Distributive Property- Restaurant Style

I wanted a fun way to introduce the distributive property and show my students how it could be applied to the real world. So, depending on the time of day, I had my kids pick a place they wanted to eat (morning classes had to pick a good breakfast spot and then later on in the day I had them pick their favorite lunch spot). I told them we were going to breakfast/lunch. (Of course this was hypothetical, but it REALLY got their attention!) During class I looked online to see if there was a menu for whatever restaurant they picked (if there wasn't they had to pick a different place) and we picked numerous food items that everyone in the class, including me of course, would be ordering. So we had the number of people in the class on the outside of the parenthesis, and then on the inside we had the prices of each food item. We talked about what it meant to distribute something. And then I took our example and distributed the number of students to the first food item. We talked about why this wouldn't be the final answer. The kids really got into this. Some students thought this may be correct because we did distribute the number outside the parenthesis to one number inside. But then some students almost had a panic attack saying things like "NOOOO!! We haven't gotten to my favorite food yet and so I won't get it, because there isn't enough of it for everyone!" They got that we not only needed to distribute the number outside to the first number inside, but all numbers inside.

So then we calculated how much money we would spend on each food item. That was a reality check for the students too. They couldn't believe that we could spend over $200 on rice, or some small appetizer! Then finally we calculated the total cost by adding each food item cost together.

After this, came the halleluiah moment for me as a math teacher. In every class, I had at least one person ask if they were "allowed" to take the total cost and divide it by the number of people we had to determine the cost per person. AND some people even wanted to calculate tax for the total bill! Sometimes my students are so brilliant!

And the cool part was, they thought out of the box. I expected to hear answers like McDonalds or Subway for their restaurant choices, but no they picked places like Sake, so we got to take a look at more unusual places, which the kids thought was really cool.

I did this activity 2 weeks ago, and now all I have to say is, remember what we did when we went out for breakfast/lunch! And they remember how to simplify an expression using the distributive property!

'Twas the Night Before The First Day of School

Well, here goes nothing. Sitting here writing my first blog, or post, or whatever you wanna call this thing (unless you count those silly sample blogs we made in ed tech classes in college), the night before the 1st day of school and a million things are running through my head. Wow! I cannot believe what a difference a year makes! Seems like just yesterday, I was laying in bed the night before the first day, completely sick to my stomach. I was so nervous, yet extremely excited at the same time. I didn't have a clue what my first year was going to be like, especially with 7th graders instead of my usual high school kids. Then came year 1, faced with tons of challenges and according to veteran teachers, the toughest group of kids they have seen in years. But hey, I'm here now, so I obviously made it through, and I can say that my only emotion is utter excitement.  I'm not nervous at all, and my head is about to explode with all these new ideas I have been finding this summer. My classroom is all decorated in my favorite colors (bright blue and neon green) and I have visions of INBs and foldables dancing in my head!! I took an amazing class called Hands on Math this summer, which completely changed how I am going to teach concepts to my little 7th grade chickadees. My collection of manipulatives has grown exponentially in the past few weeks and I can't wait to have my kids use them! I got my kids to pass the OAA last year and they met AYP and then some, I adore my intervention specialist, I have a fantastic group of 7th grade teachers to work with, the kids seeemed awesome at open house last night (one even came bearing cookies!!), and at the moment, I have no papers to grade! Feeling pretty lucky with my life at the moment! :)

~Q.E.D.

Back to School, Back to School, to Prove to Dad That I'm Not a Fool

Day 1 of the 2012-2013 school year is in the books, and honestly it couldn't have gone any better. It may be just the honeymoon period, but all of my kids are so polite, like they said thank you very time I gave them something, made eye contact, were excited, and didn't throw a hissy fit when I mentioned homework. MAJOR change from last year. I am really hoping for a change in attitude and level of respect this year. Last year some of my kids were so disrespectful to me and to each other, even with the principal in the room. I can deal with pretty much anything except disrespect. I will help a student on a math concept for hours as long as they are respectful, so hopefully that will be the case this year. And oh yeah, I forgot how cute 7th graders are when starting the year off!!

I started the day out with introductions. I introduced myself and then I went around the room and I tried to remember as many names as I could from open house. And surprisingly, I did really well! :) Then I read the introduction from Danica McKeller's book Math Doesn't Suck, explaining the girl she describes was very similar to me, minus the whole famous actress part. I told them how I threw tantrums when I was in 2nd and 3rd grade when my parents tried to get me to work on my math facts. They thought that was HILARIOUS! Reading the passage was a huge success and we ended up having a great conversation about it and their own feelings about math. After that I took the kids on a tour of the room, showing them key parts they would need to know. By this point, I didn't want to overwhelm them with information, so I asked them to take a look at all of my quote posters around the room (and if I ever have the time to take some pictures of my room you will see there are A LOT) and then pick their favorite one and come up with why they liked it. I went around the room, without my roster and was able to remember most of their names again (no idea how I was this good with names on day 1 but when they come in with different clothes tomorrow, it will be like I never heard their name before, because I will have forgotten) and when I called on them they talked about their favorite quote. I came up with this activity on the spot first period, but it was actually my favorite part of the class period because I really got to know their thoughts about the posters, and again it sparked really good discussions about their beliefs. For 7th graders, they are very insightful! :) Tomorrow will consist of going over my expectations and my definite dozen (rules) and they will start to put their INB together (YAY!!!) And hopefully there will be time to work on their 7th grade math graphic organizer activity. I hope day 2 goes as well as day 1!

~Q.E.D.

A Way To Group Student WITHOUT Talking and Math 7/8 Graphic Organizers

By Friday I surprisingly had everyone's names down. Now that's not to say that by tomorrow I will have forgotten every single one, but hey, it's a start. I could tell they were getting comfortable in their groups, so I decided to switch it up a little bit. In order to do this I had them line up in the back of the room by birthday, but there was a catch: they weren't allowed to talk. I also gave the stipulation that they couldn't text (their phones are supposed to be in their locker anyway). I said for this activity we aren't doing the unlimited talk text plans that they have for their phones, they thought that was funny. They came up with some pretty creative ways to do this. Some used their fingers to communicate, others wrote their birthday on a sheet of paper, and some even flipped to their birthday in their planner and starred the date. All very creative ways, AND there was absolutely no talking. LOVE IT! :) I then went down the line and grouped them by 4. I also demonstrated the "I'm getting a partner face". It looks completely neutral, because you don't want anyone to get hurt feelings if someone has a hissy fit when they hear they have to work with someone. Also I don't want someone doing their happy dance when they get to work with someone, and then not do the happy dance when they are working with someone else. So I told them they just have to suck it up and deal with whatever partner they get, because we will be changing partners all the time. I also said one of my favorite quotes/rules: I'm not asking you to be everyone's best friend, but I am asking you to be friendly to everyone.

8th Grade Graphic Organizer

The activity I had them do was make a graphic organizer for the particular class (7th grade or 8th grade math). They wrote the subject in the center of the paper and then they drew 5 spokes off the center circle, one for each of the standards: number sense and operations, measurement, geometry and spatial sense, patterns functions and algebra, and data analysis and probability. Then in green I had them write anything they knew about that particular standard. While they were doing this, I passed out their textbooks. I liked doing this because it gave them something to do other than just sit their while I pass them out. Once they got their books, they were then to look through the book and scope out anything they had never heard of before and write it in red next to those standards. They could look in the table of contents, index, glossary, or even scan through the book. It was cool to see their reactions to topics they had no idea about and hear them brainstorm about what they thought they were. Stem and Leaf Plots, and Box and Whisker Plots generated some pretty interesting ideas.  I did this activity last year and then at the end of the year, I got the graphic organizers back out and had them take a look at what the had written in red. Most of the students were able to tell me what the things in red were and what they were used for, so I let them highlight the topics in green. They thought it was neat because they remembered how they freaked out about not knowing the topics in the beginning of the year and it built up their confidence right before the state test because they knew the information! Once they finish the graphic organizers tomorrow, I will post a few pictures.

Some of the projects hanging in the hallway

Now onto the first full week! Hope I survive! :)

~Q.E.D.

My Most Prized Possession From My First Year

As a teacher, you never know the impact you can have on a student. Sometimes even the smallest gesture can have the most positive impact on a student. I learned this valuable lesson firsthand at the end of my first year of teaching. Last year, I had a girl who was very quiet, but once I took the time to talk to her and  find out about her, I realized she was the sweetest, most caring and mature 7th grader I have ever met. She has gone to New Lebanon her entire school career but not very many people know her very well because she is so quiet. I heard through a series of teachers that she didn't really like coming to school because there weren't enough smiles and everyone was so negative towards each other and the teachers. Hearing this made me very sad, so I started talking to her any time I saw her. I would ask her how her weekend was, or what she had for lunch. I don't think kids should ever have the attitude that they don't like coming to school because it is a negative place. My classroom should be a safe environment and I want my kids to feel happy and wanted there. Anytime I talked to her, her face always lit up with a huge smile. She soon started talking to me about her upcoming mission trip to Mexico (again showing maturity beyond her age). I am the advisor for an after school group at our school that promotes positive relationships between students. She happens to be in the group, and one day after school we were working on presentations we were about to give to the fourth graders about transitioning to the middle school. While doing this, I noticed she started to take total control of the presentation and was cracking jokes and opening up like I had never seen before. The guidance counselor and I were in complete awe because we had never seen her act that way! After the meeting she came up to me and said that she could tell I was surprised by her behavior. I said I was and that I was very impressed with her ability to take control. She said that my classroom was the first room she had ever really felt comfortable in. She said I really made her feel important by always asking about her day and that I would never know how much my smiles meant to her. The rest of the year went by and we continued talking to each other and she slowly started coming out of her shell during class. Then on the last day of school, she gave me this letter, and I cried the entire time I was reading it. For me, it made the entire year worth it. While I want to teach my kids math, I also want to teach them how to be kind, caring, respectful young adults. I want to show my students that they are wanted, loved, and appreciated, and that I will always be there for them. And if I need to take time out of my day and stop teaching math for a few minutes every class period to show them this, then so be it. Because, the feeling I got when reading this letter, knowing I was appreciated, is probably the same feeling my students get when I show and tell them they are appreciated and that I care about their lives outside of my math classroom. Now that a new year has started, she has come into my room every day just to say hi and give me one of her precious smiles, which is something I look forward to every day! Last year was full of many ups and downs, but for everything I taught my students, they taught me at least one thing about teaching in return. Lessons and moments such as this one. Lessons and moments that I will be forever grateful for.

~Q.E.D.

Tour of My Room

Here are some pictures of my room. I still have a few things left to do such as the school activities wall. I will most more pictures as I get their names up on that. Please let me know if there is anything you think I should add! :)

View from right inside the door

Student center where INBs and supplies are stored and where papers are turned in

My desk, complete with mailbox, candy jar and shoe tape dispenser. 

Bulletin board by my desk. This one will change quite frequently. 

Student center. Pencils, planner with weekly assignments, their tape and stapler, and basket with lotion. Students will be allowed to sit in the comfy chairs and work with a partner as a reward.

Homework board and weekly calendar.

My manipulatives. I've found that keeping them out in the open reminds me to use them! And it gets the kids interested in them, the are constantly asking when we are going to be using certain things, which is exciting!

Bulletin board by the door, I will keep this available for school announcements the kids need to know.

"Don't worry about it, we've got it"

Can I just say how much I adore my kids this year?!? I mean I know today was only the 7th day of school, but honestly they are making teaching so fun! So far there haven't been any major behavior issues and they are so eager to learn! They don't moan and groan when I give them homework or tell them I want them to try something without a calculator. All I can say is I hope they stay this way. Yesterday when I was talking to my main squeeze Ashley https://twitter.com/mathtastrophe I was saying how I probably was a horrible teacher last year because all I did for a majority of the year (1st semester) were powerpoints and book work. But then on my way home tonight I was thinking about how wonderful my kids are and then it hit me. The reason I only did powerpoints was because my students last year never appreciated anything. Any time I created a game or something fun, they would complain about it because they would have to work in groups or do something other than just sit at their desks. I would spend hours on fun things and they would complain about it. I ended up getting very discouraged so I ended up just sticking with my powerpoints because they were easy and their complaining didn't motivate me to be creative. But this year my attitude is totally different. So far my kids are very receptive to everything I've done. I've gotten comments like "math is so fun now" "I never realized how important math was" "I can't wait to get back in here tomorrow" All of these comments inspire me to want to make the best lesson I possibly can.

I know I probably didn't have the best attitude last year because ya know "even if the kids hate the subject it is your job as the teacher to motivate them and get them excited about your content area" but I was trying everything last year and nothing seemed to work to motivate them and change their attitude.

The small class sizes have allowed me to already connect with some of my chickadees as well. Just asking about their lives and helping them in intervention, I can already see I'm gaining their trust.

So far every day this week I have woken up with a smile on my face and I am actually sad to see them go when the bell rings at the end of the day. Not only are they excited about school, they are SO polite. Case in point. The last period of the day is responsible for putting the chairs up so the custodians can clean under the tables. I made the comment today that if there was a chair around them that no one sat in for someone to please put it up so I wouldn't have to walk around and do it. Well there is a group of students who when the bell rings they leave their stuff in my room and go to their locker to get their books and bookbag and then come back in to pack their bags so they don't have to do it in the crowded hallway. So the bell rings and everyone leaves and there are about 7 chairs that have been left down. I was like "Really? I just asked them to put the chairs up" So I finish what I was doing and then I go over to put the chairs up. All of a sudden some of the boys come back in the room and said"Oh don't worry about it, we've got it, we were going to put them up for you after we came back in" Me: "Thank you boys!" One of the boys: "No problem, it's the least we can do after you've taught us all day!" WOW!! Who the heck says that?!?!? Especially in 7th grade. They took the time to stay after class to put the chairs up for me while their friends were all outside getting ready for football practice or leaving to catch the bus. I know it was something simple, but again, it is such an amazing turn of events since last year.

Sorry for the long post that doesn't contain any super ideas for a crazy good lesson or something creative, I was just so happy today after school and thought I would share my thoughts. I really hope this feeling lasts, because if it does, I can tell it is going to be an awesome and memorable year! :)

A New Spin On Clock Partners

Here is a completed clock partner sheet. I had them tape this in the back of their INB.

This year I decided to try clock partners as one of my ways to group students. For those of you who have never used these before, you give each student a clock and they have to walk around the room and ask each other to be their "one o'clock partner" or whatever the time slot may be. Then on any given day I can say ok we are going to work with are __ o'clock partner today, and they will sit and work with that person that day. My rule is that they are not allowed to turn anyone down if they have a time slot in common. At the very end it can get tricky because there may be an odd number of students, in that case there will have to be groups of 3. Also depending on how everyone fills out their clocks, there may not be any common times at the end. If this happens, I make groups of 3 asking students who they haven't worked with yet and putting them in that group.

I had my students fill out their clocks on Friday after their first weekly quiz. They had already done clock partners in their science and social studies classes so my hope was that they would be familiar enough with this so that they wouldn't mess up. Because if someone messes up it messes everyone up and they have to start all over, or at least go back to the point of the mess up. I had the clocks all run off for Friday, but then Friday morning I had an epiphany. Instead of simply having 1, 2, 3, etc. on the clocks, I would have the formulas that they need to memorize for the state test in May. That way I can say you are working with your area of a trapezoid partner today. Then the students will have to determine which formula is used to find the area of a trapezoid and then work with that partner. One of my goals this year is to find different ways for my students to remember each of the formulas. They really struggled with this last year. I tried getting them to memorize the formulas with flash cards, but they lost them. I tried getting them to write them out over and over but they wouldn't do that. I also tried to make them understand the formulas conceptually, breaking down the shapes into other shapes (cylinder- 2 circles and a rectangle) but that confused them. So, the standard clock went in my scrap paper tray and I ran copies of the new clocks with the formulas for the times. I am hoping the clock partners with the formulas will help them become more familiar with the formulas. We shall see!


~Q.E.D.

Activities Wall

Fall Activities Wall: Band, Choir, Soccer, Football, Cheerleading, Cross Country, and Volleyball

I strongly believe that if you can show a child you care, you will earn their trust, and then they will do almost everything you ask them to do. Once students know you care about them as a person, not just another student in their grade book, they will start to respect you. One of the big way I get to know my students is by going to extracurricular activities. I just got back from my first sporting event of the year: 7th and 8th grade volleyball, and I had a blast. It was an away game at the school near my house and I know a lot of teachers and other people who work at the school. I was saying hi to a friend who was working in the ticket booth and when my girls walked around the corner and saw me I had to do a double take and make sure Justin Bieber wasn't standing behind me. They FREAKED OUT! They were so excited when I told them I was coming today and were even more surprised when they actually saw me there. They were SO cute, they kept waving at me while on the court and the 8th graders came up and sat with me during the 7th grade game and vice versa. The parents were also very impressed that I was there. I also talked to some parents who said their daughters couldn't stop talking about my class which is always a confidence booster.

Anyway, a way that I recognize those who are involved in sports or other activities at school is with my activities wall. Depending on the season I put the corresponding sports on the wall, and I have band and choir up all year. This lets other kids know who is in what and the kids LOVE that their name is on the wall. Plus it helps me keep everyone's activities straight. I look up at the wall all the time and ask those students how their games went or when their next one is. I think the kids really like and respect that I take the time to ask them about their activities, and while I could put more math posters up in my room, I think the activities wall is something different and really special for all the students.

My First Attempts at Songwriting- One Direction Style

My kids always struggle with rational and irrational numbers. 

For some reason they can't decide if a number should be rational 

or irrational. They think because it's a decimal or it repeats, it is 

irrational. So because of this, I decided to write a song that they 

could sing to help them remember.

Soooooo....imagine One Direction's What Makes You Beautiful 

while you sing this song. Here's a link to the song I would 

recommend listening to the music to get the full experience 

Really pleased with how it turned out, but please let me know if 

you think I should change anything!!I will try to have my kids 

sing it next week, when I do I will make a recording of it! :) 

What Makes You Rational

           

            You’re insecure

            Don’t know what for

            You’re turning heads when your written on pa-a-per.

           

            Don’t need to go, on and on.

            Ending the way that you do is enough.

            [Bridge]

            Everyone else in the room can see it

            Your number is a clue.

           

            [Chorus]

            Baby you can repeat like nobody else

            The way that you terminate gets me overwhelmed.

            But when you’re in a fraction it ain’t hard to tell.

            You don’t know oh oh.

            You don’t know you’re rational.

            If only you saw what I could see

            You’d understand why your pattern is a necessity.

            Right now I’m looking at you and I can’t believe

            You don’t know oh oh, you don’t know your rational.

            Oh oh

            That’s what makes you rational.

            So c-come on. You’ve got it wrong.

            To prove you’re not irrational I’ll sing this so-o-ong.

            I don’t know why, you wanna be like pi

            If you didn't have a pattern, you’d make us cry-y-y.

            [Bridge]

            [Chorus]

            Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na
            Na Na Na Na Na Na Na [x2]

            Baby you can repeat like nobody else.

            The way that you terminate gets me overwhelmed

            But when your in a fraction it ain’t hard to tell

You don’t know oh oh, you don’t know you’re rational.

[Chorus]

***

Unit Test Reflection Letter

My school is stressing the importance of student self tracking and self reflection this year. When students have the opportunity to reflect, they can assess how they think they performed on a certain assignment and how well they think they know the material. I have also been attempting to have my students write more in my class, so that they see math isn't just being able to do the math problems, but you also need to be able to explain what you do and why you do it.

So with both self reflection and writing in mind, I came up with the idea of having my students write letters to themselves reflecting on how they think they did on the test. This letter will be read again later on in the year right before OAA testing so that they remember what the the given test was about.

I was pleasantly surprised with the averages on the number sense test I gave. No one failed and I had numerous students get a 100%. The overall average was an 81%, so I am looking forward to reading their letters. Below is the information I want to be discussed in their letter.

-->

Write a letter to yourself that you will read later in the year about your performance on the number sense unit test. Include the following: 

·      Say how you think you did overall and explain why you think you performed this way.

·      State one part of the test you are proud of.

·      State one part you think you could have done better on and what you could do to improve.

·      Identify a careless mistake that can easily be avoided for the next test.

·      Pick a topic from the test that you still aren’t 100% comfortable with and will need to review in the future.  

 If anyone has any ways they go over tests/have their students reflect over their tests please share! Once my students turn their reflections in an I have a chance to read them I will share how the activity went!

It's Been Awhile...Congruent Triangles

Even though I'm not one to brag, I have to admit, I'm getting pretty good at creating foldables on the fly, and this one I am quite proud of.  I was just going to do a simple tri-fold for determining if triangles were congruent (side side side, angle side angle, side angle side) but then I got to wondering how I could turn it into a triangular tri-fold, since this was for triangles. Here's what I ended up with. The kids loved making it, and it turned an ordinary lesson on congruent triangles into something fun and memorable. Let me know what you think, or anything you would add!

Outside

Inside