I am a huge fan of Sara Vanderwerf. Every post of hers I read contains a gem that I can use. Just look at these three posts from the end of May (if you haven’t seen them yet):
- The Story of 2 Words & 1 Simple Tweak to Get All Students Talking
- In this post, Sara talks about a strategy to reinforce academic language while addressing student confusion over mathematical vocabulary. It’s a great idea for all students, with a special boost for English Language Learners. And, like the title says – it’s simple to implement and make a part of your daily routines.
- The #1 Thing I Did in My Support Classes
- Two days later, this bit of brilliance was published on Sara’s blog – another simple strategy to build confidence and teach important school and life survival skills (how to advocate for oneself). As a math teacher, Sara writes about applying this idea in a mathematics classroom, but it’s not difficult to imagine a broader use, and how it might help so many children.
- I can’t comment on how I feel about a post with this title appearing on my birthday, but it’s such a keeper that I’m not complaining. Using a hilarious parody of Pomp and Circumstance as an example, Sara explores the idea of creating ‘Math Earworms’ that will stick in your students’ heads long after they leave your room. And I loved the link to this list of songs that won’t leave YOUR head.
This is only a taste of the wealth of really good (and easy to implement) ideas you will find if you read Sara’s blog regularly.
There’s an interesting discussion going on about creating a math lesson plan repository from the best shared resources in the #MTBoS (I’m probably using incorrect nomenclature here, but the idea is hopefully clear). Check out these posts from Chris Lusto and Dan Meyer, as well as the thoughtful comments. And join in the conversation.
One more day of classes for me – hope your summer is around the corner as well!