Meeting the Learning Challenges of NCLB in Mathematics

1. Meeting the Learning Challenges of NCLB in Mathematics So many of our dreams at first seem impossible, then they seem improbable, and then, when we summon the will, they soon become inevitable. Christopher Reeve Dan Mulligan Blue Ridge Council of Teachers of Mathematics SUPER MAN SUPERMAN

3. “A positive attitude may not solve all of your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth it.” -Maya Angelou

4. My Personal Learning Goals • I will understand the latest data on student achievement by subgroup as measured by SOL tests. (achievement gaps?) • I will explore the latest research on improving the performance of underachieving students. • I will imagine effective learning strategies that boost the achievement of ALL students in my classroom. • I will not write notes on the paper napkins. • I will not fall asleep and drop my head in the desert plate.

5. Benefits of Focus Activities • Help students focus and pay attention • Eliminate distractors • Open “mental files” • Provide choices • Encourage self-directed learning

6. Problem You have 24 quarters, one of which is defective and weighs more than the others. You also have a balance scale that will tell you which of the two stacks of coins is heavier. It will not provide you information about the actual weight. How can you identify the heavy coin using the balance scale only three times? As you solve the problem, reflect on what you do before, during, and after. What kinds of core reasoning skills do you use?

7. GoodInstruction(Keep it Simple…Keep it Real) “Good instruction is good instruction, regardless of students’ racial, ethnic, or socioeconomic backgrounds. To a large extent, good teaching – teaching that is engaging, relevant, multicultural, and that appeals to a variety of modalities and learning styles – works well with ALL children.” Educating Everybody’s Children, ASCD, 1995.

8. Teaching for MeaningPractices Positively Associated with Student Achievement Scores on the NAEP

9. Mathematics Strategies for Higher Student Achievement on NAEP • Although basic skills have their place in pedagogy, critical thinking skills are essential. In math at both the 4th grade and 8th grade levels, practices that emphasize critical thinking skills are associated with higher student achievement. • Learning math is an interactive process, rather than a linear process in which students’ progress from simple fact to more complicated facts (McLaughlin & Talbert, 1993). • Effective strategies in math included applications of higher order thinking skills, project-based learning, opportunities to solve problems that have multiple solutions, and such hands-on techniques as using manipulatives.

10. Latoya and Kirk

11. Latoya and Kirk LaToya – 159 cm Silk – 108 cm • 42 • + 135 • 177 • 108 • 69 • 73 • 4 cm below Shoulder – 135 cm Counter – 73 cm Stool – 42 cm

12. Opportunity to Learn Has the strongest relationship with student achievement of all school-level factors. • Three types of math curricula were identified by SIMS: • The Intended Curriculum: content specified by the state, division, or school at a particular grade level. • The Implemented Curriculum: content actually delivered by the teacher. • The Attained Curriculum: content actually learned by the students. Implemented Curriculum Attained Curriculum Intended Curriculum

13. 7.6 The student will use proportions to solve practical problems, which may include scale drawings, that contain rational numbers (whole numbers, fractions, and decimals) and percents.

15. The Essential Virginia Toy Investigation The Essential Questions: If Barbie came to life, would Ken want to date her? If Ken came to life, would Barbie want to date him?

16. Students with Disabilities in the General Education Classroom • “…the percentage of students with disabilities placed in regular education classrooms for at least 80 percent of the day increased between 1988-89 and 1998-99…The largest increase occurred among students with specific learning disabilities (from 20 to 40 percent).” National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), The Condition of Education, 2002

17. Instructional Strategies that Facilitate Successful Inclusion Must … • Supply students with STRUCTURE and ORGANIZATION • Encourage student COMMUNICATION and COLLABORATION • Provide students with VISUAL and HANDS-ON learning experiences

18. “If an educator keeps using the same strategies over and over and the student keeps failing, who really is the slow learner?”

19. MINDMultipleIntelligencesNotetakingDesign Mathematics Sample Notes The Sample Notes are provided by the talented teachers of mathematics from Prince Edward County Public Schools

20. SOL 5.8 The student will describe and determine the perimeter of a polygon and the area of a square, rectangle, and right triangle, given the appropriate measures. • Right MIND Notebook Page • The teacher provides the specific formulas that the students must know to meet the objective of the standard. • Left MIND Notebook Page • Students process what he/she knows about the formulas using the activities provided by the teacher.

22. SOL 6.13 The student will a) estimate angle measures, using 450, 900, and 1800 as referents, and use the appropriate tools to measure the given angle. • Right MIND Notebook Page • Teacher-provided notes (from the VA Curriculum Framework) • Student marking and note-taking. • Left MIND Notebook Page • Students’ visual representations of notes.

24. SOL 7.10 The student will identify and draw the following polygons: pentagon, hexagon, heptagon, octagon, nonagon, and decagon. • Right MIND Notebook Page • Teacher-provided narrative of essential knowledge (from the VA Curriculum Framework) • Student underlining and highlighting key concepts • Teacher-generated activities with hands-on materials (manipulating information) • Left MIND Notebook Page • Students drawings of presented essential knowledge • Student application of presented skills

26. Creating a Climate for Learning • For students to succeed, they need to believe that they: • can learn; • are learning information and skills that is useful, relevant, and meaningful for them; • are valued in the classroom; • responsible for their learning; and • responsible for their own behavior. “Teachers’ beliefs in and about human potential and in the ability of all children to learn and achieve are critical.” Caine & Caine, 1997

27. A definition • To differentiate instruction is to recognize students varying background knowledge, readiness, language, preferences in learning, interests and to react responsively.

28. Reading Comprehension in MathematicsThe Kroger Theorem

29. Choice Board or Tic-Tac-Toe This assessment strategy allows students to select their own preferences but still achieve the targeted essential knowledge and skills. Algebra Choice Board

30. Thank you for your commitment to children! "It's your attitude, not just your aptitude that determines your ultimate altitude." --Zig Ziglar Dan Simplyachieve@juno.com 757-754-5920