Friday, September 5, 2014

180 Blog: Day 9

My math department coworkers threw my wife and me a baby shower today. They are a thoughtful, generous, and hilarious group. I hope you are lucky enough to have a department like mine.

 AP Stats
Did introduction lecture on experimental design. Students were way too chatty at the beginning of class. This really gets under my skin. I gave them a brief reminder in my "I do not approve" voice. In the past, I have had the entire class head back out into the hall, line up quietly along the wall, and then quietly re-enter the classroom. It is not a tactic that I like to use often, but it really drives the point home. I think the brief reminder will help reset the class.
I saw this tweet yesterday, and it resonated with me in regards to AP Stats. I have been stealing so many cool activity/lesson ideas so far this year, that I think I am not as focused on the big ideas and learning goals. I like the activities but I need to work to make it coherent, and not just like I'm plugging in disparate pieces.

Algebra I
I was in an incredibly upbeat mood when they came in to class. It kinda freaked some of them out and they were asking me why. I told them I was excited that it was time for my favorite class and that I felt like I ate a bowl full of sunshine for breakfast. They were shocked that they were my favorite class. I don't know if it's entirely true, but it was true when I said it. At this point, I don't have a true favorite class. I'd love to say that I love all my classes equally and have no favorites, but certain classes seem to gel better than others. At this point, I have two favorites. Either my favorite is my current class (and my least favorite is my next class), or my favorite is the next class (and my least favorite is my current class).

For the first time this year we had about 5 minutes free at the end of class. I wanted to do an exit ticket but didn't have anything prepared and I couldn't come up with anything quick enough. I dd a lot of reading on formative assessment over summer, but have not followed through... yet (I also read about growth mindset).

A student turned in two missing HW assignments today. I am pretty stoked about that because they were from absences from last week and I hadn't reminded him about them.

There was a student that I had to talk to outside of class on the first day of school because he wasn't doing anything. He said he knew the material but didn't like his teacher from last year. I asked him to give me a fresh start. He has! He's doing all his work, aced the quiz, communicated with me ahead of time when he knew he was going to be absent, acknowledges me when we pass in the hall, and, today, he raised his hand during classwork and asked me for help on a problem. I am over the moon and I look forward to seeing him everyday.

I am still trying to build a connection with my other focus student. Still no work, but he had his notebook, and he took notes. He asked to go to the bathroom (a known strategy for him) and I asked him if he could be back in five minutes. He said yes, and kept his word! He told me that he finally got his book today. I was stunned that he didn't have his book yet and stunned that I didn't know that. Outwardly, I didn't let it phase me and let him know that I look forward to getting his homework on Monday.

Algebra II
I swear I was there and we did good work, but as I try to write about it I just hear crickets, literally and figuratively. I showed them desmos. I really like desmos.

Tweets I Saw That May Lead To Subsequent Blog Posts
I realize I used that last one twice, but @ddmeyer is just getting his feet wet in this whole #MTBoS and could really use the exposure that my blog provides.
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