staff development for math

It's official.
My students are finished with standardized testing.
I still have two days of proctoring in May.
But that's just to help our algebra teacher...
No pressure for me!

Now I will be able to return to our regularly scheduled program.
I'm so ready to finish the last five weeks of school!
This is the time of year that I start planning for next year.
It's always fun to reflect on the big changes I want to implement with a clean start.

Some of the changes I'm dreaming about are dependent upon grant results.
But one guarantee is increasing my use of LTF lessons.
Laying the Foundation is absolutely genius!
The basic premise is taking AP Calculus and AP Statistics problems and back mapping through 6th grade.
It's not just for advanced students...these strategies are appropriate for all math students!
Tomorrow is my last day of training in Year 3.
Check back tomorrow to spy my new favorite LTF lesson...

Have a great week...make it count!

standardized testing

Every teacher has an opinion about standardized testing. What are your thoughts? Do you "teach to the test" in your classroom? Do you dedicate time in your classes to review for standardized testing? I would love for you to share a snapshot of standardized testing from your classroom!

I totally "teach to the test" in my math classroom.  I organize content according to the standards that will be assessed on the standardized test...even sequencing the content to finish the predominantly tested standards prior to the annual test. I view this as setting my students up for success. And to the best of my ability, I consistently teach beyond the standard outlined in the frameworks. Why? Because I wholeheartedly believe that if we carry our students a step or two beyond the required standard then they are more likely to master the basic standard. However, I know my chances of teaching something new two weeks prior to the test and my students mastering the content to a proficiency that will carry over to the standardized test is slim to none. So yes, I dedicate 6-10 class meetings for review...specifically revisiting content my students need a refresher because it isn't an integral concept in our course. For example, I don't review solving equations because we solve equations in everything we do. But writing function rules from a table of values is isolated to one unit in 7th grade math, so my students need a refresher.

We just finished Day 2 of 5 for standardized testing in 7th grade and Day 2 of 4 in 8th grade. Classes resume regularly scheduled programs on Monday. And then my geometry students take their end-of-course test on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings. I'm not teaching this week...proctoring the test in the mornings and monitoring activities in the afternoons...and I'm totally exhausted! I told my students that I would much rather be taking the test. :)

In final review for the geometry end-of-course exam, I created an "I have... Who has..." vocabulary review game that encompasses the terminology for the entire course. My students completed seven stations in their teams. Their task was to match the "I have..." terms with the corresponding "Who has..." definitions. And as the teams completed each station, they collected a list of concepts they wanted to review during our last class together before the test. I love this review routine!



The Geometry card set is available as a priced item in my TpT store.

A similiar Algebra 1 card set is available as a FREE product in my TpT store.

Spring break or testing or class as usual...
Whatever comes your way this week...make it count!

currently

Hop on over to Farley's blog and join this linky party!

What's your dream super power?!?
I would absolutely love to fly.
Just think...
long day at work...
the kids are bundles of energy waiting for summer...
no worries!
Just fly to your favorite beach to soak in the setting sun and the sounds of the ocean...
refreshed and ready to continue the summer countdown the next day. :)
A girly can dream, right?!?

Hope your week is off to a fabulous start...make it count!

Socratic Circles in Math

Socratic Circles is an engaging activity that allows students to develop critical and creative thinking skills through class discussion led by students.

Students are provided a text to read critically prior to class…noting questions and/or points they want to make in discussion. In class, the students form two concentric circles. The inner circle examines and discusses the text and the second circle critiques their discussion. The two circles switch places and roles, and the process is repeated with the new ideas from the new inner circle students. The outer circle is required to remain quiet while the inner circle responds to the text. Also the inner circle must listen respectfully to the outer circle’s critique of their discussion.

As a math teacher, I opted to use released open-response items of sample student work provided by the Arkansas Department of Education as the text for discussion. I provided my students with four samples of work, the corresponding rubrics, and a copy of the strands and standards for geometry. The first inner circle discussed two measurement prompts, while the second inner circle discussed two language of geometry prompts. The students were expected to address four key components: content knowledge required to complete the prompt, organization of sample work, accuracy of the response, and rubric rating.
The discussion was enlightening! My students made comments like...

"I don't know why they didn't just say corresponding instead of being so vague in their response"

"This response is a mess to read."

"This student clearly knows what she is doing, but she didn't ask the question posed in the prompt."
These are the things that I want my students to do. Communicate clearly with your expanded vocabulary. Be neat and organized. Read carefully to ensure you are answering the question asked. But this activity far outweighs my "teacher talk" because the students experience and wrestle with sample work that lacks these things.

We completed our first Socratic Circles activity in geometry on Friday. It was wildly successful. When I asked my students if they found this activity to be beneficial, they all said, "Yes!" The reasons provided include...

"Now I will check my EOC prompts like I'm the grader."

"I see how easy it is to miss the actual question."

"It's pretty annoying to review work that's unorganized."

"It helps me to tie the prompt to the strands of standards we will be tested on."
We will squeeze in two more Socratic Circles before the geometry end-of-course exam on April 17-18. And if you're interested in trying this activity in your classroom, you will want to download these number cards:


This FREEBIE is a set of number cards. One set of blue cards #1-15, one set of orange cards #1-15, and a blackline master of cards #1-15. Click on the pic to download a set of number cards to use in your Socratic Circles.

I apologize for being MIA this past week...we are in Benchmark Bootcamp for two weeks before state testing. My evenings are filled with adjusting lesson plans for the following day. I'll be back into full swing by Earth Day. ;)

Enjoy...and make it count!

girls night live

Three of my dearest friends and I had a night out...just moms. :)
We headed to the Walton Arts Center for Girls Night Live after a yummy dinner at Chipotle.
It was great to end my Spring Break chatting with friends and hearing a clear word at the concert.

Laura Story closed with "Blessings"...
And what if trials of this life
The rains, the storms, the hardest nights
Are Your mercies in disguise?

Mandisa closed with "Stronger"...
When the waves are taking you under
Hold on just a little bit longer
He knows that this is gonna make you stronger, stronger!

I love all things that follow a plan. What teacher doesn't love a solid plan with a few alternatives just in case?!? But tonight I was reminded that my plan isn't always the best plan that God has in store for me...and certainly not according to my time preferences. May I choose patience with a perspective that seeks to find the blessing within the circumstance.

Hope you are having a fabulous weekend...make it count!

simplifying radicals

The Common Core State Standards are filled with number sense. Students engaged in the Common Core aligned curriculum will have a deep understanding of rational and irrational numbers...including a rational approximation of an irrational number (CCSS 8.NS.2).

SPOILER ALERT:
No. I'm not talking The Hunger Games. (Although that's at the top of our list for this weekend.) I hereby have given you fair warning that this post is me standing jumping up and down on my math soap box. #justsaying

How would you find the rational approximation of this number?

Ummm...without a calculator. ;)

Here's how we approach this one in my classroom...Well. Let's start with square roots that are rational. We know the square root of 20 is somewhere between the square root of 16 and the square root of 25...so something between 4 and 5. Can you be more specific? Hmmm...the list begins to form...
root 16 = 4
root 17 = ?
root 18 = ?
root 19 = ?
root 20 = ?
......................about 4.5
root 21 = ?
root 22 = ?
root 23 = ?
root 24 = ?
root 25 = 5

Since we have 9 numbers to cover an increase of 1 unit, each increase will be a little more than 0.1. Why? Because 1/9 > 1/10. So we can approximate that root 20 is approximately 4.4. {Ish! At this point we discuss if the "little more" is "enough more" to justify rounding.}

But what about simplest radical form?!? We've searched high and low. No sign of "simplest radical form" in our copy of the CCSS document. (If you find it...please put me out of my misery!)

Could we teach our students to simplify radicals and then in turn use that to find the rational approximation of an irrational number? In simplest radical form, the square root of 20 is exactly 2 times the square root of 5. Hmmm...the square root of 5 is some number between the square root of 4 and the square root of 9...between 2 and 3.

root 4 = 2
root 5 = ?
root 6 = ?
..................about 2.5
root 7 = ?
root 8 = ?
root 9 = 3

Since we have 5 numbers to cover an increase of 1 unit, each increase will be more than 0.1. Why? Because 1/5 > 1/10 (some students will automatically go to the fact that 1/5 = 0.2). So we can approximate that root 5 is approximately 2.2 and therefore 2(2.2) = 4.4.

Bottom line. We reach a valid approximation either way. I think it's important for our students to discover both paths...and even more important for them to critique which approach they prefer and under what circumstances they would select that particular method. I'm ready for a viable argument. How about you?!?

Cooperative practice would be crucial for students to have perspective to support their argument. Here's what we did in my algebra class:

This product is available in my TpT store.

I'm curious...is this particular concept new to your junior high math classroom? This concept isn't specifically outlined in our current standards, but it is something we do. I'm just guessing that you have a laundry list of items exactly like that in your lesson plans too. ;)

Have a fabulous weekend...make it count!

my fave posts today

Mandy over at Cooperative Learning 365 is quickly approaching a milestone...a quarter of a million pageviews on her fabulous blog! Hop on over, hoot a little love her way, and enter her amazing celebration giveaway.

Ordered Pairs + BINGO = PAIRO
(My sweet hubby created these bingo cards for me back in the day...like our dating days...ummm...over 15 years ago!)

Grab this fun game of plotting ordered pairs on a coordinate grid. This game packet includes 30 unique PAIRO cards! Click on the picture to find this product in my TpT store.
Common Core. Need I say more?
My PLC continues to divide and conquer.
We are searching high and low for discovery activities.
Or some sort of hands-on activities that align to our new standards.
Our goal is to engage our students in the content without handing every detail to them in advance.

Anyways, for now we are trying to focus on CCSS that are new to our grade level.
Our 7th graders will first be introduced to probability in our classroom.
From likely vs. unlikely all the way to compound events.
I created this theoretical vs. experimental probability lab activity...

Click on the picture to find this product in my TpT store.

My students love using the Twister game spinner! And it's amazing how the basics from this lab activity stick throughout our entire probability unit. I just love an activity that creates a reference point for future learning...how about you?

Kristen over at Secondary Solutions posed a question on facebook this morning: "Do you write along with your students?" She linked to an article by Marjorie Light on the Teacher to Teacher blog. I wonder if the environment of your classroom would change if you shared your own version of the poem below?!?

Be sure to add the freebie to your probability file! This journal prompt allows for creativity and requires students (and teachers!) to put their knowledge in writing. Click on the picture to download.

Have a great week...make it count!

all about lines

Spring Break Day 1
The girls have Easter dresses and shoes.
Oh...and a take out box from Candy Craze.
And my poor laptop is officially broken.
My sweet hubby brought it back to life after a worm.
Then the keyboard did something funky.
I'm trying to survive without my right hand.

Just before Spring Break, I gave my geometry students a Benchmark diagnostic test. They quickly realized the 8th grade math curriculum involves a lot of algebra...particularly lines. So I tweaked an activity that we did last year to meet our review needs.

This deck of cards is so very versatile. I use the table of values and algebraic equation cards in my 7th grade math. And then we move on and use the algebraic equations and the graphs. But in my 7th grade algebra class we use all four sets to analyze graphically, algebraically, numerically, and verbally. Visit my TpT store to add this to your algebra files. Stay tuned for a similar product for exponential functions and quadratic functions...

Hope your week is off to a great start...make it count!

top 10 blogs

The super sweet Jena over at Caught in the Middle gave my blog a "Top 10" award this week. And I would like to share the love with my favorite places to visit.




Caught in the Middle

I have decided Jena and I are soul sisters. We both love to keep our classrooms filled with fun. Hop over and spy the amazing stuff she has been making on her 2-week break!



The Lesson Cloud
I recently started to contribute to this amazing blog. And believe me...I'm the tiny fish in this ocean of awesomeness. The administrators are total super stars! Hop on over and join the fun!



Education Journey
Ashleigh has a super cute blog! (I often wonder if she would notice if I copied her template exactly. LOL!) And she is a huge fan of math work stations. Hop on over...you will love every ounce of the classroom creations she shares.



Oh' Boy Fourth Grade
Farley is hilarious! I love reading her posts. And I stalk her "Currently" linky party each month. Hop on over and subscribe to her blog so you don't miss the next par-tay!



Science Stuff
Amy is my online teacher hero. Seriously. She makes me dream of teaching science...which I'm not even certified to do. I'm thinking she would be fun to teach down the hall from. Hop on over to her blog and you'll understand what I'm saying!




Math Coach's Corner
Donna continues to post amazing elementary math goodness. And she recently started a grade level linky party. Hop on over and post your teacher blog too!





Runde's Room
I first started following Jen's blog because of her awesome journal prompts. And she also has some amazing foldables incorporated into her math notes. Hop on over and spy the cootie catcher she posted this week!

To The Square Inch
Kate has the most giving heart. Hop on over and check out her bank of science and math activities.

Middle School Math Rules
Sherrie makes me smile! She always has a kind word for everyone. Hop on over and spy her life in 7th grade math.

Pushing Through 6th Grade
Mrs. Piper recently posted some fabulous Pi Day activities. Be sure to hop on over and file away for next year!

Today was my first day of Spring Break! I slept until almost 8:30 am. Fun!
Tomorrow is my Emma's birthday. She has made a request or two. ;)
Hope you're having a fabulous weekend...make it count!

let the fun begin

Happy Pi Day to YOU!
My students are super excited to celebrate Pi Day in the year 2015.
And I love that they made that connection all on their own!


It is officially Spring Break in the Tilmon house!
And not a second too soon. :)
My oldest went to see a movie with friends.
My youngest helped my hubby clean the pool.
Oh. And me?!? Well...I worked to finalize some grant writing. Almost finished.

Although my sweet girlies will be sleeping in tomorrow, I have two days of staff development. I will spend Thursday working on Common Core State Standards for preAP Algebra 1. And we have LTF training on Friday...my favorite recurring training!

I posted a new Inequalities Go Fish Game over on The Lesson Cloud. If you haven't followed this blog...it's a must! Not even kidding...it has something for everyone!



(And per request...I have edited this super fun game to include a black/white version too!)

So what's on deck for your Spring Break?!?
I hope you have a blast...make it count!

science fair results

3rd place
Congrats to my sweet girly!



Don't you love this photo?!? My vote for the photo to be framed and included on the display table was overruled. I still think making the judges smile is always worthwhile. ;)

Our nine weeks ends tomorrow. To all my non-teacher followers...life is just a little bit crazy at the moment. Bwaahahaha! As I said to one of my students recently for his denial to misbehavior, "Is that a gross underestimation?!?" His response, "Probably!"

Agreed. :)

On my agenda for tomorrow...pretest, mentor meeting, grant writing, more pretest, and a HOTS quiz...quickly followed by a forensics tournament and a run to the airport. Saturday involves a full day of judging at the forensics tournament.

Hope to chat again on Sunday!
Enjoy your weekend...make it count!

a formula for caffeine

I'm going to need a venti hot chocolate to jumpstart my tomorrow...and several days to come.
Thursday: science fair
Friday and Saturday: forensics tournament
Let's just say I'm a night owl...and all three of these require crack of dawn shuttles for my beloved daughter. LOL! :)

We are counting down to Spring Break...only 5 more lessons. And I've decided one of those five will be a pretest for state testing. I'm excited to pretest before break so I can get things organized at my own pace. I'll have to come back and give you an explanation as to how I approach Benchmark Bootcamp. Anyone have a state testing review routine? Do share!

One simple change I made last year was to teach my students the five content strands they would encounter during spring testing. I'm not sure I actually did this on purpose. But when it came to the week of testing I realized knowing the test format was a MUST! My algebra students gathered in my room each morning before the test so that they could sharpen pencils and overall just to support each other. They amazed me on the second morning when they said, "Mrs. Tilmon, we're going to have a non-linear function today...can we review the basics of quadratics for a few minutes?" When I asked how they could be certain of their upcoming questions, they rattled off the three areas that had been covered the day before and that they knew which two areas were left for that day's test. Nothing compares to that type of preparation...there is freedom in knowledge. Their anxiety was significantly reduced just from the practice of classifying problems into strand types!


The photo above shows a cover page to a practice set of geometry open-response items. The five strands are listed with a brief description of each one. Needless to say...I've been prepping classification by strand throughout the year! ;)

Chat soon...
Enjoy the end of your week...make it count!

currently

Happy March to YOU!

We love March at our house...Emma's birthday and Spring Break and sometimes Easter. And this year our district added two extra days of professional development prior to Spring Break. My girls are ecstatic two extra days. I think they are just trying to make me jealous! :)

Well...it's that time again! Hop over to Farley's blog and join the "Currently" linky party. Big fun! And I simply cannot wait to read your three words. Each word has to start with the first letter of your last name and describe you from the perspective of your students, friends, and family. Let me konw if you struggle with your letter as much as I did with my "T" options!

It's been a fun week over at TpT. My algebra vocabulary freebie was featured in the "10 Free Downloads" newsletter on Sunday and several new friends have downloaded my creation. I'm honored to share in someone else's teaching journey. If you haven't subscribed to the weekly newsletter, click here to add weekly treasures to your inbox (scroll to the bottom of the screen to find the "newsletter signup" box).

Hope you are off to a great start to your week...make it count!

coming full circle

My 8th grade preAP geometry students are in the middle of their testing cycle on circles. I'm so excited that this unit is complete. I was totally swimming in circles from day to day! The circle content overlaps a lot. So much so that I struggled to find the best option for chunking the content for learning purposes. I actually didn't resolve that issue until the very end when we completed the review summary. (Click on the pic to find this product in my TpT store.)

And these circle properties summary cards are my favorite part of the entire unit. This spin off of the Frayer Model for vocabulary worked to pull everything together. Whew!

All of our core 8th grade teachers use the Frayer Model for vocabulary. Each student has a set of index cards to use in their classes.

Do you use a similar model for vocabulary? Or do you have an alternate plan that works best for math vocabulary?
Hope you have a great week...make it count!

finishing data displays

My 7th graders will be finishing their data display unit this week. We will complete a summary concept map and unit review on Monday with the Test A scheduled for Tuesday. I created an "I have... Who has..." game for our MATHercise tubs.



Click on the picture to find this game in my TpT store. This "I have... Who has..." game assesses student knowledge of interpreting data displays...specifically circle graphs, double line graphs, and scatterplots. We have Stem-and-Leaf Plots to Histograms and Box-and-Whisker Plots games to use in small group while we review this week. We have also been responding to journal prompts that compare and contrast different data displays. It's a lot of information...requires great attention to detail. Did I mention how glad I am that this unit is BEFORE Spring Break?!? LOL!

So...do tell...do you set aside time to review your students for state tests? We run a Benchmark Bootcamp in our classroom for two weeks prior to the BIG test. :) In a nutshell...we give our students a sample multiple choice test that covers all of our content standards. Then based upon their individual results, we set up a review system that concentrates in the areas that they need a refresher. It's awesome and crazy all at the same time! I still need to do the background work for my geometry students and their review time. Yikes!

And meanwhile I'm also looking ahead to Pi Day! It's our last student contact day before Spring Break. Our math department ordered cute t-shirts from our high school math club last year. They have a different shirt this year. They say "I <3 PI"...think of the I heart New York designs. So for sure we will be decked out in Pi Day t-shirts on March 14th. Any fun plans in your math classroom?

Enjoy your weekend...make it count!

tackling testing

I'm out of pocket this week working on rangefinding for the Arkansas End-of-Course Algebra 1 Exam. This is my first experience testing and tweaking rubrics for the open-response items. Let's just say I have learned a lot of valuable information...some that I can discuss and some not so much. It's always nice to join efforts with math teachers from all over the state. We gain just as much knowledge from each other during breaks and lunch as we do from discussing the constructed response items.

Anyone else looking forward to the weekend?!? I'm already counting down. :) Hopefully I will be able to catch up on posting and blog hopping. I really want to browse some Common Core online resources that I learned about today too. And I need to put the final touches on a couple of grants that I'm writing. So what do you have on your teacher "to do" list for this weekend?

My wish list is growing moment by moment. Any guesses as to what's at the very top?!? :) The countdown is on...

Enjoy the rest of your week...make it count!

data and graphs and circles...oh my!

Do you have a classroom full of fabulous technology?!? I have been blessed with several technology options to use with my students. The package that receives the most use would have to be my InterWrite board and slate. Unfortunately, my slate died. And our amazing computer lab teacher tried to find a replacement...but that didn't work out in the end. So here's the deal. Our district has moved away from InterWrite and taken a plunge towards Hitachi. So if I want a slate, then I would need to become a Hitachi user. Ahhh...but there's the problem of the InterWrite board that I use with my students all the time. Just when I thought there was no happy ending to this story, our band instructor stepped in with an app that would turn my ipad into a slate. Did you know this was possible?!? Well, I certainly did not! He helped me get set up and I've tried it for a couple of days...so far I'm in love! I need more practice before I can write a complete review...but hopefully that will come in the near future. If you are a tablet user, go checkout the Splashtop Whiteboard app and let me know what you think. Combine it with the Splashtop Remote Desktop app and you will be set. :-)

We have been working through our unit on data display in 7th grade math. This is one of my favorite units! The design of this unit functions on a rotating 3-part approach. With each type of graph we have the typical 1- or 2-day lesson followed by a project day. Each project day includes a competency quiz, a whole-class "Are You Ideal" data display construction (using our height and arm span data), and an individual student project portion that allows students to use their personal survey data to complete a graph for their "Getting to Know You" statistics booklet. I love that my students are working with data they have collected. They are totally engaged while being supported with plenty of models throughout the unit.

Today we completed an M&M Lab Activity to practice constructing a circle graph using a protractor. It was the perfect way to spend my Friday afternoon with my students...and then promptly send them to the rest of the faculty after consuming their 1/4 cup of M&Ms. Yikes! I did make an attempt to lay low after school to avoid the wrath of fellow teachers. Ha! Click on the picture below for a free download.




Meanwhile, our MATHercise tubs include practice on data displays too! The Build a Box Plot game this week helped my students understand the difference between constructing a box plot with an even number of data items and an odd number of data items. Hallelujah! The data chips allowed students to manipulate the numbers and then cover the median (either an actual data item or the space between the two data items "tied" for the center) with a vertical bar. Any guesses on their journal prompt this week?!? Yep. Describe the difference between working with an odd or even number of data items when building a box plot. Love it!

Next week my students will learn a solitaire-like game. They will practice interpreting a stem-and-leaf plot plus constructing a histogram from a stem-and-leaf plot...via a fun and different game!



I'm looking forward to the mental math that will jumpstart our days this week! Click on the picture to purchase the game (including a record sheet with a solution key) and join in on our fun.

My circle saga in geometry will have to wait for another day...I'm still spinning from the unending mess! :)

far too long

Good news.
I had a fabulous long weekend with my amazing man!
My sweet friend with cancer has started her very own blog...a definite must read.
(I am still blogging...even though you see no proof of such a fact.)

Crazy news.
My sweet baby girl had the stomach bug...again!
(My student teacher is sick too.)
And we had conferences tonight and again on Monday.
So...needless to say...I've been consumed with much.

I have lots to share!
But I'm not sure anything I type tonight would make sense.
Check back this weekend for a recap on our data display progress, my circle lesson saga, a technology overhaul, and more!

Wish me luck...we are tackling circle graphs with M&Ms tomorrow. :)

Happy Friday Eve to YOU!
Enjoy...make it count!

happy weekend to you

Life has been super speedy this week! Between lessons and curriculum meetings and working with a new intern...spinning in circles is a fair description of this short week. :)

I just wanted to check in before the weekend. I'm headed to three days without internet connection. It's hard to realize that actually exists, huh? It will be wonderful to relax and set school work aside for a few moments. The reality is that every item sitting undone by close of school tomorrow will still be there patiently waiting for me on Tuesday. What do you have planned for this weekend?!?

Have a fabulous weekend...make it count!