Kids at our middle school are very intelligent, and have creative minds. They are curious thinkers who like to work together and talk through complex problems. They like to show how they solved their problem, explain what they are doing, and prove their solutions to other students. Middle school students are very social, and I like to use that strength to engage kids in math.
Middle school kids have a lot of energy and I like to harness that energy to engage kids in deep mathematical thinking.
Our middle school in Duluth, MN has a diverse socioeconomic population. Students come from many different walks of life and my challenge is to engage every thinker all of the time so that everyone reaches their full potential.
My Project
My students need to be immersed in math in a variety of ways. I am requesting a set of math picture books with the goal of hosting weekly Silent Reading and book discussions about math. In doing so, students will be able to look at math and math vocabulary in a new way.
I also want to get phones out of my room!
Many students need to use their phones as calculators so I need to allow them to have their phones in class. The trouble is, as much research will tell you, kids this age struggle to ignore their phone when it is buzzing and alerting them. I would like a class set of calculators so I can decrease the need for phones in my room.
Finally, my students love to work collaboratively on vertical spaces. We use dry erase markers to do math on windows and whiteboards. It is highly engaging, but requires a lot of dry erase markers!
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