Here is a video of Phil Daro calling for a change in classroom habits of how we teach students to solve problems. Great quote, from Phil’s daughter: “Daddy, I don’t have time to understand it, I just want to get it right on the test.”
Professional development
Reduced Registration Fee: Extended to April 15
This is just to let everyone know that the reduced fee registration for the May conference: Focus in the Common Core State Standards in Mathematics, is extended until April 15th. This conference from May 25-27 will encourage participants to not only understand the big picture of the CCSSM but understand focus domains, and go into depth in these particular topics at each grade level. Break out sessions will be available at lower elementary, upper elementary, middle school, and high school levels.
Here is the information page and registration.
New Orleans Workshop: May 25 – 27
Just wanted to let everyone know that the deadline to register for our workshop in New Orleans for a reduced price is quickly approaching (March 31st deadline for reduced price). The workshop will feature Bill McCallum and others from across the country, including teacher leaders as facilitators and will highlight “focus” in the Common Core State Standards. Workshop will start late on Friday May 25th and go to mid-afternoon on Sunday May 27th.
Here is the information page and registration.
Spring Common Core Workshop: May 25 – 27 New Orleans, La
Join teachers, administrators, and district personnel from across the country as we explore together “Focus in the Common Core State Standards in Mathematics.” This conference will feature Bill McCallum and his team of Common Core facilitators, including teacher leaders from every grade band. Many of the breakout sessions will be run by teacher experts, leading the way in developing PD for fellow teachers implementing CCSSM. Time in the conference will also be devoted to small group focus on the major work in specific grade bands. Register by the end of March to receive the discounted registration fee!
Are you planning professional development for teachers this summer?
Add a single day focused on the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics with the Common Core Toolkit. The Toolkit is a single day add-on for existing PD. This program, available in elementary, middle, or high school grade bands, has been created by teachers, for a teacher audience, and is facilitated by teachers. Apply at the IM&E website now to host at your site this summer! Facilitators are available for all states. The cost is $200 per participant with a minimum of 15 participants. Priority will be given to early applications.
Workshop on professional development in Tucson, Feb 17–19
The Institute for Mathematics & Education is holding a 2 1/2 day workshop for leaders implementing professional development on CCSS. I will be helping to run the workshop. I know this is short notice, but we have had a lot of demand for this and decided we should put something together. For more details, go to the Institute for Mathematics & Education.
Two documents with recommendations for professional development
First, here is the final report from the Gearing Up conference at the Institute for Mathematics & Education held in April, 2011. It is very little changed from the draft that I put up a while ago: 2011_12_06_Gearing_Up.
Second, here is a report from a meeting organized by Paola Sztajn, Karen Marrongelle, and Peg Smith: http://www.nctm.org/uploadedFiles/Math_Standards/Summary_PD_CCSSMath.pdf
SMP Tool
Check out the tools page for a new presentation on the Standards for Mathematical Practice.
New initiative in mathematics teacher preparation for the Common Core
APLU has launched a new initiative, the Mathematics Teacher Education Partnership, and is now accepting applications from partnerships of school districts and institutions of higher education.
New Project: Common Core Toolkit
Hello Common Core Enthusiasts! My name is Ellen Whitesides and I am working for Bill McCallum at the Institute for Mathematics and Education (IM&E) at University of Arizona on all of our projects related to the Common Core. You can check out our ongoing projects here:
http://ime.math.arizona.edu/commoncore/
IM&E is working as a part of a collaboration between NCTM, NCSM, ASSM, AMTE, CBMS, Achieve, AFT, IAS/PCMI, MfA, NAGB, and NEA to produce a day long professional development on the Common Core. The effort is authored by teachers across the country, will be field tested by teachers, and ultimately facilitated by teachers with teachers as the targeted audience. The toolkit will have activities hitting four main goals; to see structure in the standards, to understand the Standards of Mathematical Practice, to align tasks to the standards, and to understand the language used in the standards. Activities will be developed for Elementary, Middle School, and High School teachers. As we develop tools and activities for this project we will be posting them here in the Tools section of the blog so check back soon for PD tools to further explain the Common Core in Mathematics. The toolkit should be ready for initial pilot testing this summer so stay tuned if your school or district might be interested in participating as a beta testing site for activities designed for the Toolkit.