The Sum of It All

May 2021

Choosing a Different Perspective

On a recent episode of Sum of It All Thinking Classrooms Podcast, Mark and I were discussing the “consolidation” of a lesson in a thinking classroom as described in Dr. Peter Liljedahl’s book, Building Thinking Classrooms in Mathematics. He describes consolidation in this way: “Through consolidation we are able to bring together the disparate parts of a lesson and help students to reify their experiences into a cohesive conceptual whole.”

As a neurological process, consolidation is the brain’s way of sorting and preparing for information to go into memory. One reason why summarization is so important is that it's your last chance to make an impact on the process. This wasn’t my strongest skill as a secondary math teacher. There were times when I helped students to pull all the pieces together, and others where I didn’t — whether I ran out of time or ran into my own limitations in mathematical understanding. If you’re interested, you can listen to Episode 10 to hear more about our experiences as classroom teachers, and ways to make small changes based on Dr. Liljedahl’s research.

In a parallel way, though, I think we sometimes let the school year escape from us without a chance for consolidation. We might reflect on what went well and what didn’t, but as one year closes out we are often already firmly planted in the planning and preparation of the next year. What if at the end of the school year teachers and leaders made time for consolidation for ourselves? I wonder what it would look like to take time to “make concrete and real something that is abstract or intangible,” as Liljedahl writes.

This school year has been full of the abstract and intangible. Events that are seemingly disparate parts, may actually be begging to be brought together into a cohesive understanding. We can allow our learning and life experiences — those that happened within and outside of school — to remain as separate, unrelated events or we can look for the connections between them, how they are related to one another, and how looking at them together might help us better understand who we are and how we can move forward. Consolidation is more than a summary; it’s choosing a different perspective, one that allows us to look down from the balcony to the dance floor below and see what interesting things emerge. And as you do, what can you learn from seeing the whole that you couldn’t see from just looking at the parts?

If you’re looking for a way to try on consolidation — consider asking your teachers and leaders what has shaped their understanding of themselves and others throughout the year. You can try empathy interviews, surveys, or focus groups, and use an affinity mapping protocol or a world cafe to look for patterns and connections.

As part of our consolidation work this year, we’re hoping you can help us gain some insight about this newsletter. Does it get delivered often enough? Is the content the “right stuff” or are we missing something? Please take two to three minutes to fill out a brief survey about this newsletter. As a thank you for the feedback, you can choose to have your name entered to win one of 10 math games (you can even choose which one from our list in the survey!).

We look forward to continuing to collaborate with you, and wish you many mathematical adventures until we hear from you again!

Audrey Mendivil

@Audrey_Mendivil

audrey.mendivil@sdcoe.net

Early Math and Science Storylines

Learn how to identify ways to maximize your instructional time, with authentic integration of science and mathematics in K-2 that activates curiosity for deeper learning. Identify connections between the subjects and walk away with ways to implement integration in your classroom. The t wo sessions on Aug. 8 and 18 are designed for K-2 teachers and elementary teachers on special assignment (TOSAs).

Early Math Symposium

The Early Math Project will hold the 2021 Early Math Symposium on June 25. A free, virtual event open to all, the symposium is geared for educators and families with children from birth to age 8. Check out the event flyer for more information about the speakers and how to register.

TODOS Virtual Summer Conference and Leadership Institute

Don’t miss the TODOS 2021 Virtual Conference! The keynote speaker is Dr. Julia Aguirre from the University of Washington, Tacoma. She is an outspoken advocate for equity and social justice and a passionate educator. Registration is now open for this virtual learning opportunity on June 21 to 23 and the Leadership Institute on June 24 and 25.

San Diego Math Leaders Summer Events

Designed with flexibility in mind, this summer you can continue your learning at the pace that’s right for you. Explore the new podcast series, book club, and burst opportunities at www.sdcoe.net/math where links and registration information will be updated regularly. Email Audrey Mendivi l or Mark Alcorn for more information.

Mathigon Polypad Workshops

New features are being added regularly to Mathigon Polypad, making this free tool even more powerful for math students. Want to use their updated features, but need to build some of your skills up first? Check out live and archived webinars to build your skills.

Math Projects Summer Professional Learning

The Bay Area Math Project and the Santa Clara Valley Math Project have joined together to design an ongoing series of virtual mathematics professional development for K-12 teachers. Read more about free learning opportunities on topics such as fractions, proportional reasoning, and mathematical modeling.

Virtual Math Coaching PLC

The Mathematics Leadership Program based at Mount Holyoke College offers a monthly virtual math coaching professional learning community (PLC) for K-8 mathematics coaches and teachers. Focusing on promoting equity through facilitating meaningful discourse this year, previous sessions are recorded and archived along with their resources. Learn more about the PLC and register to join.

NEW! Sum of It All: Thinking Classrooms Podcast

Join Audrey Mendivil and Mark Alcorn in a new podcast as they explore Peter Liljedahl’s book, Building Thinking Classrooms in Mathematics. You can join this asynchronous book club by either previewing or reviewing the chapter featured in each Sum of It All: Thinking Classrooms podcast. Add your thoughts and questions by joining the conversation on Twitter using #SumMathChat. Listen along here with the newest episode going live today!

Find the latest math professional learning opportunities and resources on SDCOE’s math webpage.

Revised Mathematics Framework

The 2021 Mathematics Framework for California Public Schools: Kindergarten Through Grade Twelve (Mathematics Framework) is under revision, with plans for adoption this fall. Check out the updated timeline and read and offer feedback on the drafted chapters this summer. If you’d like to get regular updates from the California Department of Education, join the mailing list.

California Math Council (CMC) Sponsored Framework Sessions

The California Mathematics Council (CMC) hosted conversations about the draft Mathematics Framework to help educators and the public learn about, explore, and discuss the draft Mathematics Framework. Visit the CMC website to view recorded webinars, and hear from the authors directly about what the new Mathematics Framework is all about.

Mathematics, Policy, and Leadership Network

Interested in learning more about policy news and events? Join SDCOE for our Mathematics, Policy, and Leadership Network for the next event on May 20. For more information contact Mindy Shacklett.

Consider Helping Local Researchers

Researchers from the Center for Equity and Biliteracy Education Research (CEBER) and the Center for Research in Mathematics and Science Education (CRMSE) at San Diego State University want to hear from math and English language arts teachers with multilingual learners. Teachers with students designated as English learners and willing to be interviewed can find out more information here or sign up here to help.

Association of American Educators Foundation Grants

Classroom Grant

This grant includes awards of up to $500 to early childhood and PreK-12 teachers for classroom programs, projects, or materials that will benefit students, classrooms, and/or the school community. Funding is intended for a variety of projects and materials including, but not limited to, books, software, calculators, and math manipulatives.

Teacher Scholarship

This scholarship awards up to $500 to full-time early childhood and PreK-12 teachers for professional development that will positively impact the applicant’s students, classrooms, and/or school community. Scholarships can be used for a wide variety of professional development opportunities and materials. These include conferences, in-services, and materials for PLCs. Scholarship will cover all associated costs with attending these events or obtaining these materials.

GSDMC grant opportunities

Grants from the Greater San Diego Math Council (GSDMC) are available to local educators and awarded on a rolling basis to support teachers during the pandemic. From integrating technology to providing manipulatives and supporting access and equity for all students, GSDMC has a grant or scholarship for you.

California Math Council (CMC)-South Grants and Scholarships

Did you attend CMC-South? If so, you’re eligible to apply for the grants and scholarships, which include funding for classroom resources and professional learning. Take some time this summer to nominate an amazing math teacher or coach for one of three awards by the Aug. 30 deadline.

Responding to the desire of teachers to learn about Teaching Math through a Social Justice Lens (Catherine Gewertz) has become its own challenge. “When High School Mathematics Lessons to Explore, Understand and Respond to Social Injustice came out, the editors got so many requests from K-8 teachers, they are now working on three additional volumes aimed at those grade bands,” Robert Q. Berry III, one of the editors, is quoted by Gewertz. Gwertz's article lightly explores the idea and offers a few resources that could help guide further exploration.

Pamela Burdman from Just Equations calls schools and colleges to action in her opinion piece in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution titled Rethink How We Teach Math. “A movement taking root in schools and colleges to ground mathematics in real-life data and instill the mathematical sense-making necessary for participating in civil society is central to modernizing mathematics,” and one that has begun in California as Data Science takes on a larger priority under the new revisions to the California Math Framework.

Light on the reading, but heavy on the thinking — Berkeley Everett has released a new resource to help customize number talk images. Free templates to edit and rearrange images of kumquats, blueberries, nuts, and toaster pastries, as Google Slides or PowerPoint are available. Great for asking “how many” and “notice and wonder” prompts. Access them directly at his blog.

Ready to move forward with new learning, but looking for guidance on planning with equity at the core? The Spencer Foundation and Learning Policy Institute released their report Summer Learning and Beyond: Opportunities for Creating Equity, sharing six design principles with linked resources to support your work moving forward. PACE also recently published a policy brief, Reimagine and Rebuild: Restarting School with Equity at the Center, with five actions that can help any team looking for guidance on centering equity from the design.

Earlier this year we spotlighted A Pathway to Equitable Math Instruction when it was released. This month, we’re taking a closer look into the document and how it can support teachers as they think about their instruction as an expression of equity. Stride 4, Connecting Critical Intersections examines the interconnectedness of English language learning and the development of mathematical thinking.

The introduction provides an extensive collection of ideas to learn from and discuss as a learning community, with topics including: cultural and linguistic assets, effects of systemic racism, teacher biases and beliefs, and dispelling the myth of one-size-fits-all when planning to meet the needs of all multilingual learners in a classroom. The strides are meant to take a year to explore, so taking your time to discuss and examine each of these topics could be a great way to start learning together. Whether this is the first time exploring this intersection or part of an on-going learning journey - this stride is certain to have something to spark discussion and thinking from all educators.