Candy makes Everything Better

What better way to learn about volume and surface area, then measure packages of candy!  We began our 12 day unit following winter break.  To peak our learners' interest we sent the above picture in a Remind message, letting our learners know we had been asked to determine how companies determine the cost of their products.  Learners were intrigued and ready to tackle this problem!  

Hitting the Valentine candy isle at our nearest store provided so many wonderful packages to use in our classroom!  When learners first saw the various candy packages, we had them create a map of all academic vocabulary words that could be used to describe the package and it's contents.  By activating their prior knowledge, our learners were hooked and ready to solve the problem!  

We first found the volume of various packages of candy.  As I walked around our room, listening to the mathematical justifications, I heard various comments made about what if they changed the size of the candy?  Do you think this is the same way they set the price for king sized bars?  The best one was, why can't every day in school be like this?  

Moving into surface area, I had several learners question their measurements because some volume and surface areas were equal, where others varied from what they assumed would be the larger amount.  Watching them reflect on their volume chart and reassess if they did it correctly provided the perfect opportunity to talk about problem solving and not being afraid to make a mistake.  

 

Students will spend this week justifying how companies use volume and surface area to determine unit price.  After listening to their discussions over the past week, I can't wait to hear what creative ideas they share with the class.  Stay tuned to hear what innovative ideas they come up with!  

Embracing an I Can Attitude & It's Impact on Learning

Socratic Seminars in a Math Classroom

For the past 3 three years I have had the privilege of being a member of an AVID site team.  During this time, I truly embraced the AVID mindset and implemented the instructional strategies I learned during my weeklong AVID Summer Institute.  One of my favorite learning opportunities is Socratic seminars!

Throughout this school year, I have focused on helping our learners move away from having a fixed mindset towards embracing a growth mindset.  From various posters on our walls to our Mindset Mondays, our learners are beginning to see the impact of having a growth mindset in our classroom.

As we began 2017 together, as a staff, on Tuesday morning, a comment made by a coworker left me thinking of how we, as "math" learners, can defy the odds....the odds of "only reading word problems in math."

Articles were passed out in all classes on Wednesday and the annotating began!  I'm forever grateful for the help of our ELL support in 2nd period, who took the time to find articles in Spanish for our ELL students.

Articles were posted in Google Classroom for ALL learners to access

We spent our time together on Wednesday and Thursday reading our articles, writing 5 word summaries, discussing new vocabulary and most of all learning through text, other than a word problem!

Thursday evening, I spent the time setting up our room with an inner circle of 9 desks and then strategically placing the other desks.  Several ideas of how to group the kids were circling around in my head, when I thought of the learners of 2nd period.

Second period is a 29 member family that is made up of 9 girls and 20 boys; A 29 member family that consists of 18 students born in Texas, 2 born out of state and 9 born in another country; A 29 member family that embraces our diversity, respects each other and most of all encourages each other as we embrace 21st century skills, while learning our 8th grade math standards.  

These 29 learners were the inspiration for the way learners were grouped for this activity.  Because our focus for this seminar, as well as our classroom, I translated, "Yes, you can!" into the 10 languages that represent the families of Room 27.  The smiles on my learners faces beamed with pride when I shared my reasoning behind our name tents.  

Meet the stars of the show, the learners of 2nd period!  

(I apologize in advance for how loud I am, as I was coaching them through their first Socratic seminar)

As our day progressed and learners filtered in and out of our classroom, I found myself becoming more and more proud of our Falcons.  Learners were so excited about doing a Socratic seminar, as they had previous experience in other classes.  What I found was this was something completely new to them, to think in a "new" way in math.  Most groups were hesitant to begin the conversation, but with coaching and guided questions, they each began to share their thoughts, supported with their annotated text, as well as their interactive notebook!  

Learners brought their own questions and I brought mine!  Here are some of the questions, I asked:

• Why do you think we put a “wall” up in math?
• Why do we automatically think that mistakes are negative?
• Do you agree that math is too much answering and not enough learning?
• Which grading scale (see below) would you prefer to show you are learning?

As we moved throughout the seminar, learners moved between the inner and outer circle.  While a member of the inner circle, each learner represented their group and shared the information they discussed, as well as agreed or disagreed with the other members in the conversation.  Outer circle members used Today's Meet.  

Using Today's Meet, offered a way for the shy learner to still feel safe when sharing his/her ideas, as well as asking questions.  The other circle members typed on Today's Meet, rather than using sticky notes.  I kept hearing discussions on how cool it was that they were using this website!  In order for all participants to know what was being shared on Today's Meet, I had it reflected on our board.  

We used our CHAMPs to establish proper etiquette when participating in a discussion, both as a speaker and as a listener.  One thing I wish I would have made more of an effort to talk about was how to address others when you are responding to their comments.  As the day went on, I remembered to do this, as you can see on the Today's Meet channel!

Several teachers and administrators came to watch our Socratic seminars, which made the day even more meaningful.  Throughout the day, I too found areas I could improve on, which made each class period, that much more powerful!  We were all learning together, which is how every classroom should be.  

As each class period ended, learners were given a page to reflect on our learning experience.  I'm already looking forward to what they learned, as well as what they wish.  

Have you ever tried a Socratic seminar in your math classroom?  What impact do you see Socratic seminars having on your instruction, as well as the learning in your classroom?  Stayed tuned for learner and teacher reflections on our Socratic seminar!  

Kicking off 2017

On Tuesday, January 3, the faculty and staff headed back to work at NRMS.  It was hard to believe our winter break had come to an end and it was ready to hit the road running, as second semester is always filled with test prep, end of year activities and this year, we add in completing our 100 hours of professional learning for our STEM certification, as well as packing up our classrooms to move into our new building.  Needless to say, it's going to be jammed packed with activity!

We were broken up into our Falcon Way houses.  It was a nice change to sit with those we don't usually interact with during the day.  Our first focus of our time together was to reflect on the past semester of Falcon Way and Reboot our Mindset as we begin the second semester.

Individually we filled out a quick questionnaire about ourselves.

• What did you do or enjoy the most over Christmas break?
• What are your favorite hobbies?
• What are your pet peeves?
• What is one goal you'd like to accomplish during your lifetime?
• Describe yourself using three words.

Papers were mixed together and shared amongst the group members.  We then had to guess who are paper belonged to!  Great way to get us adults talking to each other, but even a better model of what we can do with our learners to build community within our classrooms :)

As members of Courage house, we came together to focus on the celebrations of Falcon Way and areas of improvement.  I loved how if we had a concern, we had to have a solution!  To share our celebrations with others in the room, we used the web-based program, Mentimeter.  Given a code, we we were able to list 3 words or phrases that summarized our celebrations.  Below is the wordle that was created by our staff.

Each group was given 2 pieces of chart paper:  Concerns --> Suggestions & Brilliant Ideas.  I of course encourage our group to focus on the Brilliant Ideas, as this would continue the positive energy.  As a house, we loved the PJ fundraiser hosted by Mrs. Cherry's (@feliciacherry) Falcon Way members and the #wheelchairchallenge, hosted by Mrs. Peltier's (@mrspeltierNRMS) Falcon Way members.

Moving onto our Concerns --> Suggestions provided a consistent theme of time and knowing our students amongst our House.  Collaboration began and solutions are ready to be implemented when we meet on Monday!  I must say I was quite proud of my fellow housemates as they came up with an idea to mix up their classes, allowing for groups to work together on a common goal.  As a staff we participated in a gallery walk, looking at each other's ideas.  The ideas shared on the posters will be taken into consideration as we move forward with the implementation of Falcon Way!

What I hope that others will take away from this part of our time together are the various instructional strategies we participated in as students, rather than teachers.  All provided awesome ways to model being solution seekers, rather than problem finders!

We then moved into how to reconnect with our learners after a 2 week break.  Greeting students at the door, asking how break went and most of all making them feel apart of the learning community.  This activity reiterated to me the post I wrote about my goals for 2017 and being a positive teacher for ALL of the NRMS stakeholders.

Our ELA teachers shared with us the best reading strategies for all content areas.  Led by Kylie Norrel (@knorrell7) & Katherine Harvell (@mrs_harvell), we were given an article Model Behavior: The Mathematics of Juggling  We were guided through the processes of reading and analyzing text, as our learners do in their ELA classes.

The one comment that resonated with me, as a math teacher, was when other ELA teachers mentioned that the only reading that happens in math classes is with word problems.  This made me cringe knowing there are so many articles out there that pertain to math in the real world (just like the article we worked with today!).  I couldn't help but smile towards my teaching partner because of the learning that was about to happen in Room 27 over the next 3 days.  It was time to bust the myth of only reading word problems in math!

Our time together culminated with a focus on STEM.  All of the math and science teachers were recognized for the time and energy they have put forth in working towards our certification.  Our challenge was to build the tallest tower given 60" of tape and a file folder.  The energy sparked during this activity was phenomenal.

What did you take away from your first day back?

20 '17' Ways to Promote a Positive Learning Environment

As a new year begins I can't help but be more excited for what the coming months hold for the learners of Room 27!  Despite having to take "the" test in a few months, we have so much learning still to conquer.  After all our Falcons are soon to be Richland Rebels, where doors will continue to open to learning opportunities.  Opportunities in the classroom, on the field and in life!  

The past few months have re-ignited a love of teaching, learning and growing.  Loves that were lost amongst the everyday routines, placed on a bookshelf, filed away into a Google folder and forgotten about.  Through relationships with the other teachers and leaders on my campus, a spark was ignited and a passion was instilled.  

Model what You Want to See from Others

It's crazy to think who you surround yourself with impacts all aspects of your life!  I have found when surround by positive energy, my mindset changes to getting to go to work, rather than having to go to work.  I am continuously reminded of the why behind each day when I look into the hearts and souls of the learners of Room 27.  School provides much needed stability for some of our kids.  It's hard for me to hear students talk about how teachers don't like their students or don't seem happy to be at work.  Not only are kids absorbing our actions, words and thoughts, but so are fellow teachers and parents.  

Have Students Help Set Classroom Expectations

At the start of our school year, each class wrote mission statements!  I find myself reading them but wonder if the kids are taking time to truly understand what our mission statements mean.  I am going to be intentional with our conversations, while referring back to our mission statements, throughout our spring semester.  The spring semester is usually hectic, filled with stress as we approach testing season.  I want to emphasize the learning we are doing is not for a test, but rather to make us global citizens, who are college-ready.  

Learn 3 Things about a Student a Week

This goes hand in hand with our goal setting conferences that a few of us teachers are going to participate in together!  Though I don't teach all of the kids we will meet with over the next 6 weeks, I wouldn't miss the change to get to know them, both as a member of our school community, but also a person.  After all, the more accountability we can provide our kids and each other, the more success we will achieve! 

Celebrate!

Embracing a growth mindset has been vital to seeing the small victories that occur in a classroom!  In the "traditional" classroom, you get one opportunity to prove how smart you are with a unit assessment.  I have embraced the philosophy that every day we are faced with learning opportunities, not just an assignment.  Our learners are still trying to grasp the idea of being able to make corrections on any assignment, rather than just ones with a "failing" grade.

 

Thank Somebody Daily

Gratitude has empowered me to teach more effectively, appreciate my individual students, grow in my profession, and enjoy life. Utilizing gratitude, I am able to model one of the most important lessons in life, having a positive attitude, especially about the aspects of life that challenge me.

Gratitude in Education

@Lindseycato1 Gratitude Journal 

I know several who keep a gratitude journal, focusing on finding one thing they are thankful for each day.  I think this is vital to our well being and making the most of each day.  

 On social media, I'd encourage you to begin posting & searching #ThankfulThursday...it's contagious!

5:1 Ratio

5 positive interactions to every 1 negative interaction.  One of the best pieces of advice I've been given is to write everything with a positive tone.  For instance, instead of saying "but," use "and"; saying "our classroom" rather than "my classroom" ;  saying please remember, instead of don't forget...simple ways to turn our thinking into a positive mindset!  

Learn a New Way of Teaching, then Try It!

A friend of mine asked me to mentor her, which was a huge honor.  The craziest part is I think we are mentoring each other to be better teachers for our learners.  

One of the best books to transform our practices

Read a Professional Book

I'm guilty of taking advantage of our Amazon Prime account and having new books shipped weekly!  Thanks to my PLN, I'm constantly getting new book titles to read.  As we start 2017, I'm going back and rereading a few of my favorites, along with some of my teaching friends.  The joys of reading, is you can always learn something new!  

 

Now I anxiously away for the books to arrive and the learning to continue!  

Make a Class Mantra

1. We want our learners to care about problems they see in the world, acknowledging our desire to have empathy become the anchoring force in our learning community.
2. We want our learners to think deeply about the problems, coming to an understanding of what each problem really is.
3. We want our learners to use their creativity and imagination to design something (an object, process, or system) that could solve the problem.
4. We want our learners to act toward putting their design into production, whether that meant creating a physical prototype to present or a behavior that they or others can exhibit. 

So how can we take the 4 ideas that we want and turn them into a mantra?  I plan on asking our learners what they think our class mantra should be, after all it's not my classroom, but our classroom!  

Share Your Hidden Talents

Honestly, this is a challenging concept for me!  I think back to a few years ago when we had club time on Friday afternoons.  I was able to share my love of scrapbooking with about 25 students.  Even the few times during the past few months when I pulled out my Cricuit and showed the kids how to use it, they thought it was awesome!

This spring, I hope to share my love of Excel with my students, as well as creating digital presentations as we embark on our first PBL, focusing on STEM careers and financing our higher level education.  Stay tuned for more hidden talents to be shared with the learners of Room 27!

Encourage Parent Participation

I am a strong believer in keeping parents involved in the happenings of Room 27.  In fact, I still send weekly emails home so parents know what we are doing in class.  Sure there are concepts that are abstract, but that's where parents can ask their children about it and conversations can take place at home.

This past fall, we embarked on digital goal setting.  After meeting with each learner, he or she had to go home and discuss their goals with their parens, providing digital documentation!

         

Mother Son Goal Setting 

Father Daughter Goal Setting

After we were finished, I shared the following survey with the parents:  A Parent's Perspective on Goal Setting  I would have loved more parent input, however, I'm grateful for the feedback I did receive.  We will be revisiting our goals throughout the next semester, which I hope will allow parents to continue to feel apart of our journey!

Goal Setting Coffee Dates with Mom

Remember, even in middle school, parents love hearing from the teachers and being involved in their child's learning journey!

Recognize Positive Behavior-Reinforce It-Rinse-Repeat!

Focusing on the positive actions of our learners is huge in not only their success but the overall feel in our classroom!

Too many times we are quick to call out students for what they are doing wrong, rather than the behavior that is modeling positive consequences.  (Remember focusing on the positive for 2017!)  I am a strong believer in either emailing parents or calling when their child is doing well academically, working to their full potential or being a good role model for their peers.  Not all communication home has to be about academics!  

Greet Parents & Students as They Arrive

One of my goals during the first week of school is to know each child by name.  Sure I may make mistakes but what kids see is that I am trying.  By greeting the learners of Room 27 by their first name shows them that I respect who they are and the story they each tell.

When my teaching schedule changed in October from 3 classes to 5 classes, I quickly knew I had to create a connection with our Algebra kids.  Change is hard as an adult, but even more challenging as an 8th grader!  Within 3 days I had most names and faces connected, which was a new personal record.

I encourage you to also speak to your coworkers in the hallways.  A simple good morning or how are you can make somebody smile and brighten their day!  Be the reason others smile :) 

Make Sure Student Voice is Valued

For the past two years, I have used surveys both as formative assessments and summative reviews of our units of study.  Here is a link to one:  A Student's Perspective: Your Voice Matters  The information collected from these surveys helps me be more intentional with my instruction and meet the needs of our learners.

My goal for 2017 is to allow more student voice in how our classroom operates.  I'm currently working on my STEM certification and one of the indicators focuses on student voice in how the rooms looks (furniture set up).  

I've decided to give the following survey, when we return in a few days:  Where do You Learn Best?

I am already looking forward to seeing the impact this has on our learning environment.  Stayed tuned for details!

Give 100% Effort

The why behind my career...I get to learn along side some of the best people around!  By putting for 100% each day, I feel productive and successful, even if I hit an obstacle in the road.  When I'm not 100% engaged into our day of learning, I find that the day just drags.  Learning is monotonous and I can't wait until 4:15 so I can leave school.  Honestly, I've had only a few of those days this year, which I am beyond grateful.  I hope to continue being encouraged and supported to give 100% each and every day!  

The Why to Each Day

Recognize the Small Wins

This is where my goal of reflecting on each day is going to serve as my reminder of what small victories each day holds!  I'm grateful for the joy writing brings me and can't wait to continue documenting our journey in 2017

Go All In!

Stay tuned for the incredible learning and growth that happens in Room 27 this semester.  We are looking forward to sharing our growth with you, as we prepare for life beyond the 4 walls of our classroom!