Paging Doctor Math: What to Expect From the Blog and Me in 2016-2017

Wednesday, June 29, 2016

What to Expect From the Blog and Me in 2016-2017

It is still June, but I am very excited to get the school year started. I had a great year at UNI as the middle level coordinator. UNI is a first class institution with great faculty, staff, and most importantly, wonderful students. I felt like I was able to make a difference in my classes and with the middle level program, but I missed working with middle school students, so I was lucky enough to be able to get my job back.

I am busy revamping my classroom website, locating and testing new tasks, and getting prepared for the grind that is the school year. The great thing about summer as a teacher is I can still work 3 or 4 hours a day (compared to the 12 or 13 during the school year) and still have time to spend doing summer type activities.

If you are new to my blog, I normally post about mathematical tasks I have done in the classroom. I post student work, and let you know what went well and what could be improved so if you try these tasks, you will know what to expect.

Here are a few of my previous posts to give you an idea...

In-N-Out Burger Task

Man Versus Squirrel

Doritos Roulette

I look forward to doing these tasks again, along with the many tasks on my spreadsheet I have tested...

Mathematical Task Spreadsheet

I found some new tasks as well that I know my students will enjoy...

Vroom Vroom

The Nardo Ring

Gas Station Ripoff

Marble Slide

The nice things about these tasks is that many come with base questions, but you can expand your questioning to include what students are wondering about the situation. By the way, a big thanks to the #MTBoS and other math professionals on Twitter for consistently pumping out these tasks for my students to enjoy.

I will also be involved in a few professional development and speaking opportunities where I will be discussing 1:1 Mathematics, and Task-Based Mathematics.

Finally, I am in year two of being on NCTM's MTMS Editorial Panel. This is such a great opportunity for me to get involved with middle level math on a national level and meet other math professionals I wouldn't normally get the chance to meet.

I look forward to blogging this year and hopefully helping you feel good about implementing tasks into your classrooms! Have a great summer!