I attended the very first joint NCTE & NCTM conference for elementary school teachers in New Orleans on June 17 - June 19th. It was an incredible experience, so much so that this conference will now be annual! To answer the question, "How did the learning experience impact me and my practice?", I will say renewal of my inspiration to teach. This will be my 30th year in education, and this was the perfect conference to attend going into my milestone year.
I have attended many DEI and Leadership workshops during my last 9 years at Burke's, but not many math-centered opportunities. This was the PD I was craving, especially after my year of reflection on my practice alongside Alice. I got to create my own menu of experiences, and even though I am specifically a math teacher, the overlap of language arts integration at this conference has made me a more aware and equipped math teacher, especially when focused on word problems and inclusion.
The workshops I attended on bringing joy and celebrating failure in the math classroom affirmed my integration of Jo Boaler's work on growth mindsets. Honestly, I could have presented those workshops, but it was great to know I am "on the right track" when creating my classroom culture. The brain science and AI workshops shed new light on how to integrate resources that will make my math classroom more inclusive with a focus on addressing learning styles and identity (socio-economic, as well as cultural). Finally, the speakers were so well selected. The children's authors, Grace Lin and Don Tate spoke to the importance of the three Rs: reading, writing and arithmetic, while Danika McKellar, a television celebrity from Wonder Years and Harvard grad, celebrated how "math doesn't suck!"
For my own recollection (and for anyone out there who is still reading this and wants to know more), I am going to write a one-sentence synopsis of each workshop and speaker session I attended.
P.S. I got the best swag for this first-ever conference, so much so that I was able to build plush "welcome bags" for the 4 new associate teachers. They were basically throwing freebies at me in the Expo Hall. I also came home with 4 free books (one of which is the newest book by Danika McKellar)!
Reflection Submission Instructions
"Monday, June 17
Igniting Joy in the Math Classroom - A Math Coach and Reading Interventionist share their journey as they integrate their roles in the classrooms they serve. This honestly could have been me and Simone (if we decided to put our Laverne and Shirley antics on the road).
Embracing the Powerful Role of Failure in Math Class - https://rb.gy/fga50u Practice failing and celebrate failures with 3 pillars [Why? (Context) - What? (Culture) Redefine success and failure - How? (Content) Give students opportunities to experience failure]
Upside Down Teaching - Productive struggle: Tackle the task, students clarify and connect, teacher connects and clarifies, then assessment (exit ticket) - [Thank God I don't teach public school anymore, sounds horrendous!}
Encouraging Thinkers & Communicators in Math Class - "Does anyone want to share their partner's thinking?" Norm: Listen so closely so that you're thinking, "Is that right?"
3 Brain Lessons from MTV to Make Learning Last - LieslMcConchie.com/NewOrleans MTV revolutionized the music experience! Multisensory instruction revolutionizes learning: Motor Cortex, Temporal Lobe, and Visual Cortex!
Speaker: Grace Lin - Since it's "Year of the Dragon," Grace guided us in drawing a dragon as she spoke about growing up as the only Asian in her classrooms and why she decided to write her stories. "It's hard to be what you can't see. Even in fantasy, where the impossible can happen, I did not exist."
Tuesday, June 18
Number Sense & Social Justice by Asking “How Much?” Mind blown. Overlap number sense with social justice - "Louisiana is a great place, and the world is far from being fair (2005 vs 2024 incarceration statistics)."
Where Math & Literacy Meet: Combing Pedagogies to Solve Word Problems diane@seidlitzeducation.com Teach how to see relationships - Prompt: (1) Quantities (2) Known values (3) Any language that helps us?
Where in the World? Combining Math, ELA, and Travel tinyurl.com/mathelatravel (all handouts from the presentation are here) - This is very similar to the PBL units we do in 4th grade: donut and candy shop projects.
Who Am I? Who Are You? Transdisciplinary Civic Learning Collaborative Create a "Things I wish my teacher knew box" ...Secure an anonymous line of communication
Punz & Puzzles @pvennbush - This sine has threee errors.
Speaker: Don Tate - (The Brown bookshelf) - Behave, believe, and achieve
Wednesday, June 19
Using Generative AI - Magic School, Co-Pilot (up to date), and ChatGPT (Apple)
Environments & Relationships: Creating A Sense of Belonging - What does belonging look like/ sound like/feel like?
Chalk Talk: Unveiling the Power of Each Student’s Mathematical - Rather than whole group discussions, what other types of mathematical linguistic discourse are used to assess students?
Speaker: Danika McKellar - mckellarmath.com "Sparkly diamonds come from productive struggle years of intense pressure. Math sharpens your brain!"