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Embrace the Challenge

The Blog of a K-8 Math Specialist

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Tag: student work

education…

Fractions in Fractions: Sparking Creative Mathematical Thinking

9 May 2023
Third Grader Owen was ready for third grade math a while ago. I only met him recently, but I'm guessing he was ready in... second grade? First? It's unclear. Something…
curriculum…

The Case of the Impossible Triangles

3 Apr 20233 Apr 2023
The first thing I noticed when I walked into Caitlin's third grade class was that every student was, with bowed head, focused on writing in their math notebooks -- even…
Uncategorized

How We Listen: Astrid’s Thinking about 5 x 6

27 Mar 202327 Mar 2023
"Clinical interviews are an opportunity to listen closely," I caught myself telling a colleague recently. But... is that enough? How we frame the act of listening changes our entire experience.…
in the classroom

Peas and Carrots… and Beans

9 Feb 20238 Feb 2023
Last year, our first grade team had the opportunity to work with Investigations authors from TERC -- the inimitable Karen Economopolous, with Megan Murray in absentia. To prepare for our…
games…

Facilitating Number Boxes, Part 2 – Supporting Reasoning with Representations (Learning With Students)

15 Dec 20223 Feb 2023
"Hmm.. 8 + 3. Let's put the 8 in the ten frame. If we add 3, will it be more than, less than, more equal to 10?" Kyleigh missed parts…
curriculum…

Turtle Time Trials & Leveraging Creativity To Deepen Mathematical Understanding

13 Nov 202212 Nov 2022
What if...? In a lot of tasks that we give students, there's an intended answer. Okay, sure, yes, I guess you could interpret the problem in this divergent way, but…
assessment…

Restless Teachers

13 Oct 202213 Oct 2022
My favorite educators are restless. They have that itch. Nothing is ever completely satisfying. If you chat with them after a lesson, they'll tell you three things they would change.…
curriculum…

The Learning that Led to Today

19 Apr 202219 Apr 2022
"You aren't these kids' first teacher, and you won't be the last."-Jennifer N. When I was an early career teacher, teaching 4th grade, I wanted to teach my students everything.…
formative assessment…

What Will Help Plan for Tomorrow?

31 Mar 2022
What do I need to know about student thinking today before I teach tomorrow? Towards the end of a math lesson, this refrain plays in my head. ______ In third…
five practices…

Stenhouse Blog Post: Using Student Work as an Anchor for Mathematical Discourse (Something to Talk About)

11 Jan 20221 Jan 2022
This blog post was published on the blog for Stenhouse Publishing, as part of a series on classroom discourse. You can read the complete post on the Stenhouse website. While…
five practices…

“Look! I showed my work!”

8 Sep 20218 Sep 2021
It's surreal to be back at my school, in person, after 18 months away. I feel a tremendous sense of vertigo when I look around at this place that is…
assessment…

Clinical Interviews in the Virtual Space (Using Flipgrid)

2 Apr 20212 Apr 2021
One of my favorite things to do as a math specialist is clinical interviews. During a clinical interview, I sit down with a student -- one-on-one -- and ask questions…
education…

How Are Students Representing Their Ideas During Remote Learning?

27 Nov 20203 Apr 2021
I come from the Marilyn Burns School of Student Work Samples -- which is to say I prize student work that fills a large, blank page. (#TeamBlankSpace) Marilyn Burns, one…
curriculum…

Problem Based Lesson #3: Learning From One Another in Grade 4

9 Jan 202026 Jun 2020
This is a post in a series about problem based instruction in fourth grade -- centering on a series of lessons classroom teacher Claire* and I taught about symmetry. This…
curriculum…

Using Diagrams to Build and Extend Student Understanding

16 Dec 20196 Feb 2022
Co-authored by Kristin Gray (@MathMinds) Originally published on the Illustrative Mathematics Blog (November 25, 2019) Take a moment to think about the value of each expression below.  $latex \frac{1}{4}\times \frac{1}{3}$…
in the classroom

The Cookie Recipe: Learning Math from Students

1 Apr 20195 Feb 2022
Fourth grade teacher Alicia and I have a beautiful habit of doing math together when planning. We try out problems, and anticipate ways we think students.* *This work is made…
in the classroom

You’re Both Right: Examining and Honoring Mathematical Assumptions

21 Mar 201922 Jun 2021
Even from across the room, there was no mistake: Jacob and Ian were deep into a mathematical debate. Jacob had pulled his chair up to Ian's desk, and they were…
in the classroom

The Striped Snake Barbecue Puzzle: Exploring “Challenge” in 3rd Grade

4 Mar 20196 Feb 2022
Who gets to be challenged in class? How does the work we give students impact their status (or how they perceive their status) in the classroom? Meet Calvin You've probably…
in the classroom

Talking about Geometry in Kindergarten, Part 2: The Shape Hunt

5 Jan 20196 Feb 2022
Talking helps us make sense of ideas. Talking helps us synthesize our ideas. Talking helps us communicate our ideas. We want to get this kindergarten class talking -- a lot…
curriculum…

#TeamBlankSpace

3 Jan 2019
Every time a child says, 'I don't believe in fairies,' there is a fairy somewhere that falls down dead.J. M. Barrie, Peter Pan (1904) When a work page is overly rigid…

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Recent Posts

  • Seeing the World through One Kindergartner’s Eyes 18 May 2023
  • Fractions in Fractions: Sparking Creative Mathematical Thinking 9 May 2023
  • “Teachable Moments,” and a Tale of Two Detours 27 Apr 2023
  • The Case of the Impossible Triangles 3 Apr 2023
  • Bugs Jump Really High #tmwyk 1 Apr 2023
  • How We Listen: Astrid’s Thinking about 5 x 6 27 Mar 2023
  • Ramadan Pizzas: Mathematizing Children’s Literature #tmwyk 22 Mar 2023
  • “It’s as fat as it is tall”: Language and Concept Development with Quick Images 7 Mar 2023
  • Listening to Understand: Visualizing Adrian’s Thinking about Comparing Fractions 26 Feb 2023
  • Preserving Equality — Algebraic Thinking Across Grade Levels 13 Feb 2023

Archives

Upcoming Conference Presentations & Workshops

October 12, 2023
ATMNE Conference
(Portland, ME)
“Cultivating Student Ownership of Mathematical Language and Ideas” (with Louisa Connaughton)

October 27, 2023
NCTM Annual (Washington DC)
“Counting Collections as Context for Liberation” (with Kassia Omohundro Wedekind)

SEE OTHER RECENT EXPERIENCES…

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Tags

#tmwyk access centering students ideas child study clinical interview desmos division education equity five practices formative assessment fractions games geometry grade 1 grade 2 grade 3 grade 4 grade 5 grade 6 grade 7 grade 8 illustrative mathematics intervention investigations Investigations (Inv3) kindergarten listening making connections multiplication problem-based instruction problem-based learning productive discussions race remote learning slow reveal graphs student thinking student work visual representations writing
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