Documentation
of Teaching/ Classroom Videos
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Commentary
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Preparing |
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| Helping boys to prepare for presentations I emphasize presentations as not only a form of assessment but as an opportunity for students to demonstrate their learning. |
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Preparing for Presentations
Helping boys to prepare for presentations
I emphasize presentations as not only a form of assessment but as an
opportunity for students to demonstrate their learning. Over the course
of the first semester, these three boys have prepared and given several
presentations and are well practiced in using presentation rubrics
to prepare their content and delivery.
They have been painting, writing, and talking about multiplying
expressions that result in quadratic equations for several
days. I assumed that making the transition from their experiential
practice to delivery would be easy given last semester’s
success with presentations. What I do not realize is that
although they have the experience, language, and concepts,
they are lacking organization and order.
You will notice that I pass the yellow sheet to Kenny. It
was his effforts during preparation time that brought this
to my attention. He could vocalize the importance of dimensions,
color choices, and their results but struggled to decide on
what to talk about first and why.
While the boys have a clear outline, you can hear Steve
referring to his painting while voicing his equation. A
close up on his painting reveals the terms that he is combining
like terms and when a certain color is left out of his
equation, you hear him saying with concern, “I forgot
those!” Similarly, Donny is actually touching the
terms on his painting that he is combining and then recording.
Kenny begins to concentrate on using his toolkits to address
content requirements. He knows that the audience will be
looking for him to talk about multiplying, area, dimensions,
combining like terms, and factoring.
As the boys are interviewed about their preparation, it
is clear that “audience” is not only a motivating
factor but also provides a foundation for accountability.
Steve is keenly aware that his success depends on whether
or not he can accurately describe this process to classmates
who did not do this project.
When Donny asks “What does she mean by dimension
choices?” Kenny’s confidence begins to emerge as he
incorporates “symmetry” into his justifications.
He applies his understanding of symmetry versus balance
to the other boy’s paintings. He is becoming an excellent
resource for Donny and Steve.
During an interview, Kenny lists all of the math concepts
he will be presenting and describes how he is going to
use what the interviewer summarizes as “artistic terms
and mathematical terms” to explain his painting. She
is modeling for him how to use language to describe his
efforts and he reciprocates by saying “I’m trying
to explain to the new people about the art of it in mathematical
terms. Hopefully I can get both of them down.”
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Building |
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| While Kenny, Steve, and Donny are feverishly preparing for their presentation, the newer algebra students are modeling “minus” for the first time. |
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Meanwhile, I’m working with the other students,
talking about how to show “negative” and how to “make
zeros.” The
new algebra students have practiced multiplying using the
dimension tool and lab gear but without the painting project.
I am taking this opportunity to introduce negatives into
their multiplication models while Kenny, Steve, and Donny
are preparing their presentations.
Not on this clip, Ricky elsewhere described
his apathy with my math class as feeling like “it’s
just gonna happen again” (meaning that he expects failure)
Coupled with some encouraging words from other staff members
and students, it seems like the opportunity to use Lab Gear
has lightened his mood. And it is important to note that
Ricky’s sense of doom is not different from many of the other
boys. He is just willing to vocalize it.The mood generated
by Lab Gear and Minus–“Can We Build It? Yes We Can!”
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Scaffolding |
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| Kenny searches for the right word. Here is where he relates the technique of combining like terms with his version of “making it shorter.” |
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Although I feel confident that Kenny has a solid
grasp of the topics he will address and the poise to do it,
I have to remain patient while I help him to verify his wording.
Simplify means making simple. Kenny and I solidify the use
of the mathematical term “simplify” as a substitute for “making
shorter.”
You will notice Donny’s posture and body language showing
his lack of patience with not only this process but my constant
attention toward Kenny. Reflecting on this video clip makes
me realize now that Kenny is using all the right resources
to help him build the rightquestions that will engage me as
a teacher. Helping to build Donny’s confidence will be a challenge
for me.
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Final |
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| What does the audience get out of this? |
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The boys you see in the audience are new students
to the school and were enrolled at the beginning of the second
semester. Although they have been in my Algebra class for only
a month, they have received the message that “toolkits” are
important. You will hear one student say “so we’ll need
toolkit papers?” because he knows that recording and
maintaining them on the special gold colored paper is critical
to his success in the class. In fact, I use gold colored
paper purposely and often introduce toolkits as resources
that are “like gold.”
The recording of toolkits is one way that I impart a sense
of value to the students about mathematical language. I often
give participation points during discussion based on how well
students refer to and use their toolkits in their explanations
and conjectures. By introducing the presentations as an opportunity
to obtain toolkit information, I am sending a message that “the
math that is actually happening” in the painting project
has vocabularly that is important.
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Final |
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| In this clip, you will hear Steve’s unique understanding of a variable in relation to his color choices. |
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Final Student Presentations: Steve
“Not Right”
He decided that it was especially
important for the audience to know about a mistake he made in his first
sketch. He emphasizes that assigning one color to both the constants
and the variable “is not right.”
Throughout the painting project, Steve always appeared to
be working with ease and catching his own mistakes. I assumed
that his presentation would run smoothly. But you will hear
me coaching him through the content of his presentation.Although
Steve is not using the words “variable” and “constant” in
this clip, I remember making a conscious effort not to interrupt
with the words “variable ” and “constant.”
At the time of the presentation, I felt confident that his
understanding would carry over to the work I anticipated for
setting up and solving equations. I felt that an interruption
would undermine his emphasis on conceptual understanding.
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Final |
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| Kenny had developed a good sense of many of the toolkits. |
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Final Student Presentations : Kenny
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Final |
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| Donny expressed his mathematical decisions articulately. |
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Final Student Presentations : Donny
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Discussion: |
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| Learning about new toolkits, and discussion of Kenny’s painting. |
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Final Discussion of Student Presentations
Document
Description
Commentary
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Reflective |
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| About the unit, the students, and the school. |
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Reflective interview about the unit and the students
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interview: |
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| Donny’s very insightful commentary regarding his educational history provides any teacher with perspective. |
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Interview: Donny
He points
specifically to what many educators refer to as “gaps
in education” and how he realized that one “nice” teacher
in particular wanted to address them.
His responses to the interview clearly describe how a fifteen year old
boy has internalized failure and is struggling to overcome it. However
challenging Donny is for me, I constantly have to remind myself (if Donny
hasn’t already done so in his own way) that his improvement and ultimate
success will happen over time and not right when I want it to happen
or expect that it should happen.
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interview: |
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| Reflective interview with Kenny about his prior experiences with math. |
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Interview: Kenny
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interview: |
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| Reflective interview with Steve about his prior experiences with math. |
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Interview: Steve
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interview: |
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| In this clip, my colleage Justin, the art and photography teacher at Life Learning Academy, reflects on his own experience with algebra and explains how “space and dimension” help students to conceptualize the process of multiplication whether it be with numbers and/or variables. |
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Interview: Colleague Justin Warren
Justin is an amazing photographer and photography teacher.
He is able to provide students with opportunities and insights
that I could not and it is evident in the conversations he has
with the boys while they are painting and trying to incorporate
both aesthetics and algebra into their decisions.