Heal Math Trauma This Very Year

Heal Math Trauma This Very Year

Heal Math Trauma This Very Year In my experience of this world, most people do not like math.  The general consensus among kids and adults is that they hate math and they can’t do it. I believe that this is learned.  Whether it’s an elementary teacher who hated math,...
No Homework

No Homework

No Homework Here’s my problem with homework: the students who most need to do it, don’t. It’s the students who already understand and have no need for extra practice that do it. Homework simply widens the gap.   Also, home is the worst place to practice – there...
Success = Hope

Success = Hope

Success = Hope It is my experience that most people hate math class. But why?  One big reason is that math class is where you’re most likely to be called on and have the wrong answer.  Math class can feel humiliating and hopeless! One antidote is not complicated at...
Math is Figureoutable!

Math is Figureoutable!

Math is Figureoutable! Perhaps the most impactful expression I came across as a brand new teacher was “Math is Figure-out-able!” Not memorizable; figureoutable. When I was a kid math was taught differently; you had to memorize everything and regurgitate it later. ...
Attitudes (Mistakes are our friends II)

Attitudes (Mistakes are our friends II)

Helene If we want to change how our students feel about mistakes, our classroom has to be a safe place to make them. Once upon a time my brand new husband and I were driving 600 miles to our tiny new apartment. It was the middle of the night and the middle of nowhere...