Conundrum

I observed a Master Teacher yesterday. She is so good she is one of two math coaches for the district she works in. I saw her do some fantastic things with her class, challenging all of her students at once, with a single math lesson, from the lowest to the most advanced learners in the class. This teacher is focused on advancing each and every student as much as possible.

Before I left she showed me some tools she teachers to her students for two digit subtraction, multiplication, and long division, which takes the pain out of doing these problems! It was fantastic. Students aren't struggling with borrowing (or regrouping, or whatever it's called in schools where you are,) which frustrates students and slows down the learning process. The students are sharing their thoughts on how they solve problems, and seeing their ideas on the board. None of them are told they are wrong or that they have a bad way of approaching something. They are learning that there is more than one way to approach something.

This is something I have tried in various ways as a substitute to help students understand relationships between numbers, with limited success. I find some students already get it, others just needed to have a little light cast in the shadows to see the problem in a new way, and the rest are so stuck on how things are normally done they end up frustrated or confused. But they do understand that I am trying to help them which they appreciate.

So at home, I'm going to use what I saw yesterday to help my daughter — and what do I get? "My teacher wants us to do it this way." "I'll get in trouble if I do it that way. " She shuts down and refuses to let me help. It doesn't matter to her if it is easier or not; it's not the way her teacher wants it! I don't blame the teacher for this, though I wonder who else has dealt with this same issue, and how you have dealt with it - with the teacher, without the teacher, in spite of the teacher?

I can understand that there are occaassions when concepts need to be taught a certain way, but few things have only one way of being done. I can understand many teachers don't want to have conflicting ideas floating around because it takes time to cover more than one way of doing things. What I saw today showed me how helping students understand different ways of looking at something should be integrated into lessons, and it can be done in a timely and effecient manner. Though I have to keep in mind, some students can only dealing with one way of doing something.

As a parent I find it baffling and frustrating to no end to have my child fight me when I try to explain something because it is not done that way at school. Yes it is possible for parents to set their children back if they teach something wrong. What I am suggesting is a closer partnership between parents and teachers. Having school and home at odds with each other is not good for the children.

What do you think?

Engagment

Too many of my elementary school memories consist of (these are the memories of a 'Calvin & Hobbs-esque' boy) sitting through hours of droning by the teacher at the front of the classroom with little in the way of conversation or participation. And the kind of participation we had I was not interested in because I was not fond of being laughed at. All of the classrooms I was in since 1st grade had the desks with the integrated seat, lined up in rows, or columns, depending on one's point of view. As soon as the teacher mentioned something that did not interest me, or that I did not understand, I would tune-out. I was gone until the bell rang for recess, lunch, or the end of the day. I also resented being called on to answer questions my teacher knew darn well I hadn't heard.

On occasion there were those days when lessons were interesting because the teacher was interested, and added relevant material. Material which tied the concepts or skills to our everyday lives. Most everyone can relate to sharing cookies, eating a slice of pizza, or getting change from a purchase. For other students the lessons they remembered may have revolved around sports or music. But to have something that interested me, gained my attention, caused me to care about what was being taught, and I put effort into learning. My comprehension improved tremendously during these times.

Creating lessons for every topic, for every day of the week, for an entire year, that engages all students, at various levels of development, is an extremely tall order. Impossible if the teacher doesn't know anything about the students in his/her class. This is why, when teachers send home questionnaires about your student(s), it is so important to fill them out and return them. The feedback will not only provide the teacher with ideas of what interests are common to students, to aide in the creation of engaging lessons, and it will help teachers build a relationship with each and every student more quickly. This is critical to creating a community within the classroom; healthy community promotes learning; safe community promotes exploration and a willingness to share thoughts, ideas, creations, and opinions. This is where learning happens at its best.

As parents we can help provide the optimal environment for our children by helping them to express themselves by listening to them patiently and asking guiding questions. Helping children be comfortable at home and around other people besides family sharing ideas and opinions will help develop the confidence they need at school. Communication with your child's teacher is also important to find out how your child is doing in class, and to know what his/her teacher's expectations are with your child.

Getting Started

Everything has to start somewhere. Here's my start.

A former IT geek, I have been a full time dad, gone through teacher certification, currently a substitute teacher, and am looking forward to earning my Master's Ed. in Best Practices. All during an economic crises where CA schools are looking at unprecedented cuts in funding.

In this blog it is my intention to provide information that will help parents feel more comfortable with public education; something I have gone through myself, being the parent of two children in public education myself. I have met a number of teachers as a parent, a substitute, and a student teacher. While the school system can be rather impersonal, the teachers and staff (in general) are caring adults who truly care about the students/children in their schools and classrooms.

In future posts, I will share some of my vague memories of elementary school, my impressions of what children want or need in school to be engaged, and how as parents we can make children's school the best possible.