What? Those Twitter People Are REAL???

Who would have thought those twitter people are real? [And, who would have thought that I'd make two blog posts in ONE day?]

Yep, they are real. And, not even me could have guessed I'd have two posts in one day.

There's been a lot of conversation going around about how we refer to our Twitter friends (are they friends? colleagues? tweeps? strangers?).

Well, I refer to my Twitter PLN as my friends. They are my lifeline of support when needed. I am lucky to already know some of my Twitter friends that are currently in my school district.

But, my Twitter Math PLN is simply amazing. They provide more support to me than some of my real life friends do. And, guess what?! I got to meet TWO of them! :)

@jreulbach and I met at Panera in Huntersville, NC (we live like 30 minutes from each other!). We ate lunch, talked math, projects, grading, Google Docs, PreCalculus and the list goes on. It was wonderful to meet face to face and learn from each other. Here's us: (Pardon the horrible picture ... my excuse is that I came straight from outdoor swim practice. Her excuse? Apparently it's that she's old! :) Haha! Love ya Julie!)



Then, exactly one week later, I was already headed up to Cincinnati for the 4th of July. I had been harassing @fouss about meeting her since February. So, as the time got closer, we solidified plans. She was kind enough to pick me up at the airport, we headed to the Gap Outlet, then to Newport for walking and lunch. It was so amazing to meet another math twitter friend! We didn't talk much math (which was totally fine with both of us (I think) as we are both enjoying our summer break), but she did bring her new PreCal Workshop book for me to peruse (it's awesome, by the way). It was so much fun to get to know each other even better. Here's we are:



Oh, and inbetween, I got to spend an amazing afternoon with @carissajunek. But, that's not a new meeting. We're college friends, first year of real world roomies, MOHs, founder of the Math Hotties and life long best friends. I don't have a picture from that day, but here's one from the good 'ole days. I love her because we can talk math and school, but then we also talk life and relationships. I wish she was still my roommate or atleast lived in the same city. She's an amazing friend.



Alright, who's next? NCTM Baltimore with my Math Friends? ISTE11 with my Tech Friends? Twitter Math Cruise? Let's GO!

Reflection

[I began writing this post on June 4th, 2010 while administering an exam.]

As I sit here and watch my amazing PreCalculus class take this final exam, I can't help but look back over my four years and be content. As a teacher, we focus on growth, we want to get and be better, but sometimes it's hard to track and notice. If you're like me, you have taught just about every class under the sun and haven't taught the same thing more than three times, so you don't have many scores to compare. If you're like me, you change how you teach something everytime, so there's not much room to compare there either. So, we live with what we see and notice and make assumptions and decisions.

[I hit save when I couldn't write anymore and now, on July 7th, 2010, I am finishing it.]

I've never felt growth. I've never felt like I've seen it. Until this year. The second semester, I had an interesting set of students, two classes of which, hated math. And, when I say hated, I mean HATED. Not the typical whiny, "I hate math." I mean, dreadfully, despise, loathe, never want to touch, hear or see it. It was painful [for all of us].

But, I learned SO much. I learned how to pick my battles. I learned that it was OK if I didn't get to every single topic required. I learned how to better relate to students. I learned how to help them with things other than math. I learned that some days, the math warm-up can just wait. They have more important life things going on that need to be dealt with. I learned to pick my battles. (I know I already said it, but it needed to be said again.)

My third class (we're on block) was absolutely amazing. I learned so much about them and myself and I learned to love teaching again. They were my light, they were my inspiration. I wanted to be better because of them. They worked so hard that it inspired me to be 100% prepared and ready every single day.

But, back to that growth thing. I've already blogged about the fight that I had in my classroom, in my third week of my first year of teaching. Looking back, I handled it how most 1st year teachers would (minus the fact I walked right up to it and tried to break it up). I balled my eyes out after it (what? math teachers cry? we have feelings?). I felt horrible. I felt like it was my fault. I lost it. "Why in the world did I decide to be a teacher? I'm crazy."

Well, I ended up having a similar situation happen in the last week before finals. The fight never happened because I diffused it. I literally talked the kid out of it. I saw it beginning, we went in the hall, we talked, I made the "call the front office" gesture to a fellow teacher and they came and got him. I held him back from going back in my classroom, I let him peel the paint off the wall to diffuse his anger and there was no fight.

I know this is a silly example of growth. But, it really hit me how differently I handled both situations. I would have never handled it that way in my first year. I didn't know better.

Now I do. It's a unique experience to visually see growth. I hope everyone gets the chance to see it. If you haven't yet, it'll happen.

I am so lucky to be in a position that I am. I love being in my classroom. I love being around my students. I can't wait for next year.

And, I've done absolutely nothing to plan for it this summer. I've needed a break.

Famous Failures

I tweeted this video, but love it so much, I figured I would post it here.

Review Review Review

Okay, okay. I realize it's May. I realize I haven't blogged since January. Life is busy. Plus, I don't really have followers, so what does it matter?

I have recently been struggling with my classes and independent work. If I force them to work alone at their desk, I am running around like a chicken with my head cut off. I can't get to every student and I can't answer all questions. If I let them work in groups, they socialize and don't get their work done no matter how many times I say "Get to work!"

I am fortunate to have an awesome PLN who offered me many suggestions via Twitter last night and this AM. However, I am also lucky to enough to work down the hall from a 33 year veteran teacher. She retired and came back to the classroom for half-days. While some days I may argue she's antiquated, today, I was singing her praises. She told me how she was reviewing for the Algebra II Exponentials & Logarithms Test and I 100% stole it.

So, the review that I'm about to tell you about is not mine. I am not claiming it, just sharing it. I wish I had brought home my thumb drive so I could post the worksheet I gave them, but I will try to remember to update this post tomorrow while at school. BUT, here's what I did. [Update: Here is the worksheet.]

I created a worksheet with three sets of problems from the worksheet (here, I would attach the worksheet, instead I explain.) I just listed page and problem numbers. I [strategically] assigned groups of either 2 or 3 and instructed them to each pull out a sheet of paper to do their work on. They worked together on one set of problems. When they finished, they switched papers. They did another set, then switched again. So, in the end, each sheet should have three (if a group of three) different handwritings on it. I told them from the beginning that I would pick ONE sheet from each group, collect and grade it, so they needed to make sure everyone was working and working correctly. I also told them they could not consult any other group. They could only consult textbooks, notebooks, group members and myself.

I couldn't believe it, but they actually worked. I mean, like collaborated, talked, discussed and DID MATH. I sat in awe. I was still there to answer questions, but they had to consult notes before I helped them. I don't know if it was my strategically created groups or the fact that it was kind of like a competition or the fact that I was only collecting one or maybe they were just in the right mood today, but THEY DID MATH!

It was so great. I don't know why I didn't think about it before now. And, it doesn't seem great until you see it work. Now, every class is different, but for mine (who usually don't do math), it worked. They did math. My "better" class wasn't a huge fan of it, but it still worked. They really enjoy picking who they work with. But, once they get over that, it works.

Maybe it'll work for you.

How Math and Art Can Be Combined: My Holiday Project

This is the story of how

inspired

Now, I am NO artist. I am not trying to flaunt my skills (or lack there of). But, here's my story.

I was lucky enough to get to spend a whole week in my hometown at my Dad's house for the holidays. They have Apple TV, where one of the features is a running slideshow of pictures saved on their computer. When the above picture came across the screen, I inquired. My step-mom said she took a picture of it because she loved it and wanted it, but didn't buy it. It matches the living room perfectly. So, later, I was talking to my Dad and told him I could probably recreate it ... well, a version of it.

So, wait, where does the math come in? It comes in scaling things. Any picture can be resized and recreated if you want. Just grid it out. So, I printed the photo on 4x6 paper, grided it and then grided the canvas. Make sure both grids have the same number of "boxes" and are evenly spaced. See here:

and

All it takes is a ruler and some careful measurements. Make it exact! Now, in the right side picture you can see that I sketched in the fleur de lis into the boxes trying to match it. Just go box to box, estimate it and draw it.

That's the hard part! Now, I knew there was no way I could antique it how the original was. But, I was going to give it a stab. I painted the background red and the fleur de lis beige. Then, started to age it. I wish I had some more images to show you, but on top of the white, I took brown, blue, orange, black, etc and painted streaks. Then, once that dried, I "white-washed" it to make the darker colors not seem so bold.

became

which got aged into

And, voila!

Not that amazing, but it's pretty cool how MATH can be turned into ART! Give it a try!

My New Technology Theory

Wow ... I know, I know. Two blog posts within a month of each other? No way!

Yes Way!

Anyways, I have a new theory about integrating technology into the classroom for the leery. (Is that the right word there? I teach Math, not English)

I am trying my hardest to convince fellow teachers of the value of technology in the classroom and for those that are still not so sure, I think here's how you start.

You give it as extra credit. You say, "here, do this and turn it in here."

While I am not leery of technology, I recently assigned this to my students. I was inspired by @fouss and her Conics Project, so I tweaked it, added some things and instead of doing it in class, I am having them do it outside of class. I am letting THEM learn the technology, I am letting them WORK with the technology and I am NOT teaching them how to do any of it.

Now, yes, I will answer questions, of course. But, seriously, they're on their own. So much so, they're doing it over Christmas Break.

So, teachers, if you don't know how to integrate technology, assign it and let them free.

Let them teach YOU.

You aren't allowed to read WHAT?

Okay, heads up. This post has nothing to do with math.

And, yes, I haven't blogged since October 6th. Sorry. Get over it. Read on.

Yesterday, I had a student come up to me and ask me to fill out an AP English Survey about banned books. It started off the usual (age, gender, ethnicity). The rest of the questions looked (something) like this (ish):
- Did you know our school had a banned book list?
- Lord of the Flies, Gone with the Wind and The Great Gatsby are all on the banned books list. Do you think they should be?
- Do you believe books should be banned from high school students?

Okay, first ... WHAT? WE BAN BOOKS HERE? I got over my internal shock and asked the student in a calmer way. "Yes, we do. But (so and so) is about to read Great Gatsby in class, so I guess it doesn't matter." Next, I looked at her and I said "So, you're telling me, you don't read these classics in high school?" Her response "Nope, we don't."

I kept my internal fire of banning books and my opinions of it to myself, wrote a little bit on the survey and went back to helping students with ... wait for it ... math.

So, this being at 8:30 in the morning, I was set to spin my wheels of thought going on this all day long. And, it lead me to my thoughts about internet filtering. I mean, isn't banning books the exact same as internet filtering? Aren't we protecting our students from the inevitable?

I let it all stew inside of me until my planning period and I went down to talk to none other than Julie. She's my accomplice during my planning period, #1 helper for keeping me from doing work. But, it's worth it. Some of you know her as Julie Sugarplum. Others as @ejulez. If you know her, you know she's awesome.

So, I brought up this conversation I had in class with her and we started talking about the banning of books. I brought up my comparison to internet filtering and we both agreed that we are way over the constant chatter of internet filtering. It comes up each and every day on Twitter. I think everything's been said that can be said. Eventually, we'll get over internet filtering. Until then, let's talk about ... banned books. Julie went on to tell me about how when she was a TF in an elementary school, the debate over banning Harry Potter came up. Crazy! Okay, elementary school, maybe, perhaps, possibly, not really, but maybe I can see it.

Julie told me how many schools have committees set to discuss and determine which books get to be on (and sometimes get off) the banned book list. She then had an "aha" moment. "The kids can access these banned books on the internet. Shouldn't our filter be in line with our banned books list?" Novel idea. A kid can't check out The Great Gatsby in the library, but I sure bet they can find it on the web.

So, is banning books similar to internet filtering? No matter your belief of either idea, should they go hand in hand? If we ban the book, should we ban it online?

At the end of a very insightful conversation (we rarely have those! :) haha!), I was still in shock that schools choose to not let our students read classics. So, my next stop? The librarian.

We have a totally hip and awesome librarian. She has completely turned the concept of a library around and the kids LOOOVE going in there. She's awesome! Anyways, I brought it up with her and she went on to inform me that there are no banned books at our school. The list she gave the student was a list of previously banned books from around the world. My heart went to ease as I heard these words. But, she said that it is not uncommon for schools/districts/states to ban books. She also went on to tell me about the recent debate of Jack and the Beanstalk. The giant holds a can of "ALE" in one of the pictures.

Dana (my librarian) put it best. "Use it as a teaching moment. Kids, we don't drink ale. Did you hear what Chris Brown just said? Yeah, we don't say those words ... ever."

So, again, is banning books similar to internet filtering? Where do we draw the line? What do we do about it?

-----------------

The librarian sent me this later in the day. Check it out:
As long as there have been books, there have been people opposed to what is said in some of those books. Authors who challenge the accepted norms in their literature are often the target of angry people who do not understand or appreciate their literature. The following books are excellent examples of great literature that has become banned or challenged in an attempt to shield the public from what some see as inappropriate.

The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald - Challenged at the Baptist College in Charleston, SC (1987)
In Cold Blood, Truman Capote -Banned, but later reinstated after community protests at the Windsor Forest High School in Savannah, Ga. (2000).

The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck - Burned by the East St. Louis, III. Public Library (1939) and barred from the Buffalo, N.Y Public Library (1939) on the grounds that "vulgar words" were used. Banned in Kansas City, Mo. (1939); Kern County Calif, the scene of Steinbeck's novel, (1939); Ireland ( 1953); Kanawha, Iowa High School classes (1980); and Morris, Manitoba (1982).

Native Son, Richard Wright - Removed from Irvington High School in Fremont, Calif. (1998) after a few parents complained the book was unnecessarily violence and sexually explicit. Challenged in the Hamilton High School curriculum in Fort Wayne, Ind. (1998) because of the novel's graphic language and sexual content.

The Call of the Wild, Jack London - Banned in Italy (1929), Yugoslavia (1929), and burned in Nazi bonfires (1933). Source: 2004 Banned Books Resource Guide by Robert P. Doyle.

The Lord of the Flies, William Golding - Challenged at the Owen, N.C. High School (1981) because the book is "demoralizing inasmuch as it implies that man is little more than an animal";

Gone with the Wind, Margaret Mitchell - banned from Anaheim, Calif. Union High School District English classrooms (9178) according to the Anaheim Secondary Teachers Association