CREATING A CLASSROOM CULTURE OF CONFIDENT

PROBLEM SOLVING

Presentation at Palm Springs 10/24/14

Jim Shortjshort@vcoe.org

Take a minute to think about, and then be ready to share with the others at your table:

Name School District Something you are doing in

implementing CCSS-M One thing you hope to learn today

Introductions

3

Deepen understanding of a growth mindset and identify some ways we might develop it

Engage in hands-on classroom activities for grades 7-11 Special thanks to Sherry Fraser and the

Interactive Mathematics Program Special thanks also to Carol Dweck and

Mindsetworks

Workshop Goals

4

ATP Administrator Training - Module 1 – MS/HS Math

Workshop Norms

1. Bring and assume best intentions.

2. Step up, step back.

3. Be respectful, and solutions oriented.

4. Turn off (or mute) electronic devices.

Never Tell An Answer

Please remember the enormous responsibility we all have as learners not to spoil anybody else’s fun.

The quickest way to spoil someone else’s fun is to tell them an answer before they have a chance to discover it themselves.

Susan Pirie

Diagonals Illuminated

Please complete “Diagonals Illuminated” Which Math Practices are being used in

this activity?

Part 1: Standards for

Mathematical Practice

8

1. Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them2. Reason abstractly and quantitatively3. Construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of

others4. Model with mathematics5. Use appropriate tools strategically6. Attend to precision7. Look for and make use of structure8. Look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning

2011 © CA County Superintendents Educational Services Association

Diagonals Illuminated

Please complete “Diagonals Illuminated” Which Math Practices are being used in

this activity? How is this different from the way this

material is typically presented?

Cultural Perceptions About Math

Please read “Struggle for Smarts? …” by Alix Speigel How does this resonate with your

experience with students and parents? How would you respond to the question,

“What does it mean to know and do math?” How would students typically respond to

the same question? How would parents typically respond?

The Math Virus Dan Meyer in “Math Class Needs a

Makeover” identified 5 elements of a very prevalent and destructive math virus: Lack of initiative Lack of perseverance Lack of retention Aversion to word problems Eagerness for formulas

Few math students in US do not exhibit at least 2 or 3 of these features!

How Do We Address The Problem?

Need to change the 2 cultural issues already identified: Underlying perceptions about ability Underlying perceptions about math

Mindset – Carol Dweck

Factors Contributing to a Fixed Mindset (from Jo

Boaler)

The Causes

Societal beliefs and expectations Stereotypes

Grouping Norm setting Tasks assigned Questions asked Grading and feedback How we deal with mistakes

Introducing a New Topic How do we provide students an introduction

to a new topic? Please do “Victory Celebration”

Imagine that you are a student who has very little if any knowledge of quadratic functions

What would you think students would in fact be able to do?

How do we traditionally introduce new topics? What message are we sending students when

we introduce a topic with a problem?

Extending the Topic

Please look at “Pens and Corrals in Vertex Form” and “A Big Enough Corral” What is the math being done here? How is it similar to, and different from,

many Algebra textbooks? Be careful with the message to students,

parents, and other teachers!

Looking at Linear Functions Please do “A Special Show” and then “Keeping

Track of Sugar” What math do students need to know in order to

be able to do the work? Where and how would you see students

struggling? Could we use a series of these activities to lead

students to an understanding of “y = mx + b”? Now look at “All Four, One – Linear Functions”

What is the understanding students will be developing and displaying?

Promoting a Growth Mindset

How do the kinds of tasks and questions that have been posed today support the development of a Growth Mindset?

What kind of feedback do we provide? How do we deal with mistakes in the

classroom? How do we help students learn to

engage in “productive struggle?” Please enjoy these resources!

Websites with Resources

Growth Mindset: Mindsetworks.org

Math Tasks and Ideas: Blog.mrmeyer.com Youcubed.org Map.mathshell.org Insidemathematics.org

Interactive Mathematics Program Iat.com/courses/mathematics

Evaluations

Thank you for attending this section Please take a moment to provide

feedback on the session per the next two slides

Suggestions for improvement are welcomed!

0 1 2 3

Send your text message to this Phone Number: 37607

Strongly Disagree

Strongly Agree

Disagree Agree

Speaker was well-prepared and

knowledgeable (0-3)

Speaker was engaging and an effective presenter (0-3)

Session matched title and description in

program book (0-3)

Other comments, suggestions, or

feedback (words)

___ ___ ___ ___________ _______

Example: XXXXX 323 Great session!

5 digit poll code

for this session

(no spaces)

Non-Example: XXXXX 3 2 3 Great session!

(1 space) (1 space)

Non-Example: XXXXX3-2-3Great session!

0 1 2 3

Send your text message to this Phone Number: 37607

Strongly Disagree

Strongly Agree

Disagree Agree

Speaker was well-prepared and

knowledgeable (0-3)

Speaker was engaging and an effective presenter (0-3)

Session matched title and description in

program book (0-3)

Other comments, suggestions, or

feedback (words)

___ ___ ___ ___________ 44267

Example: 44267 323 Great session!

5 digit poll code

for this session

(no spaces)

Non-Example: 38102 3 2 3 Great session!

(1 space) (1 space)

Non-Example: 381023-2-3Great session!