InTasc #3
The teacher works with others to create environments that support individual and collaborative learning, and that encourage positive social interaction, active engagement in learning, and self motivation.
Circle Graphs Lesson - Data Collection Activity
For the opening lesson of the unit on circle graphs in Math 6, we briefly introduced the concept of circle graphs before starting an exploration of the data cycle; formulating questions, collecting data, organizing and representing data, and analyzing and communicating results. They first were given the question, “what is your favorite fruit?” to ask ten classmates and collect their data. Then they got to formulate their own question and answer choices and began collecting data they would use to complete the data cycle in the following class.
This activity demonstrates how teachers can create environments that support collaborative learning, and that encourage positive social interaction, active engagement in learning, and self-motivation. During this activity, students got to practice positive interactions with each other through asking questions, sharing opinions, and being respectful of others’ opinions. Students were engaged through having choice in the formulation of their question and were motivated to participate in the activity because of this. All of the students participated fully in all three sections of Math 6.
By creating activities that are social and engaging, we give students opportunities to and increase the likelihood of them behaving appropriately with classmates. With this lesson, we had multiple students who typically have challenges engaging in positive social behavior with classmates and have even had to be separated from the learning environment or the school entirely show excitement to participate in this part of the lesson. They were engaged by getting to ask their classmates a question they had come up with and were internally motivated to have the opportunity to move around the room, ask their questions, and collect the data. It was very motivating for me to see students that have struggled with positive social interactions not just participate but be excited to be a part of the collaborate learning element.
Seating Chart
This seating chart was designed by myself and then adjusted based on feedback from my cooperating teacher, the co-teacher in the classroom during this period, and the ELL specialist who is in the room one to two times a week. It considers where students are facing, who they are near, and the strengths and needs of each student. An earlier version of this seating chart was used briefly, but a few changes were made after the first couple of days when we as a team decided that some pairings of students were unproductive. For example, students 12 and 13 were initially seated next to each other but turned out to be so talkative that neither was completing any work. There are additional notes that we considered in the document.
This artifact exhibits working with others to create environments that support individual and collaborative learning, and that encourage positive social interaction. While I made the first draft of the seating chart, it was only finalized after receiving feedback from my cooperating teacher, the co-teacher, and the ELL specialist. Students are seated in table groups facing each other to facilitate discussion and communication during Think-Pair-Shares and Explorations. Students that excel in math are placed with students who have more challenges so that one group does not dominate the conversation. They’re placed so that they can still face the front of the room easily for whole-class discussions. We made sure to separate any unproductive pairings of students to support individual learning during independent work times. We also needed to monitor a bullying situation happening between the three students and placed those students based on that situation. This was meant to encourage positive social interaction and minimize negative ones.
Collaboration is vital to constructing knowledge in the math classroom and a key part of student social and emotional development. This is a core principle of how I like to teach. It starts with the physical environment of where students are placed and with whom. If there are barriers in the physical environment preventing students from collaborating, then the planning and actions to create a collaborative environment go to waste.
Peer Teaching Lesson - Engage
These are the slides from a peer teaching lesson I made to teach in front of other Math Education students. I chose to use content from Algebra I and use the example of terminal velocity in physics to introduce horizontal asymptotes. The Engage is two short videos chosen to spark students’ curiosity and be a bit humorous. They both show squirrels falling from heights and coming out relatively unscathed. This leads into an inquiry-based lesson about how squirrels can safely fall from such heights and the math behind the falls.
This artifact showcases how teachers can create environments that promote active engagement in learning and self-motivation. By making the introduction to the lesson humorous and thought provoking through inquiring about something students may have seen many times before but never thought to question, the lesson becomes more engaging than introducing asymptotes simply be defining and showing them on a graph. The connection to physics, nature, and evolution also make the content real and relevant. This engagement leads to self-motivation through interest and curiosity.
This artifact is meaningful to me because learning math should evoke curiosity and a desire to understand the world around us. This is one example of how to make the content fun for students. It also shows a real, albeit whimsical, disciplinary application of mathematics in the study of physics.