Homework, to give, nor not? How much to give? How much is too much? What purpose does it serve? What is the purpose in assigning it? I will be honest, I don’t have answers to these questions, but I do have some research, some documents downloaded that may help you shape your own answers to [...]
Last week I posted research and articles on vocabulary in math, this week I have a topic of reading and writing in math class, including some mathematical poetry. Sounds interesting, right? Is Some Mathematics Poetry by James Henle This paper offers six different versions of mathematical poems, both traditional and modern. I really liked the [...]
I think like most teachers, I read a lot. When I say I read a lot, I mean a freakin’ lot, and I save articles that I think will have an impact on my teaching either now or later. This means I have an folder with a couple of hundred research reports and articles. Over [...]
My friend Anthony created a blog post the other day saying he was looking for the CCSS in Excel format instead of PDF format. He did all the work to create the file he needed, which made me feel a little bit bad. You see, I have had exactly what he needed for the last [...]
Where to start. I have been thinking and working with the Exeter materials quite a bit in the last 3 months. I have come to see the value in the methods and the questions, and the way the questions cycle from lower levels to higher levels. But I have to say I don’t see the [...]
After spending a hectic week planning and organizing for the department, I finally got to work on my classroom in a serious way on Friday and Saturday. It all came together and my classroom is ready. So in the spirit of sharing, here is what my classroom looks like to the learners entering my room [...]
Well, this is new to me, at least. I have used powerpoints in class, but this add-on allows you to do some different things with the software. I hate to compare this to Prezi, but clearly that is the only comparison to be made. It is called pptPlex, and is a free add-on from Microsoft. [...]
So far I have done some pretty good revamping of my classroom. I am a huge Star Wars geek and now my room shows it. Last year I was moved into my room 1 week before learners arrived. I barely had pencils in place and hang some pictures. Now, it is time to personalize. Before [...]
My district (Washoe County School District in Nevada) puts together blueprints for us each year. They change a little from year to year, but generally don’t have tremendous changes. This year, of course, being an exception because of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) that we are required to roll out. The page I linked [...]
I have 3 things I am sharing today. The first is one way to brighten up and hide some really ugly stuff in my classroom. 12 years ago, when the school was built, a teacher (who shall remain nameless and has since retired) covered the windows in my room with contact paper. Have you ever [...]