high school building; brand new classroom;  16 tables instead of individual desks (love this!); tall storage cabinet on wheels; "end table" type thing on wheels; a wall full of cabinets (high & low at the back of the classroom); two whiteboards with one hooked up with projector; teacher desk.

I can only plug my computer/phone in an area in the corner of the room (see pic) - so thinking of putting the "end table" there (which I did - see here):

Now, what to do with the tall storage cabinet on wheels and the teacher desk.  Some background info - I am not organized.  Never have been, and chances are pretty good never will be.  My desk is just another place for me to randomly set papers, pens, pencils, rulers, calculators, you name it.  At times my teacher desk has looked something like this (note: not an actual picture of my desk - just an illustration):

So, why the need for a teacher desk?  I put this question out on twitter and here's some responses I received:

So true!  As if the teacher desk is some "throne".  I spend the majority of my time working with my students so why create a physical barrier that takes that away?  Teaching is more than content and great lesson plans . . . its about interpersonal relationships and building of trust and confidence in the student. Also, so much of my work is going in the online direction that it's easy to move my computer to a student desk area and do my work.

Supplies & files . . . only if I were organized.  LOL!

Love it because I have one of those - a tall storage cabinet!

Conclusion:  Spoke with my inclusion teacher and she is going to take over the desk - she is very organized and being in my room for only 3 periods a day, it's a nice "home base" for her to keep all of her things.  I found a great place to put the tall movable storage cabinet - fits perfectly in the corner in the back (this will be my "go-to" area / a desk on wheels that will hold dry erase markers, boards, graph papers of varying sorts, etc.):  see here -

Here are a few shots of the layout of my tables (love this as it's very student centered which I want) - at this time I have 6 "islands" that can accommodate 5 students for a total of 30 students.  I don't have my class rosters yet, so it wouldn't surprise me if I end up adding another "island" to the mix.  I have the space if needed.  Best case scenario - I have the 4 extra tables removed and then have a lot more space to work with!!  *fingers crossed*

Student E-portfolios (great video)

The State of Tech is always full of great information that you can use in your classroom right now!  This video looks at google sites and the use of online student portfolios.

Enjoy!