Math Chat

Send us Fan Mail Before You Teach Math, Build BelongingBefore students are willing to share their thinking, take risks, make mistakes, persevere through a challenging problem, or disagree with a classmate's strategy, they need to believe one thing: I belong here. That's why building a Community of Problem Solvers starts with belonging. In this episode, we're talking about how to intentionally build belonging from the very beginning of the school year, not as something separate from mathematic...

Send us Fan Mail What if some of the chaos in your classroom isn't actually a behavior problem? What if it's a routine problem? In this episode, we're talking about one of the simplest ways to create a calmer, more confident, and more independent classroom: intentionally teaching and practicing routines. Because routines aren't just about getting students to line up quietly or put their manipulatives away. Great routines remove unnecessary decision making so students can focus their energy on...

Send us Fan Mail Every classroom has norms, but they might not be the ones hanging on your wall. In this episode we're chatting about why most math classroom norms fail... Asking ourselves, are the "norms" reflected in students' daily experiences? If we want to build a true community of problem solvers, we have to stop focusing on what our norms say and start focusing on what students actually experience every day. In this episode, we'll chat about: Why classroom experiences always outw...

Send us Fan Mail Build Belonging in Your Math Classroom Do all your students feel like they belong in math class? In this episode of Math Chat, we're wrapping up the Creating a Community of Problem Solvers series by exploring the foundation that holds every other instructional practice together: belonging. You'll hear why students can't become confident problem solvers until they know their ideas matter, how each part of your math block can strengthen (or weaken) classroom commun...

Send us Fan Mail Assessment shouldn't be something we do to students. It should be something we do with them. In this episode of the Math Chat Podcast, we're continuing our Creating a Classroom of Problem Solvers series by exploring the fifth strand of the framework: Student-Engaged Assessment. Too often, assessment data stays in teacher binders, spreadsheets, and data meetings. But what if we invited students into the process? When students understand the learning goal, reflect on their prog...