Trainings

five principals of extraordinary math teaching

a lot of people have a negative experience with mathematics because they find it tedious and frustrating. one of the reasons for this is because when individuals were in public education they were taught repetition and memorization more than the actual concept so while they memorize the procedures neccisary to do the function they do not know why they are doing or how to problem solve when they get their answer wrong.

    There is a new method of teaching kids math that at least Harada elementary is doing where they incorporate place value tables and separate the numbers and use dots to represent the broken up number and carry out the function through the dots so they understand what exactly is happening

Nature of mathematical thinking

A question mentioned in the video is what a thinking thing is, which he describes as something that doubts, understands, conceives, affirms, denies, wills, refuses, imagines, and perceives.

    This is essential when teaching others and allowing the students to have intellectual freedom to explore and question in order to fully comprehend the concept they are learning; however, most schools do not allow that kind of intellectual freedom

Five Principles to invite thinking into math

Start with a question

Traditional classes typically start with answers and structured steps which may be beneficial for first learners however they are told that is the only way they can find the product and do not allow them the time nor freedom to explore for themselves and this is understandable because there would not be enough time to explore something like this however one could try a smaller scale of this intellectual freedom method maybe giving a time limit for the students to explore it for themselves

Struggling to find an answer is essential to learning and being successful; however, in public school, children are taught to fit in and conform to standards rather than find their own way and not be afraid to fail.

Give time to struggle

As I mentioned, students need time to explore and fail on their own before educators show them the steps to succeed. This teaches them perseverance and fulfillment, knowing they found the product on their own. Students also deepen their curiosity and observation skills, which are essential for succeeding in the future. it also shows them that failing is okay because they can always retry and see if the method works or if they need to change tactics

Educators are not the answer key

Teachers, while they may be knowledgeable in the subjects they teach, do not know everything, and showing that to their students and finding out together shows the students that not knowing is okay and should not be looked down on. this is also applicable to parents, they should be involved in their students education and learn along side them to show their support and investment in their children’s future

    this however is not always the case in my time working as a paraprofessional I have seen numerous students who had parents that were not involved in the children’s education. It has a profound impact the students tend to misbehave. While they might be smart they are looking for attention and that is why they misbehave inorder to get that attention and most teachers can identify this behavior however they are not able to do too much about it since there are other students that they also have to take care of and while they can give that student more attention if they need it they can only do so much.

Say yes to their ideas

It is essential to accept all ideas, even incorrect ones, because it is a matter of respect between you and the student. Being shown you are wrong by your peers is more convincing than being told you are wrong by the teacher.

    the last part I mean it is the teachers role to guide the students and if they are wrong its more persuasive to let the peers prove it to themwhy they are wrong instead thanyou say they are wrong also while in theory the teacher being considered a peer by the students is good and beneficial to both parties in practice that is not so there has to be a form of hierarchal distinction between the teacher and student for things to flow smoothly and keep up with the neccisary progress and benchmarks.

Play

Mathematics can have practical applications and can be taught in a fun manner, such as playing games, exploring, and sometimes breaking things. Mathematics has many applications and can be taught in many ways

Social & Emotional Learning (SEL) Community-Building Ideas

10 powerful community building ideas

  • Safety and security is the first essential step in a children’s education

    • if they do not feel safe and have security in the environment they are in when they are learning they are going to be more focused on making sure they are safe and are not going to be able to retain what they are supposed to be learning

    • there is also a reduction in disruptive behavior when they feel safety and security

  • Elementary schools

    • shout outs

      • a way for students to congratulate others for their positive actions and/or behaviors

      • the most effective method for allowing this is teaching the students a signal or something simular to let their classmates and teacher know that they want to do a shoutout

        • this also invites other students to do the same

    • Friendly fridays

      • a special day which encourages the students to lift others up emotionally

        • some activities could be writing anonymous notes to classmates

        • practice positive self talk

        • using storytelling to give a pep talk

    • Sharing acts of kindness\

      • Elementary school students are still learning and require assistance in showing others they are kind and care for others

        • some activities are

          • writing supportive notes to struggling peers

        • noticing others acts of kindness and acknowledging them for it in some way

      • this teaches the students to practice kindness without being told to do so

  • Middle school

    • using paper tweets to create a form of physical social media on a bulletin board or whiteboard

      • students create a profile and enlist followers such as their friends aquantances or someone they don’t interact with much

      • students then respond to prompts about their mood or new events and the other classmates/followers respond

    • group salutes

      • giving the other classmates or groupmates high fives or something of the nature but it could also be expressing grattitude toward eachother

  • high school

    • morning meetings

      • holding meetings to go over important topics in class or pressing issues which has been shown to help students trasition into school

nine minutes that can make a big difference

  • importance of emotional connection with the students

    • positively shapes young individuals mindset and way of thinking

  • three segments of the 9 minute method

    • first 3 minutes which start at the beginning of the day

      • sets up nervous system for steadiness and learning

      • should be more than just traditional bell work its more about creating an enviroment of relational wealth

    • midday

      • have intentional breaks which reset the nervous system

    • final

      • focusses on connections to help students finish up what they were working on and leave school feeling calm

  • importance of relational wealth

    • many clkassrooms have rituals like personalized greetings morning meetings and community circles

    • students often bring a disregulated nervous system which could have detrimental impacts on their learning ability so its the educators job to have a regulating enviroment when teaching

    Paper Tearing:

    • Greet students with a blank piece of paper.

    • Instruct them to tear the paper into small pieces for about two minutes.

    • Students then create shapes or designs from the torn pieces, either alone or in pairs.

    • Share the designs with one another.

  • Let’s Toast:

    • Provide students with coffee mugs (that they can keep at school).

    • Sit in a circle and toast each other, noting strengths, kindness, and attributes.

    • Fill mugs with water (or occasionally juice or hot cocoa).

  • Imagination Starters:

    • Pose fun questions to warm up brains for learning, such as:

      • "If you could hang out with any cartoon character, who would you choose and why?"

      • "What would you like to be remembered or known for?"

      • "What sport would you like to compete in if you were in the Olympics?"

      • "What magical power would you like to have for one week?"

Midday: 3-Minute Station Breaks (Transition Segments)

  • This is a time for students to reset.

  • Activities include playing music, hydrating, journaling, drawing, moving around, and having a snack.

  1. My Favorite Vacation Spot:

    • Students draw or write about an imaginary place they would love to travel, sharing sights, sounds, smells, and tastes.

    • They can add to this image or story throughout the week.

  2. Collaboration Stories:

    • In small groups (4-6 students), each person draws a shape, line, or design on a sticky note.

    • The group decides who goes first; that person starts a story based on their drawing.

    • Each subsequent person continues the story with their own drawing.

    • Challenge: Recall the entire group's contributions.

The Final 3 Minutes: Exiting the Day

  • Focus on effort and positive touch points.

  1. Effort Moments:

    • Students draw or write down something they put effort into that day.

    • Focus is not on whether it was a "good" or "bad" day, but on moments of motivation, problem-solving, or helping others.

  2. Video Clip Endings:

    • Students watch the first half of video clips.

    • They write or draw their own endings, using imagination and personal connections.

    • Alternatively, they guess the ending.

    • Finish watching the clip and compare their endings with the actual ending.

    • Examples of video clips:

      • The Pencil’s Tale

      • The Seed

      • Powerful Inspirational Story

      • Good Teamwork Versus Bad Teamwork

      • What Should We Do With the Angry Monster?

Differentiation in Special Education

  • important things to know

    • students deficiancies

      • understand the areas where the students have trouble

    • students strengths

      • identify where they do well

    • lesson objective

      • state the primary goal of the lesson or activity

  • how to differentiate activities

    • identify challenging and easy sections of the lesson or assignment

  • differentiate the content

    • incorperate high interesting objects/items

    • use the chunking method

    • use concrete examples

    • adjust reading level for the students or use text to speech

  • differentiate the process

    • how are they going to learn

      • use graphic organizers

      • include physical demonstrations

      • use to do checklists

      • include visuals

      • pre teach the vocab words in the assignment

  • projects

    • allow technology whether it be speech to text or video projects to help bridge gaps

    • include the oportunity for an oral activity

    • also include alternative assignments for those who need them

  • enviroment

    • include new envirmental adjustments to accomodate different students needs

      • reduce the number of problems

      • use smaller numbers

      • giving extra time