I am a Reggio Emilia inspired Full Day Kindergarten teacher and mother to three young children. This blog is meant as a communication tool for the families of our children and as a learning tool for the many educators who follow us. Please feel free to comment on posts and participate in our collective understanding of emergent curriculum.
It's almost Labour Day! This time of year always fills me with hope. Although
it's sometimes sad to be leaving the fun and comforts of summer -
spending time with my children, sleeping in, enjoying the back yard with
my pup - it's exciting to think of the possibilities of another school
year. Like a blank canvas waiting to be painted our classroom evolves
and changes over time as the children and I learn and explore together.
As we head back into the school year many educators are working
thoughtfully to create environments that are rich with math possibility.
In Reggio Emilia the environment exists as the 'third teacher'
inspiring, supporting, and extending children's learning in rich and
complex ways. I have been contacted by many educators asking for advice
on how to best set up their classroom and routines in order to create as
many opportunities for authentic math as possible. This has inspired
today's blog post - how to cultivate a math rich learning space for
children at the beginning of another school year.
I thought it would be easiest to create this as a 'math check list' with
points to read and consider. When I reflect upon my own math pedagogy
and practice, these are what I think stand out as mathematically
meaningful for the educators, children and families that share our
space. Although this check list isn't all inclusive, I thought it might
spark some ideas to support and inspire as we enjoy the final weeks of
summer and return soon to our classrooms with open eyes, minds and hearts.
1. Make math a part of every space in the classroom and child's school world. In
the classroom are there math tools and materials available for use
beyond a 'math center or math shelf'? Do children see how math relates
to every subject in the space (e.g., how materials are sorted and stored
on the toy shelf, how measurement is used when children decide on a
size of paper to use for their project)? Can they translate math tools
and ideas into other spaces in their immediate school world (e.g., see
how math relates to their walks in the hallway or work in the gym)?
2. Ground and build math concepts into known objects for children.
When introducing, extending or innovating a math idea is it organic and
natural to the child's explorations and world? For example, it is more
natural to engage children in an exploration of measurement if they
measure things in their immediate world using the stick they are playing
with, instead of using a standardized ruler (e.g., "Can you find
something the same length as your stick in the yard?", "What is taller
than your body?").
3. Use available math moments with children. In our classroom we
have a large block of uninterrupted play each day. It's sometimes
challenging to manage children, materials and activities during center
time. However I try to engage with children as much as possible in the
activities, and take on the role of 'play partner' together with them.
When I am actively playing I am able to closely observe what they are
saying and doing, helping me to identify and extend the rich math
learning that is organically occurring (e.g., helping children to
recognize why their tower keeps falling, using math terms when they
equally share the play dough, introducing math ideas as they discuss how
many cars are in their parking lot).
4. Become a math role-model for children, families, and colleagues. Even
if math isn't your favourite subject, how do you discuss it within your
school and classroom? Are you excited by new activities and resources?
Do you demonstrate a growth mindset?When mathematical situations
arise with children that you aren't sure of, can you use these
opportunities to showcase positive thinking and problem-solving? Share
your new math learning with others - suggest articles and books you're
reading and post these throughout your classroom to enhance
documentation displays.
5. Find the math in everything. Many educators plan forward by
choosing curriculum and programming expectations and then building
activities to fulfill these. Try back-mapping activities from time to
time; embrace child-centered, organic experiences and then deconstruct
them in order to identify the rich math concepts and curriculum
expectations that they utilize. You'll be surprised to find that math
happens in almost every experience children have in the classroom.
6. Try looking at life through a mathematical lens. When planning
invitations for learning in your classroom see what math you can sneak
in as well. Changing one or two elements of the experience might be
enough to engage children in rich math. It reminds me of how I used to
sneak veggies into my children's meals - a little can go a long way!
7. Collaborate mathematically with colleagues. Share new ideas
and resources informally. It's easy and effective to create math
invitations and activities and share these within your school or
division. If every educator plans one or two activities and these are
shared, children will benefit from many rich and interesting games and
activities without the burden of planning and preparation it would take
one educator to accomplish the same.
8. Record and celebrate your math moments. Help children,
families, and colleagues recognize that math happens everywhere in the
classroom by creating a documentation display with photos, anecdotal
observations and connections to curriculum. This bulletin board can be
built over the course of the school year as artifacts of learning are
continually added by staff and students. Keep sticky notes nearby and
invite observers to record their own ideas and share them by posting the
notes within the documentation.
9. Engage families in joyful math with children outside of school. Consider
ways that you can promote and extend math for children after school.
Encouraging families to play math games and activities together with
their children will not only provide children with additional meaningful
math moments, but it may help older family members reconcile their fear
or dislike of math.
10. Build your collection of math stories, songs and games. Children
love to sing, dance and play games. Ask colleagues to share their
favourite games and activities, and use these to help with transitions
and other 'math moments' throughout the day. Quite often the words in
songs can easily be improvised to match something happening in your
classroom, and many rich storybooks have mathematical elements and
problems embedded within them that can inspire children.
These are just a few of the ways in which I cultivate a rich math space
with children. I'd love to hear from you! Share your math ideas in the
comments below, and consider following my Instagram @McLennan1977 for regular ideas from my classroom!
As an educator helping children develop a love of and appreciation for math is one of my greatest professional interests. I strive each day to engage children in authentic math learning through play and inquiry. I was super honoured and excited this past spring to welcome ETFO into our kindergarten classroom and record a number of chats regarding how children explore math in our classroom.
Many families are eager to help their children practice literacy and numeracy work from school. Although traditional 'paper and pencil' homework is not developmentally appropriate in many circumstances, providing 'take home' games and activities in the form of literacy and math bags is welcomed and appreciated by many families. These interactive, hands-on, developmentally appropriate activities are easy to create and target many emergent skills and knowledge needed by young children. They are a good alternative when the school community expects work to be sent home from school. Take home bags help parents and guardians understand how literacy and numeracy can be nurtured and celebrated in the lives of young children.
Engaging children in coding activities has been a priority for us this week. The children are very interested in mapping, grids, and giving each other directions so we want to capitalize on these expressed interests and weave in as much math and spatial reasoning as possible.
A simple game that the children enjoyed was looking for treasure. We created an array of post it notes on a large piece of chart paper.
Hidden underneath some of the post-its were silly emoji face stickers.
During circle we modeled how to give each other directions for moving on the grid using the coding commands we had been practicing - go up, go down, go left, go right, and jump. We agreed that the starting point would be at the top, centre of the grid.
The programmer (Mrs. McLennan in the following picture) used the coding symbols and also orally gave the coding directions and the player had to follow the commands until the programmer stopped.
At that point the player lifted the note to see whether or not a 'treasure' (what the children termed the faces) was discovered beneath. If there was one, the programmer and player switched and someone else had a turn. If not, then directions continued to be given until one was eventually discovered.
The children became quite proficient at giving each other directions. We are working towards helping them understand that the directions need to go in over, line by line, and that when we write code we need to ensure they are in order.
This is also a great game for strengthening a child's listening skills as they have to pay careful attention to the directions and follow them precisely in order to be successful. Coding strengthens communication and cooperation. Children have to be patient with one another throughout the process too!
Families, I am so pleased to be sending home information today in your child's note tote about how to begin accessing their digital portfolio. I am using an app this year called Seesaw that can be easily added to your smart device, or accessed online through an internet browser. Your child will be bringing home specific instructions on how to access his or her portfolio. In the portfolio you will see that I have begun adding photos, videos, drawing samples, audio files, and even links to blog entries where your child has been featured. It's my hope that this collection of documentation can help keep you informed as to your child's growth and progress in our classroom. In the past I've shared printed photos with you - Seesaw helps to make documentation sharing much easier, instantaneous, and eco-friendly. As a result I will be using Seesaw for the majority of my assessment collection. Please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns as you learn to navigate this app.
Some Seesaw Tips:
Check Seesaw regularly. You'll get notifications about new
entries in your child's journal and can respond to their work. Customize
your notification preferences in Account Settings.
Celebrate your child's classroom success. Help to encourage the skills your child is working on in class outside of school.
Specific comments are best. Asking questions, or complementing specific details can add to the learning conversation.
In a group or 'everyone' post your comment is visible to
everyone tagged - the students and their parents. This is a great
opportunity to lift up the whole class!
In
the days leading up to school, practice walking to school or to the
bus stop often so it begins to feel like a familiar routine. If you
child will be riding the bus, attend the bus orientation and go over the
bus safety rules a few times.
A
few days before school starts, begin getting your child and yourself
used to the bedtime and wake-up schedule that will be required during
school.
Get everything ready a day or two in advance.
The
day before, let your child pick out what they will wear on the first
day of school. Let your child choose a favourite outfit from clothes
that are already 'broken-in' and comfortable.
Try to get your child and yourself off to bed a bit early so you're both well rested in the morning.
The first day...
Get
yourself and your child up early enough to eat a calm, unhurried
breakfast. Keep things as normal as possible; if your child normally has
cereal for breakfast, make cereal this morning.
When you say goodbye to your child the first day, make it quick, light, and reassuring.
Your
child will be reassured by a warm hug and a reminder that you, or their
usual caregiver, will be picking them up or waiting at home after
school is finished.
Some
parents feel a temporary sense of loss when their child goes off to
school. If you're feeling that way, plan a special activity for yourself
that you can look forward to during the first days of school.
After school...
Plan a special dinner with your child's favourite foods to celebrate the first day of school.
Use
the first day of school to start some routines for the rest of the
school year. One of these routines is to talk with your child every day
about what happened at school. Here are some questions that can help to
start the discussion:
Did your teacher read you a story today? Tell me about it.
What did you do in school today that you really liked? Tell me why this activity was so special for you.
What are you looking forward to doing tomorrow at school?
Another
great routine to get started on the first day of school is displaying
your child's school work. After you and your child have discussed what
he or she has brought home from school, display it on the fridge or hang
it on an inexpensive bulletin board hung in the hallway or bedroom at
your child's eye level.
Use those precious few minutes before bedtime to snuggle with your child and read him or her a bedtime story.
We have an open door - please don't hesitate to contact us with any questions or concerns!
As the school year comes to a close we have been reflecting upon our year; something we always review is our effectiveness in communicating with families. Have we honoured children's learning in the classroom and made visible the rich space of possibilities so that families are informed of their children's journeys and feel connected to our classroom? Have children been included in this process as an integral source of information and inspiration? We feel that one of the many ways we have been able to do this, and expand our professional learning network (PLN) is through our blog. We think all educators should consider how a blog might help them advocate for playful learning in the early years and better connect with their school community and beyond. Perhaps this blog entry will be the catalyst for some educators to create their own blogs for use in their classrooms next September. Feel free to share the address of your school blog in the comments below!
Why blog?
Blogging is an effective communication tool.
Blogging
is a very effective way to to share the innovative and exciting
activities happening in one’s classroom with a larger audience. Multiple
forms of information can be shared on a blog - photos, videos,
hyperlinks, iMovies, padlets - helping to embed technology into
instructional practices and documentation.
Blogging helps demystify what happens in a process-driven, inquiry-based classroom and builds support for why this type of practice is both meaningful and developmentally appropriate practice for children. With few ‘receipts’ of learning like paper and pencil products being sent home from school, families are often left to wonder what their child accomplished all day. The all too common shrugging of shoulders is still a common response to the age old question of ‘what did you do at school?’.
Blogging can be a great way to share the learning happening through play and inquiry in one’s classroom and encourage parent-child conversations about school as families visit the site together. This helps children reflect back on past events and use the information as inspiration in order to plan for future classroom work.
Blogging also serves as an effective way for families to give immediate feedback on classroom events and activities. Enabling the comment feature allows readers to publish public comments on each blog post. Moderating these can ensure that content is appropriate and confidentiality of children (names, locations) is maintained.
Blogs can serve to motivate families and extend ideas and activities that have happened in the classroom at home. In order to encourage responses to posts and facilitate a ‘conversation’ between the blog and readers, invitations to reply in a particular way can be included as part of the post. For example, after hanging a birdfeeder outside of the classroom window and posting photos of the birds that have visited, readers can be asked to contribute photos of birds that have visited their backyards by including these in the comments section to the corresponding post. This way the audience is helping to co-construct the content of the blog. Families may be more inspired to engage in home activities that support school activities and curriculum if they have a public forum to share their ideas and relate these back to their children’s education. Just as educators may be more motivated to raise their level of programming knowing that they have an audience, so too will the readers of the blog as they work to create a communal representation of the ideas and understandings contained in the posts.
Communication also occurs between divisional teachers who share ideas and strategies for implementing curriculum. As they visit one another’s blogs, teachers will become inspired by their colleagues and this may act as a catalyst for professional conversation and feedback on activities.
Blogging integrates technology into regular practice.
Children can help blog, integrating technology into everyday moments in the classroom. Many blogging websites have apps for smart devices so children can blog in real time with an adult during an activity. Sharing time can include a review of photos inserted into a blank blog post and children can help co-construct the narrative in a shared writing experience. This also serves as an opportunity for a rich discussion about internet safety and critical consumption of online information directly in the instructional moment.
It is a cost effective and environmentally friendly way to share a lot of information with a wide audience with little to no paper products. Occasionally we will sent out a reminder slip with the blog address and description to families in order to advertise our site and remind them to visit.
Blogging also encourages teachers to become more tech savvy as they learn to manipulate new and exciting forms of technology and mash these together with their blog.
Blogging as Assessment
Blogging can be a form of assessment. Online entries can be reviewed and information used to guide assessment and evaluation for children. Online entries can be printed and personal observations regarding children can be directly written onto pages. These can then be used in a child’s portfolios.
Blog entries can be added to learning centres in the classroom as part of the documentation available. Using a QR code tagged with the web address of all entries related to that particular centre (e.g., all entried tagged drama are then shared in the dramatic arts centre using a QR code) helps bring digital documentation into the classroom and shares the stories of the rich learning that has happened throughout the year at the centre.
Children who are on extended trips away from school or absent can see what was missed and families might be inspired to create similar learning experiences at home. It’s almost impossible to make up a missed day of interactive play at school - there are no take home activities that can replicate the richness of learning together with friends - but the entries help families see exactly what their child missed while absent.
Blogging inspires.
Blogging helps educators connect with one another as interesting ideas are shared online and a spirit of learning encourages risk-taking in one’s classroom. Many teachers like to visit one another’s blogs, so your audience may eventually expand beyond the families of your students. It also inspires you to become better, knowing you are opening up your classroom to a global audience.
Blogging gives teachers an empowered voice as they strive to change the world of education and way kindergarten is viewed by outsiders. Many teachers still struggle with didactic pressures from colleagues and administrators who are unaware of best practices in kindergarten. Authoring a blog means that one has regular opportunities to share the rich, integrated, developmentally appropriate learning taking place each day in the classroom.
Blogging inspires kids. From experience I know that children in the classroom are more motivated to participate in an activity if they know I’m going to be blogging about it. They want to see themselves in a public forum and enjoy having an audience.
Blogging also inspires families. Over the years I’ve heard from many families who have begun to visit our class blog as soon as they register their child for school in the winter for the following fall. Many learn what the expectations and activities are for kindergarten and begin to prepare their children for this adventure by engaging in some of the activities at home. Younger siblings benefit as they also get a chance to experience activities, helping ready them for school at an even younger age than their older siblings. Families who are undecided about which school to attend might be swayed by the detailed programming information being shared on a blog.
Teachers are inspired to find new and exciting ways to share content from their classroom and this will help differentiate classroom practices (e.g., videos, word clouds, voice recordings, narratives, photos, artwork). As a blogger I am always interested in new and exciting ways to enrich my content, build readership, and help portray the exciting things happening in the classroom in tangible ways to others.
Blogging helps educators reflect.
Blogging is reflective - a teacher must consider the important elements of an experience when crafting the descriptive narrative that accompanies photos in a blog entry, helping to reflect upon the experience and think about how to extend the learning moving forward.
I believe that blogging will ultimately help raise the stakes in the classroom as teachers try to outdo their own last best post and keep the energy going in the classroom. An amazing entry for me only further motivates me to try and outperform in order to have even more exciting and informative entry for families to enjoy.
As blogs are archived teachers can travel backwards in time and review posts from months and even years ago, celebrating their growth and journey as educators. It’s a record of what was done in the classroom and a predictor of future successes. It’s a way of honouring the children and stories of the classroom long after they have moved upwards into a new grade.
Your blog is who you are as an educator. It will make you marketable as an educator and help advertise you to potential administrators when looking for new opportunities (e.g., new school, assignments, leadership opportunities). We all want to have rich, detailed digital online footprints that showcase who we are as educators and show what we are capable of in the classroom and school.
I have just finished reading my top book choice for personal and
professional development and am ready to delve into anything else by
this mathematician and author! There were so many parts in the book that
resonated deeply with me and I'm hoping to use this blog post as a way
of sharing this learning with my blog audience - especially since so
many educators have contacted me after reading our "Invested Children = Robust Math Explorations" post wondering just how it was possible the children were so engaged and interested in such a complex math task. I have been so engrossed by Jo Boaler's Mathematical Mindsets
over the last few months and can honestly say that it has helped me not
only become a better educator, but better parent and math student
myself. I am able to critically and reflexively look at situations
through a mathematical lens and promote positive messaging and a growth
mindset in these situations. Whether I am working on a math problem
myself, engaging the children in my class in their math thinking, or
inspiring my own children to consider and reflect upon their math
experiences at school, I am a changed person in how I think about and
act within math learning opportunities. This book has changed my life. I was so excited by Mathematical Mindsets and would often share ideas with my 9 year old daughter as we discussed how she could continue to learn and grow her math abilities. It was an amazing conversation piece, especially when she was getting frustrated with topics in math and felt like giving up. Caleb enjoyed all the pictures of the brain in it!
The biggest take away that I had is that it's never too late to learn math and that there is no such thing as a math brain. Everyone is capable of successfully learning and using math. When I first started teaching I worried constantly about my abilities in math and how it would affect my math lessons as I grew up not liking math or having positive math experiences and it really affected my mindset. Boaler's work has taught me that I absolutely can be successful in math, and it motivated me to earn my P/J Math Part 1 Additional Qualifications too! In her work Boaler states why it's essential that educators change their math mindsets and reconsider how math fits into their life:
"Many of the elementary teachers I have worked with, some of whom
took my online class, have told me that the ideas I gave them on the
brain, on potential, and on growth mindsets has been life-changing for
them. It caused them to develop a growth mindset in mathematics, to
approach mathematics with confidence and enthusiasm and to pass that on
to their students." (p. 8) "One of the most
powerful moves a teacher or parent can make is in changing the messages
they give about mistakes and wrong answers in mathematics." (p. 15) "What
is mathematics, really? And why do so many students either hate it or
fear it - or both? Mathematics is different from other subjects, not
because it is right or wrong, as many people would say, but because it
is taught in ways that are not used by other subject teachers, and
people hold beliefs about mathematics that they do not hold about other
subjects. Students rarely think that they are in math classrooms to
appreciate the beauty of mathematics, to ask deep questions, to explore
the rich set of connections that make up the subject, or even to learn
about the applicability of the subject; they think they are in math
classrooms to perform." (p. 21)
"Teachers are the
most important resource for students. They are the ones who can create
exciting mathematics environments, give students the positive messages
they need, and take any math task and make it one that piques students'
curiosity and interest." (p. 57)
If educators enjoy and appreciate math, they will model this to children who will then think positively about their mathematical experiences as well. Educators can also use this new attitude to help change those of their students' families and the greater community.
Spending time creating an environment that is a community of learners who value each other as individuals who strengthen the group with their involvement and participation is essential. We learn better when we are together and it's okay to make mistakes because these are learning opportunities.
Many mentor texts helped us explore this idea with the children and consider what perseverance and resilience might look like in our classroom.
We also included many beautiful and inviting math books, materials and experiences into our learning centres in order to inspire children to collaboratively explore and create.
Boaler asks educators
to consider the following reflective questions to help us move from
product-driven, isolated, performance-based tasks to rich,
collaborative, meaning mathematics for children. In my opinion these
compliment the beliefs that many teachers also hold about
developmentally appropriate, emergent, play-based practices leading them
to be the perfect way to engage children in rich, robust math
experiences in kindergarten. They naturally focus on process-based explorations and multiple ways of doing and knowing. They ask us to consider math from multiple perspectives and support and enrich content through meaningful ways of wondering about the world.
When considering math in the classroom Boaler specifically asks:
1. "Can you open the task to encourage multiple methods, pathways, and representations?" (p.77)
We naturally do this in an emergent, play-based classroom as we consider differentiated instruction and how to engage children in multi-faceted experiences that support preferred learning styles. Those influenced by Reggio Emilia think about the 'hundred languages of children' and how we can encourage and support children to explore a topic and also communicate their ideas and learning in new and innovative ways (e.g., drawing, painting, building, dancing).In our classroom we found that the loose parts, building, and art areas were rich with mathematical possibilities and because many children favoured these experiences, they also frequently explored and enjoyed math there as well.
2. "Can you make it an inquiry task?" (p. 78)
Inquiry is the heart of learning in the FDK, emergent curriculum classroom! When we honour children's questions and consider how to support their explorations we empower them as learners and members of an inquisitive community. There were many inquiries in our classroom this year, and reflecting back on each I can see the math potential and just how motivated children were to answer self-directed areas of wondering. Look for how to weave math naturally into an inquiry, instead of presenting artificial math situations in order to empower your learners and grow their mindset.
One of our richest inquiries was exploring how to help a local food bank that was in desperate need of items for the community. The rich math and language learning that emerged in this project is captured in the following video and article.
3. "Can you ask the problem before teaching the method?" (p. 81)
Boaler suggests that the richest math teaching happens when there is a need to know how to solve the problem, instead of children being told math rules and procedures and then assigned practice questions out of context. In our room we are always open to using these 'teachable math moments'. We conduct daily number talks, usually beginning with our sign-in question, and the different ways children wonder about how to arrive at a solution helps us meaningfully embed strategies into the experience. Playing along with children at the learning centres during playtime is also a very important way to accomplish this. As we play with children, we discuss what we are doing and are able and available to support and scaffold rich math learning as problems in the play arise (e.g., how to build a tower that doesn't fall over). 4. "Can you add a visual component?" (p.81)
Because kindergarten children are emerging readers and writers, much of what we do in the classroom uses many other languages (e.g., drawing, painting, dancing, sculpting, building). Our play activities naturally differentiate content and provide multiple entry points for children to use when exploring and communicating their discoveries to others. Math happens everywhere, not just the 'math centre'.
5. "Can you make it low floor and high ceiling?" (p. 84)
This is one of the most interesting things I learned from the book. I strive to differentiate activities to best meet children's needs and support their emerging understandings, but I really liked how Boaler described tasks that had multiple entry points for children and endless potential as this. When I'm designing an activity to use during whole or small group time, or to offer as an interesting math activity or provocation during play, I will consider it a pedagogical success only if it's low floor high ceiling. Here's an example of one:
Children have a basket of subitizing cards (numbers 1 - 10) and are encouraged to match them on a number line with the numbers (10 - 20). They can do a straight match (10 on the 10 spot), or add the numbers in interesting combinations (2, 3, or even 4 numbers to total a sum as represented on the number line). They can even think in terms of multiplication (3 groups of 6 can go on the 18).
With an emphasis on exploring and representing math in different ways, it only makes sense that our assessment should reflect the unique interests and approaches of the children and honour and celebrate their stories. According to Boaler:
"The
complex ways in which children understand mathematics are fascinating
to me. Students ask questions, see ideas, draw representations, connect
methods, justify, and reason in all sorts of different ways. But recent
years have seen all of these different nuanced complexities of student
understanding reduced to single numbers and letters that are used to
judge students' worth. Teachers are encouraged to test and grade
students, to a ridiculous and damaging degree; and students start to
define themselves-and mathematics-in terms of letters and numbers. Such
crude representations of understanding not only fail to adequately
describe children's knowledge, in many cases they misrepresent it."
(p.141)
We have tried to observe, document and honour children's experiences in a variety of ways in order to make these visible to others. We have also used this documentation to help our own emerging understandings of the children's interests, strengths and needs and help drive our instruction forward as we better support the children's questions.
We have used annotated photos and portfolios of children's work samples (art, drawings, writing, etc.). Each time we create an annotated photo story we send a copy home at the end of the day so that our families can be informed as to what has happened at school. This is especially important as some do not follow our twitter or blog and the portfolios are only sent home a few times a year. We want the rich, descriptive feedback to be ongoing and celebrated by families as well in order to continue to promote an interest in math and grow everyone's mathematical mindset.
We keep copies of learning stories at each centre and posted around the room when complimenting other documentation so that the children and visitors to our space can review what's happened so far this year. The children enjoy looking through and reflecting upon their experiences.
We also have pedagogical and research-based support visible in each centre as a way of articulating the reasoning behind the choices we make in the classroom. There is a QR code on each which when scanned leads the user to all blog entries tagged with that subject. This is our way of merging our digital documentation with the centre.
We also tag photo documentation with QR codes that lead the user to digital artifacts such as videos, voice recordings, blog entries, etc. in order to provide a more layered, meaningful presentation of the children's' inquiries and experiences.
Especially with bigger math explorations we like to keep a running record on our easel of our math thinking and colour code the text and pictures to help us make sense of our journey. We continually refer back to this documentation and add/remove ideas as needed.
We use photo documentation and encourage children to write directly on the photos to help them consider alternate information and to help layer reflections on past experiences with their emerging understanding.
We build the documentation directly into our centres - photos, artwork, writing, physical artifacts from the inquiries, and many other representations of our ideas are woven throughout the classroom.
Photos and writing on our walls show our journey and the progression of our ideas. We keep empty space available so we can continue to add to it as we progress on the journey.
Consolidating our understanding, sharing what we have done and learned with a wide audience, and connecting with others in order to learn from them is a major part of our documentation. The children like to blog and tweet together with me and we've been able to connect with many classrooms from all over the province. It's exciting to know that there are others who are on the same journey as us, and as Boaler states in her book, math is a collaborative and social experience and we learn best when we work together with other like-minded individuals!
The ending of Mathematical Mindsets was most powerful for me, and I'm going to revisit this paragraph many more times as I continue to expand my own mindset and continue to explore how to better implement meaningful math in an emergent program. I would love to continue to connect with other educators interested in the same!
"Teachers,
parents and leaders have the opportunity to set students on a growth
mindset mathematics pathway that will bring them greater accomplishment,
happiness, and feelings of self-worth throughout their lives. We need to
free our young people from the crippling idea that they must not fail,
that they cannot mess up, that only some students can be good at math, and that success should be easy and not involve effort. We need to
introduce them to creative, beautiful mathematics that allows them to ask
questions that have not been asked, and to think of ideas that go
beyond traditional and imaginary boundaries." (p.208)
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