PD Teaching Mathematics
Effectively For Students
of All Abilities
By Scott Repicky
Our Time Together
 Broken into 6 days
 3 hours of PD/day
 Focus:
 Teaching Mathematics Effectively Through:
 Creativity
 Investigation
 Differentiation
 Inclusion
Day 1
 Focus
 How do we include all
students?
 What does differentiation
mean?
 How do we encourage our
students’ creativity?
 How do we become part of
the “learning revolution?”
 How does the language we
use affect our students?
 Videos
 Ken Robinson
 Aimee Mullins
Looking at Education and
Creativity
Ted Talk Sir Ken Robinson
 http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/ken_robinson_sa
ys_schools_kill_creativity.html
Questions for Discussion

How do we allow students to be creative in mathematics?

In what ways in our classroom, can we prepare our students to be wrong in
mathematics?

How can we value the strengths of our students and encourage them?

How can we incorporate the arts in mathematics?

How can we allow students “to move to think” in our classrooms?

Any other ideas from the video?
The Learning Revolution
TED Talk Sir Ken Robinson
 http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/sir_ken_robinson
_bring_on_the_revolution.html
Discussion with the Learning
Revolution

How do we go about finding and developing our students’ “natural resources” in
mathematics?

How do we disenthrall ourselves from past math practices to initiate new practices?

How can we look at math in a non-linear way?

In our mathematics program, how do we move away from the “fast food” mentality?

How can we in mathematics feed our student’s passions?

How do we create conditions under which our students can flourish in mathematics?

How do we differentiate to help meet our students’ needs?

How is inclusion of students an important part of the learning revolution?
The Opportunity For Adversity
TED Talk Aimee Mullins
 http://www.ted.com/talks/aimee_mullins_the_opportu
nity_of_adversity.html
Discussion Questions

How does our language affect our teaching?

How do we empower our students?

How can we empower our students specifically in mathematics?

How do we help our students adapt to the challenges they will face?

How can we celebrate the adversity our students face?

How can we engage and support our students so they can share their gifts in
mathematics?

How do we keep from putting lids on our students’ abilities?

How do we bring out the potential of every child in mathematics?
Review of Today
 In what ways, can you provide the students with
opportunities to be creative with mathematics?
 How in your teaching of mathematics can you become a
part of what Ken Robinson refers to as the “learning
revolution?”
 How can you empower your students in their abilities in
mathematics and not limit them?
 What questions do you have about today’s session?
Day 2
 Focus:
 Inclusion and Collaboration
 Article: “Who Are Our
Schools Really For?”
 Video: Sugata Mitra
Review Previous Session
 Answer any questions
 Any new thoughts
Inclusion Article: Who Are Our
Schools Really For?
 Protocol: The Final Word
 Take 10 minutes to review the article
 Choose one idea or topic that stands out
 1st team member shares topic or idea, but makes no other
comments
 Round robin, each person comments on initial person’s reflection
 NO CROSS TALK!
 Initial person then has conversation return and they have the
Final Word
 Repeat pattern all the way around the group
Collaboration: Having students
work together
 Advantages For Students






Rely on each other
Explanation of how and why not just answer
Creative
Learn from one another’s strengths
Challenge each other
Learn team work
The Future of Education
Dr. Sugata Mitra
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ps8MwyJH8Zo
Implications?
 What implications does the video have for your own
teaching?
Putting It Into Practice
 In teams of three, work together to find the answer:
 Are perimeter, area, and symmetry connected?
 Use any resources available
 Use other groups
Review of Today
 In what way can you use inclusion and collaboration to
meet your students’ needs?
 What possible questions could you ask your students
that they could investigate?
Day 3
 Focus:
 Review last sessioncollaboration and inclusion
 Sharing of other ideas for
students to collaborate on
 Begin looking at tiered
assignments
 Video: Skiing and
Mathematics
 Video: Tiered Assignments
Collaboration Follow-Up Activity
 Holes, Polar Bears, and Fish
 15 minutes individually
 Discussion
 15 minutes collaboratively
 Discussion collaboratively vs. individually
Tiered Assignments
 Comparing Math to Skiing
 http://www.viddler.com/explore/dsuarez/videos/2/7.2
41/
The analogy between skiing and
mathematics made me think…
Tiered Assignments In Practice
 Video- VHS Instructional Strategies for the
Differentiated Classroom: #3 Tiered Assignments
Reaction to the Video
 What did you like?
 What would you do differently?
Follow-Up Activity
 Design a lesson with tiers
Sharing Lesson Ideas
Reflection
 What did I learn today?
 What do I want to know more about?
Day 4
 Focus:
 Applying Tiered Assignments
 Readiness Differences
 Math Is Not Linear
Tiered Activity - Super Value
Shapes
 Three groups
 Same activity
 Three different levels
 Results
 Reflection
Readiness Differences
 Tiered assignments support differences in student
readiness
 Students progress at different levels
 What ways do we approach dealing with readiness
differences in our classrooms?
Math is Not Linear
 http://prezi.com/aww2hjfyil0u/math-is-not-linear/
Reactions?
 How do we teach math in a non-linear way?
 Why would we want to teach this way?
 How would it be best for students of all abilities?
Putting It In Action
 Think of some investigations or research some
investigations you can do with your students that would
combine different subjects of mathematics.
Reflection of Sessions 1-4
• So far, what is your “AHA” moment?
• What do you want to know more about?
• What questions do you still have?
Day 5
 Focus:
 Changing Education
Paradigms
 Universal Design For
Learning and Mathematics
 Video: Sir Ken Robinson
 Video: Universal Design
and Universal Design for
Learning
Changing the Education
Paradigms

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDZFcDGpL4U&feature=player_embedded
 Sir Ken Robinson discusses changing the ways we teach
to engage our students
Discussion Ideas

How do we create an engaging, aesthetic experience for our students in mathematics?

What did you think of his views on ADHD?

How do we allow for divergent thinking in mathematics?
Universal Design for Learning
(UDL)
 Principles







Equitable use
Flexible
Simple and intuitive
Perceptible information
Tolerance for error
Low physical effort
Size and space for approach and use
Video: Universal Design and
Universal Design for Learning
 http://udlselfcheck.cast.org/window.php?src=videos
Implementing Universal Design
For Learning
 Go to computer lab and visit this site:
 http://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu/udl/chalcycle.htm
Reflection
 What did you learn about UDL?
 What works with UDL?
 Do you see any problems with UDL?
Design a math lesson using UDL
 With a partner, follow the attached UDL lesson plan for
your class.
Share lesson plans
 Share your lesson plans with the group
 Suggest any ideas for consideration in each lesson
Reflection
 Why would I want to use UDL?
 What questions do you still have about UDL?
Day 6
 Final Day’s Focus:
 Math Needs a Makeover
 Homework
 Co-Teaching
 Review
 Video: Dan Meyers- Math
Needs a Makeover
Dan Meyer- Math Needs a
Makeover
 http://www.ted.com/talks/dan_meyer_math_curriculu
m_makeover.html
Putting It Into Practice
 In pairs, see if you can design an open-ended real world
mathematics problem that the students could solve.
 How would you have the students go about solving the
problem?
Sharing ideas
Homework
 Review homework article by Bambi Betts
 Why do we give homework?
 What do students get from it?
 Do we differentiate with our math homework?
Math Homework
 Should be:





Engaging
Authentic
Inquiry based
Investigative
Differentiated
Design an engaging and authentic
homework for math
 In pairs, create a sample piece of homework.
 We will share these when finished.
Co-Teaching
 One teach, one observe
 Station teaching
 Parallel teaching
 Alternative teaching
 Teaming
 One teach, one assist
Sharing Ideas of Co-Teaching
In what ways does this video
reflect inclusion?
 http://nfb.tv/film/canada_vignettes_the_egg
 Discuss what meanings you found in the film.
Final Review
 Thank You!