Last school year, I didn’t formally teach math. For the first time in ten years, scheduling
resulted in somebody else teaching math to my class. And I realized how much I really enjoyed
teaching the subject because I really missed it.
For me, math is all about the relationships that exist and
trying to help students discover the relationships on their own. It is about exploring everyday situations
where math exists and recognizing that math is an intrinsic part of our
day. It is seeing the light suddenly
appear in students’ eyes when they see and understand the connection that I’ve
been leading them to and they “get it”, all by themselves. It is about students finding links that have
always been there but now are revealed.
Math instruction is convincing every student that they can
“do” math. It is helping to fill in gaps
that exist so that confidence develops.
It is challenging students to solve problems without adult
intervention. It is connecting
mathematical understanding to the world around us. It is finding a way to assist each student by
teaching to their strengths and supporting their weaknesses. It is making sense of our world through
number relationships.
As I work through the various assignments connected with
this course, I am becoming more aware of the amazing resources that exist and
the important role that I play in making math come alive for all of my
students. After my hiatus, I will return
with renewed vigour to math instruction this fall. Boy, I missed math!
The very reason why I took this course was to be able to give the principal of my school to schedule me more math! The challenge of getting the students to realize that THEY CAN is so rewarding! You most definitely summed up what math instruction is, thank you very much!
ReplyDeleteI agree. Math was such a fundamental part of my youth that it's almost alarming to see some of this content again. The assignment 2 using Kahn was a great reminder. It felt like a homecoming of sorts and was actually amazed with how much I remembered. I had felt like I forgot most of the concepts I learned in school that I haven't used in life.
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