Reply To: Sarah's Progress Log

[Sarah Merrylees]

Reflection:

Thanks to Robin, discovered “Math Recess”.  What a wonderful read filled with so many gems.  Some familiar and glad to be hauled back from deep in the long term memory, others just waiting to be added to the toolbox and of course the inevitable 10 more books to read and TED talks to watch that were cited throughout.  Now reading Craig Barton’s “How I Wish I’d Taught Maths”. Loving the solid research foundation on which it is built. Particularly timely to be reminded of the cognitive difference in learning stages just before planning a new unit. 

Exploding dots was interesting.  Grade 7 & 8 loved it but grade 6 did not engage at all.

Specific goals: To work out a way to pretest that is not a test so I prepare stretch material for the students that have already grasped the material and not bore them all to death with repetition. Source better problem-solving activities for grade 8 indices & surds.

Challenges: Meeting students where they are and not being a slave to the prescribed curriculum.