Blog Grade

Well, here it is! It is time to give myself a grade for blogging. I understand the we can only give ourselves a 0, 1, or 2. I am not exactly sure what this scale represents, so I am just going to assume that it is equivalent to the good, the bad, and the ugly scale! LOL! My blog is honest and reflects my opinions and thoughts about the course and math in general. I feel like all my posts contain many legitimate thoughts. I tried desperately not to use any filler or fluff, because I didn't want to waste anyones time who might "actually" read this blog (besides Dr. Shih, because he is probably obligated to read it...for it is a requirement for his course)......that is already enough time that the reader will never get back! Ha ha! If I didn't have anything purposeful to say, then I just didn't type it...plain and simple! My blog is not great, but it is good!

I deserve a 2!

: )

Last week of class!

So, this summer session has gone by way too fast, but am confident that I am ending this summer session with more knowledge than when I began. Math has been very interesting to me and I am curious to see what kind I math teacher I will become. I hope to incorporate many of the frameworks and concepts that Dr. Shih has provided for us this summer! I am still unsure of how I may approach these concepts in a traditional classroom with typical administration, but after a few years of surviving the teaching field I hope to pioneer these methods in my classroom. I think that the most valuable thing I have learned in this course is to think like a child. As grown-ups we are often way too busy to even think about thinking like a young student. I hope that I can keep this important understanding fresh in my mind for years to come. Thank you Dr. Shih! : )

Manipulative Performance Assessment!

I was so nervous and worried about the manipulative performance assessment! We had plenty of class time to practice, but the task still seemed daunting. I think that we were all over thinking it. Jenna and I successfully completed the task and looked at Dr. Shih for approval. It was like we were waiting for something else to happen, but that was it. We were done! It is such a relief to have that assessment completed. It may sound silly, but I am sure that some of you can relate......When someone is watching you...particularly a Dr. it is so easy to slip up. It is almost like you forget your name and everything else that seems so obvious and appears to be common sense. This made me think about future students that we will have. Will they be mortified to model in front of us, or is that a bad habit that they learn over time?!?!?!? The kids in the videos we watch seem so chill, but they are special, super-smart kids with an alternative education (kind of)! LOL! Will some kids be more nervous than others, or is it all about the environment that we provide? Just a random thought!

Note:

I would also like make a note that today's session was much more productive than last Wednesdays session. The first twenty minutes of our last class session was spent being annoyed, distracted, and entertained by the obnoxious drilling, banging, and hammering as the maintenance men serviced the ceiling outside our classroom! Fortunately we had the opportunity to move to the next room over and attempt to learn despite the faint drilling in the background. As aggravating as it was I must confess that I found the entire situation to be hilarious. I could not even stop laughing at certain times because it was just so inappropriate! LOL!

: )

Quizzes 2 & 3

Today we took two math quizzes and I think I did well...actually, I am confident that I did well on the multiplication/division quiz! ; ) We learned more about the framework for measurement division, partitive division and grouping. Our class was so tired and out of it today, so when Dr. Shih brought out a twist for multiplication and division we all stared at him with blank minds. LOL! Now that we understand the twist of continuous quantities and the door of mathematical equations that it opens; I see why these problems appear to be more difficult. I am still trying to catch my breath and process all that we have learned in these few weeks, so I hope I can come to class refreshed, well-rested, and prepared to learn about twists #2 and #3 for multiplication and division. I cannot believe how fast this summer session is coming to a close. Next week we receive our final exam, take our last quiz, and complete the manipulative performance assessment! My brain is beginning to feel a bit cramped with all of the information that we have learned in such a short period of time! I like to call this feeling: "Achievement"!

Monday: Quiz 1

Today we took our first quiz on the problem types from the framework for addition and subtraction word problems. I feel okay about the add/sub framework, but I think I need to spend more time reviewing and practicing with it. I feel strong enough to move on to multiplication and division word problems; which we did today! I understood it much easier than the first framework. My guess is that now I have my brain thinking in a more abstract way about mathematics and so it was easier to digest. I kind of feel like a nerd because I am so excited about understanding these frameworks and why children think the way they do about a problem.

Success : )

I get it!

After today's math methods course I really have a much better understanding of the word problem framework. After quizzing ourselves and our classmates I finally get it and I am beginning to see the "big picture"! We watched a video today of a first grade girl trying to model a seemingly simple word problem. It took her a long time to finally model the correct answer and it was almost painful to watch her struggle with it, but when she finally figured it out I was thrilled. I hope that I can be the teacher that gives her students enough time to truly contemplate a problem. Obviously we do not have all day to watch a student work on one problem, but I think that we should make more time for those moments in education where a child is learning from themselves and for themselves. I cannot emphasize enough how important it is that learning comes from intrinsic motivation! A teacher telling a student a process and an answer does not have nearly the impact as a student figuring this out for themselves!