Why I want to teach math

I have been an educator for four years now and have been lucky enough to have packed in a tonne of experience in that amount of time. I recently switched panels from Elementary to Secondary; my teaching record consists of 4 different elementary schools and 2 highschools. For all you mathies out there, that is 6 different schools.

In my Elementary days, I was lucky enough to teach in a grade 7 homeroom consistently. I have always loved math, (Aside: my teachables are Art and French), to me it was like another language that the whole world understood. I loved the logic of it and the straightforwardness, right or wrong, you followed the steps, or you didn't. 

However, now, as an educator I see that Math isn't just black and white. It is still a language to be learned and used, but it is not simply about getting the right answer. Math is much more about the thinking the reasoning, the rationale behind each move. Often, I feel like solving a math problem is like tackling a puzzle (And who doesn't love a good Sudoku).

Anyway, I had never intended on teaching math, being inclined towards the arts as I went off to university. Recently, I found myself falling back in love with it when I had to teach my grade 7s. It became my favourite subject to teach and I would pour my creativity into coming up with ways to get my students involved. 

Moving to secondary, I have now been out of the math room for nearly a year (save for when I get the chance to supply in a math room!). I had an eye opening experience when I had the opportunity to do a short LTO in an Art of Math Classroom (post on that to come later); it was a whole new way to look at things.

I believe that the future of education will move towards blending subjects and focusing on how the big ideas in various curricula overlap and I cannot wait to be a part of it!