Why I Love Standards-Based Grading

Why I Love Standards-Based Grading

Why I Love Standards-Based Grading There are many different ways to do standards-based grading (also known as proficiency-based grading), and this is the model I landed on: 4 (A) – Mastery  (can do & extend) 3 (B) – Proficient  (can do) 2 (C) –...
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...
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...
Mistakes are our friends!

Mistakes are our friends!

Mistakes are our friends! Can you think of a time your mistake led to something really great? When I was a kid my mom would often drag us to her latest artistic interest.  Los Angeles was full of them: a garden, a gallery, a house by a famous architect. Many times as...