Hello,
Math was rough today. I had many heads nodding up and down that they understood, but when I would give them the dry-erase marker to come to the board, I saw immediate panic in many eyes. Auugghhh! I implored them to STOP PRETENDING! It is impossible to teach someone when they think that they already know. I am really thankful that we had a Bowdoin College volunteer who was able to take some of the kids who are already comfortable with regrouping.
Okay, a bit about the new math program... I like it. It was my top choice out of all the programs we looked at. It is conceptual. It emphasizes thinking and problem solving. Another great thing that I like about it is the pace. It is supposed to be slow. It is supposed to go deep. We are not supposed to move on to the next topic unless the kids understand the prior one. That is how I've always tried to teach math. At each grade level, more is expected of our children than we have expected in the past. These first couple years are going to be tougher because we need to allow ourselves to go at a pace that allows time for understanding of steps 1, 2 and 3, before rushing to step 4. The old program was criticized for going a mile wide and an inch deep. This program is about conceptual understanding. You can't rush that.
New topic: descriptive writing. Ask your child how to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Some key details were left out of the descriptions today and left me smearing jelly all over my table, putting a whole jar between two slices of bread, and a bunch of other things you wouldn't want to see done with your sandwich supplies. The major lessons were: reread your work carefully before passing it in, and pay attention to details.
The first book orders of the year went home tonight. Don't worry about due dates. I'll order every two weeks. If you order online, scholastic will give you a five dollar credit for your next order. The online ordering has many more options than the flyers. Let me know if you want access to older or younger grade level books. The books usually take about a week to arrive, once I put in the order. I pass out the books to the kids when they arrive. I can hold back any books and give them to you personally if you want them to be a surprise.
Homework club tomorrow until 5:00. I'm hoping they can wrap up the big Risk game so I can introduce them to some new games.
Have a good night.
Mr. Shea
Finally got all caught up on your posts and wanted again to say thanks so much for doing this. It has really helped us understand what Hannah is doing in class and we can talk about what she likes and doesn't like.
ReplyDeleteFor the record I do read more than Vampire books- but at least she knows both her parents love to read. I had no idea what her tribe's gestures meant and got to laugh at the PB and Jelly sandwich mistakes. She found it interesting that I called regrouping borrowing when I was in school. She is super excited about being a representative. Thanks again for all you do!