A Look Back
WOW!!! Such a little work with a huge meaning. MSUrbanSTEM summer session left me thinking about every lesson, class assignment, assessment and student I have ever encountered. From day one of the face to face time we were engaged, working together, thinking outside the box and sharing. The experience I had was exactly what I would hope to see share with my students.
Day one, sitting in the class not knowing anyone, not knowing what to expect, excited and anxious all at the same time. The day started out slow and a bit overwhelming. Listening to Dr. Punya Mishra challenging the group to stop and just Wonder with his world of wonders. As the day went on, I set in aw of Candace Marcotte and the tech-gadgets, tech tips, and Quick Fires she introduced.
These simple but profound activities changed this experience for me. I was no longer thinking about being anxious, I began thinking about the potential of using just one of these ideas to regenerate my teaching and by extension motivating my students to get excited about learning math.
Many of the articles we read during the two week period focused on making sure students are interested in their learning and know what they understand and still need to know. The book, “Cosmos” pushed me to think about the part we (teachers and students) play in this big place we live in. Remembering this makes me think about my students and how small math must be in many of their lives when they are struggling to understand another concept that isn’t relevant to them at the time. This was my biggest take-away from the day but not the only one. That day we were divided into groups, took surveys, and got Surface Pros to begin using to help with the awesome work we will be doing.
For the next few days, we engaged in discussion about “Cosmo” and the other articles we read. Our group worked together on Quick Fires and this was a challenge for our group because between the five of us, no one was tech savvy. The experiences we had as a group was identical to what I have seen our students encounter. We could not agree on an approach to the Quick Fires and everyone wanted to be the leader. In my classes, whenever we do engage in group activities the experience is very similar. The only real difference was that we are all adults and found it hard to work together but we expect our students to be about to do it.
Even with the struggles, I can see the benefit to using Quick Fires as a way of challenging students and getting them to show their level of understanding of a particular idea. Students would also learn the repurpose different materials to help in their learning.
The trip to the Museum of Science and Industry was very powerful. I personally was not happy to hear that this was one of the outings for the class. I spent every Sunday for years as a little girl at the Museum of Science and Industry. I was convinced there wasn’t a reason in the world to visit this Museum again. But about my experience there, I have changed my tune. This will be one of the field trips for the new school year. This was a great two weeks. I wouldn’t change one minute of the experience for anything in the world.
The biggest and most powerful part of this entire two week experience was developing my Imagine-It project. This project is an opportunity for me to redefine myself as a teacher. This Imagine-It will transform students into mathematicians who knows their level of math understanding. Mathematicians that can connect the math to math, as well as, connect math to the world they live in a meaningful way. This Imagine-It will be an exciting new way to explore math with my students.
A Look Forward
As I worked through the two week of the MSUrbanSTEM program, I began to get more excited about what’s to come for me and my students. I will use Google classroom for the first time this year as a way of keeping my student interested and informed about what is going on in the classroom. Students will also learn how to make video diaries to capture a visual record of their journey the concepts and my Imagine-It. The class will be organized and instructed using the Project Based Learning Pedagogical approach. This will be a year long endeavor and will change and grow. I will continue to adjust and build my Imagine-It. I am looking forward to the journey.
WOW!!! Such a little work with a huge meaning. MSUrbanSTEM summer session left me thinking about every lesson, class assignment, assessment and student I have ever encountered. From day one of the face to face time we were engaged, working together, thinking outside the box and sharing. The experience I had was exactly what I would hope to see share with my students.
Day one, sitting in the class not knowing anyone, not knowing what to expect, excited and anxious all at the same time. The day started out slow and a bit overwhelming. Listening to Dr. Punya Mishra challenging the group to stop and just Wonder with his world of wonders. As the day went on, I set in aw of Candace Marcotte and the tech-gadgets, tech tips, and Quick Fires she introduced.
These simple but profound activities changed this experience for me. I was no longer thinking about being anxious, I began thinking about the potential of using just one of these ideas to regenerate my teaching and by extension motivating my students to get excited about learning math.
Many of the articles we read during the two week period focused on making sure students are interested in their learning and know what they understand and still need to know. The book, “Cosmos” pushed me to think about the part we (teachers and students) play in this big place we live in. Remembering this makes me think about my students and how small math must be in many of their lives when they are struggling to understand another concept that isn’t relevant to them at the time. This was my biggest take-away from the day but not the only one. That day we were divided into groups, took surveys, and got Surface Pros to begin using to help with the awesome work we will be doing.
For the next few days, we engaged in discussion about “Cosmo” and the other articles we read. Our group worked together on Quick Fires and this was a challenge for our group because between the five of us, no one was tech savvy. The experiences we had as a group was identical to what I have seen our students encounter. We could not agree on an approach to the Quick Fires and everyone wanted to be the leader. In my classes, whenever we do engage in group activities the experience is very similar. The only real difference was that we are all adults and found it hard to work together but we expect our students to be about to do it.
Even with the struggles, I can see the benefit to using Quick Fires as a way of challenging students and getting them to show their level of understanding of a particular idea. Students would also learn the repurpose different materials to help in their learning.
The trip to the Museum of Science and Industry was very powerful. I personally was not happy to hear that this was one of the outings for the class. I spent every Sunday for years as a little girl at the Museum of Science and Industry. I was convinced there wasn’t a reason in the world to visit this Museum again. But about my experience there, I have changed my tune. This will be one of the field trips for the new school year. This was a great two weeks. I wouldn’t change one minute of the experience for anything in the world.
The biggest and most powerful part of this entire two week experience was developing my Imagine-It project. This project is an opportunity for me to redefine myself as a teacher. This Imagine-It will transform students into mathematicians who knows their level of math understanding. Mathematicians that can connect the math to math, as well as, connect math to the world they live in a meaningful way. This Imagine-It will be an exciting new way to explore math with my students.
A Look Forward
As I worked through the two week of the MSUrbanSTEM program, I began to get more excited about what’s to come for me and my students. I will use Google classroom for the first time this year as a way of keeping my student interested and informed about what is going on in the classroom. Students will also learn how to make video diaries to capture a visual record of their journey the concepts and my Imagine-It. The class will be organized and instructed using the Project Based Learning Pedagogical approach. This will be a year long endeavor and will change and grow. I will continue to adjust and build my Imagine-It. I am looking forward to the journey.