Put down the plastic!

Every trimester I write a note home to 6th grade parents promoting mathematics. It is my attempt to sign them on as partners in demystifying math.

Here is my latest email.

Hello families,

Every now and then I feel compelled to share a way that I believe math can be demystified for kids. This week they did a project called Tax and Tip (you can ask them to show you in Notability). I got to thinking that these days I rarely use cash opting instead for credit and debit cards and apps on my phone.

Among other things (you can see the whole list here), February is the national month of grapefruit, embroidery, American Heart and of course love. Let’s also make it the month of ‘letting our kids deal with cash’ month. Calculating helps with decimals. Tax and Tip, percents (they can use calculators or find a good app for you). And PBS even gives a great idea for a higher order thinking guessing game to be done during those long car rides when you start to hear “She did it, no he did it.” And if you’d like to get a jump on negative numbers, let them borrow $1 and have to pay it back to you in installments to get back to zero.

One final idea, Superbowl LI this weekend! I’m still not sure who to root for but the game itself with yards and statistics and even roman numerals is a math extravaganza just waiting to happen.

Enjoy the weekend and happy ‘kids using cash’ month.

I'm curious how you create learning partnerships with parents at home. Please share in the comments.

Back to blogging

I'm going to introduce my 8th graders to blogging. We'll have a class blog where each week students will be responsible for creating material to share their learning.

I've been rediscovering all the fun widgets and gadgets. Revolver Maps is one of my favorites but I'm going to have to pull out all the Tweet-stops to get views from around the world to show my students just how far their thoughts can travel.

Do I embody innovation? Yes and no!

On the edge...

This second week of #IMMOOC I reflected on the final question posed: How do you embody the characteristics of an Innovator’s Mindset?

I know what to do. I read tweets, books, blogs. I share. I watch colleagues. I let colleagues in. I ask kids. And, I have started. I use new. I use better. But I haven't been courageous enough to go all out with new AND better.

I want to just jump in with PBL. I've been at the starting line ready to go for two years and I'm still there. I've compiled so much research, I'm overflowing with conviction. I don't mind giving up control. I want to ask the students what they choose to learn. I want them to run a restaurant. Open a bank. Design a house on Mars.

Nothing to lose!

So why am I not doing it? This has been a hard week coming to terms with the answer to that question. Bottom line: I'm so focused on the details (formatives, summatives, standards, skills, groupings, accommodations, parent reactions, colleague reactions, admin reactions etc.) I can't bring myself to just do it.

What will make me go over the edge? Well, the first step is to stop seeing it as going over the edge. Nothing will be lost, only gained. Here I go...