Common Core Elevator Speech - Day 2

Common Core Elevator from Day 1.

Today, I'm going to take a different direction. Enter the elevator and press your floor number. Here we go:

I believe the Common Core standards are a tool for both students and teachers to explore problem-solving and increase mathematical conceptual understanding. Picture the first cell phone you saw or owned as a tool used to communicate. Compare it to any of today's cell (smart) phones and how the tool has evolved and improved. As a tool, the Common Core standards will help students evolve to be better, more robust math students in order to think critically and communicate.

Next floor,
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Common Core Elevator Speech - Day 1

For the next week, I will challenge myself (and you) to work on an elevator speech each day about Common Core Math. I will try to be as fluid as possible in my thinking as if I were describing Common Core to a complete stranger as we rode an elevator together. And with that, here's today's elevator speech:

For me, Common Core is a tool to help students see how the world around us can be explained using critical thinking and mathematical properties. My favorite part of Common Core are the 8 Standards for Mathematical Practice. No matter what grade level, the practices emphasize that both teachers and students are problem solvers and how important it is to understand why mathematical properties and procedures exist, and not just the answer. I get to see my students thinking and focusing on finding solutions through hard work and collaboration instead of me just standing up at the front of the room, telling them a procedure they will most likely forget in a day or two. I get to see students be creative in their mathematical thinking and I help guide them when they need teacher support.

Come along for the ride and share your elevator speech in the comments. Take a minute or two to compose an elevator speech. It's a work in progress...

Going up,
504

[Update] More days:
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Day 5
Day 6
Day 7

DLC

The first day of school is this coming Wednesday. I've never been two days away from the start of school and done so little preparation. It's weird. It's really weird. Here's why:

I won't be:

• greeting students at my door
• having students estimate my height
• having students estimate the total class' height
• passing out papers with school/class procedures
• setting up grade books
• making seating charts
• hanging up stuff in my room
• preparing for back to school night
• preparing homework, notes, photocopies, etc.
• sharing with my students the math I saw during the summer

My favorite vacation #estimation180 moment from this week. pic.twitter.com/KIBI8uUjYk
— Andrew Stadel (@mr_stadel) August 16, 2014

Admittedly, I won't terribly miss items four through nine. However, the first three and the last always hold a special place in my math heart.

I'll be one of about fifteen Digital Learning Coaches (DLC) in my district this year. I'll be supporting 8-10 middle school math teachers who volunteered to be a DLC Fellow. Together, we'll be finding ways to integrate technology in their classrooms to meet the needs of their students while providing powerful learning experiences. Every time I look at technology or think about implementing some program, application, or digital tool, I look to ask myself (and the teacher), "will this [digital tool] be a more effective and efficient way for student and teacher to learn mathematics, gather data, assess understanding, or communicate?"

I will be:

• frequently in the classroom with students and teachers (thank goodness!)
• listening to teacher needs, desires, and goals
• building relationships with students and teachers
• building number sense with students and teachers
• having (mathematical or non-mathematical) conversations with students and teachers
• developing/designing lessons
• teaching (co-teaching or modeling), if necessary
• sharing many of the wonderful resources from you (the MTBOS)

I know I will miss the classroom and having my own students. However, I look forward to designing lessons and testing them out on different students throughout the district.  I look forward to learning so many things from both the teachers and students. It'll be an extreme pleasure, honor, and learning experience for me to be working alongside so many different teachers and students.

DLC,
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