Washington State Math Coaches March 22 & 23, 2010 Yakima, WA klind11@comcast.net

Welcome! Introductions Logistics for the day Conversation Starters – Talk to people with different color papers than yours. One starter per person, record names, create a mental image.

Goals for Our Time Together Enjoy math with our colleagues. Share coaching/leadership ideas with one another. Look at alignment of the state PEs and Common Core Standards. Examine Best Practices for teaching math. Learn (or revisit) strategies for continuing coaching work.

Framing Questions Write what you hope to learn or questions that you have about math in the frame. As we progress through the next two days, record a sentence or two about each topic you want to remember and connect it to your ideas/questions.

Focusing Our Work Reflect on the Best Practices Sheet. How would you know if you saw this practice in a classroom? How would it look? Sound? Feel? (Indicators) Where have you seen it? What do you wish were happening in classrooms at your school? (Needs Assessment)

Make a Plan What would your teachers choose as a focus? What would you need in order to make a difference in this area? What strategy could you use to initiate a conversation around the Best Practices?

Take a Break Back in 15 minutes!

Take a Break 5 more minutes

Take a Break 1 minute and counting!

Reconvene!

Just a Little Math You need a Folding Fractions worksheet and some patty paper. You are creating fractions of the diagonal of the paper. How can you be sure of the fractions you are finding? You must be able to justify each one.

Starting and Restarting Coaching Enroll Model Observe Co-Teach Collaborative Conversations Identify A Student Learning Problem Read Together Examine Student Work

Enroll Use data. Don’t pretend! Listen – really! Set goals together. Be worthy of trust. Respect perspectives and goals. Persist. Give options.

Model Beware being the “expert”. Lesson Study Give the teacher something active to do in an observation.

Observe How is your observation different from an evaluation observation? Establish what you are looking for. Stay focused on the students. Use protocols. Help teachers be explicit about their teaching moves. Affirm what they are doing right.

Co-Teach There is always a lead and support teacher. Co-planning is the key. Establish roles and a purpose.

Collaborative Conversations Consulting “I” Share information, advice and resources. Support inexperienced teacher. Collaborating “We” Co-develop ideas, information and strategies. Model collegial relationship as a standard for teaching. Coaching “You” Support protégé’s instructional decision making and ability to reflect on practices. Increase ability of a teacher to become a self-directed learner

Identify a Student Learning Problem What is getting in the way of students making progress? Who is making progress? Who is not? What is in our control? Don’t leave a problem conversation without a plan to try.

Read Together Never Say Anything A Kid Can Say – NCTM Mathematics Teacher Developing Mathematical Understanding through Multiple Representations – NCTM Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School Springing Into Active Learning – ASCD Journal How Students Learn Mathematics – National Academies Press

Examine Student Work 1. The teacher who is this meeting’s student work provider sets the context. Teachers examine work for 3 focal students silently. Then they discuss their concrete evidence and interpretations for each student. The group proposes diagnostic questions and follow up activities. Each member makes plans and commits to a follow up.

Lunch! One hour to relax and connect.

Facilitate Student Discourse Work on the “Strings” by sorting the cards into groups that appear to have commonalities. Separate each group into subgroups. What do they have in common? Write the reason for your subgroups on a 3x5 card. Can you think of other sub-groupings? Add to your 3x5 card.

Facilitating Student Discourse Watch the videos. What is significant about each stage of the lesson? What would you affirm for the teacher? What are you wondering? How does the teacher support learning, get at the heart of misconceptions and encourage the students to make meaning of the notions?

Break! Reconvene in 15 minutes!

Creating Rich Tasks Discuss at your tables – What makes a rich task? Use the problem stems to fuel your ideas. Expand one to make a rich task. Put on a poster Post your problems around the room. Gallery walk for feedback – an affirmation and a question.

Rich Tasks have engaging contexts. are accessible and offer opportunities for initial success, challenging the learners to think for themselves. allow for different methods and different responses (different starting points, different middles and different ends). have the potential to broaden students' skills and/or mathematical content knowledge. promote discussion and communication. have the potential to reveal underlying principles or make connections between areas of mathematics. encourage learners to develop confidence and independence as well as to become critical thinkers.

Whew! At your tables, create a summary of today’s learning. What resonated with you? What would you like to think more about? What additional information would you like to get?

Day 2 – Welcome Back Pick up a dot for your nametag. Red Elementary Blue Middle School Green High School Yellow Other Job! At your tables, put your questions on 3x5 cards -

State and Common Core Standards Examine closely the Algebra 1 standards from Washington State and the Common Core Standards. Use the Comparison Chart to find the similarities and differences between the two. Be prepared to give feedback to Greta about the standards. You may choose another level if you wish! Visit www.corestandards.org to choose a level.

Break Reconvene in 15 minutes! Connect groups of 5.

Don’t Forget the Norms! Pausing Paraphrasing Putting inquiry at the center Probing for specificity Placing ideas on the table Paying attention to self and others Presuming positive intentions

Math Leadership Issues Choose numbers 1 – 5 in your group. Go to the Discussion Group that matches your number. Your facilitator will pose a question. Keep track of the thoughts of the group as you discuss for 25 minutes. Return to your group of 5 for sharing big ideas.

Big Four James Knight Instructional Coaching Management Content Pedagogy Assessment

Lunch! One hour to relax and connect.

Absolute Value Problems We will be doing a math problem together. If you would like help – ask! Sharing our thinking. Back to the Big Four…

Break Take a quick break! Reconvene in groups that have at lest 1 person from each grade level… no more than 6 people

We Need a Little More Fun ! Laughter – the best medicine…

Play a Little Math Relay Everybody in you group must play. Share the problems. Nobody will finish all of them! There is a prize for the winning team.  GO!

Reflect back on the last two days Enjoy math with our colleagues. Share coaching/leadership ideas with one another. Look at alignment of the state PEs and Common Core Standards. Examine Best Practices for teaching math. Learn (or revisit) strategies for continuing coaching work.

Celebrating Our Last Time Together

Complete Your Evaluation Travel safely and come back next year! What are you committed to trying? klind11@comcast.net