How to Study: Index Card Method – Linking it to Standards Based Learning

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I have my students make index cards instead of taking notes on paper.  Then we hole-punch them and put them on a silver ring.  Think 1st grade site word list here.  The kids enjoy making them and don’t mind going over them before tests.  I have some vocab but mostly example problems on the cards.  To study, I tell my students to rework the index card problems on a separate sheet of paper until they can get it right without looking at the answer on the back of the card.   **  I like Kate’s cover, copy, repeat and am going to add the “copy” part this year. **  I tell them to take the index card off of the ring once they know it cold.

In the past I have had the students make the notecards on test review day as their in-class review.  Then, they used these cards to study for their test.  This year I am going to have my students make the cards as we go along instead of making them all on the same day at then end of the unit.  Then they can look at them to help with homework or review work.

I read a post from Jason about teaching students how to study.  This made me think about how to make the cards more useful to the students as I incorporate Standards Based Learning this year.  So, on the front of each index card I am going to have the students write   “CONCEPT #1”   in the top right hand corner.  As they plug along on their concept checklist, if they need help with a concept they will know which index card(s) they need to access for additional help and study.  They can keep these cards on their ring until they reach a 4 or 5 (mastery) on the concept list.

That is all I have so far!  I would love any tweeks or additional thoughts as I am very much in the planning stages now.

UPDATE:

They write the notecards from my Powerpoint slides – like this.

After each chapter is finished, I have them take the cards off of the ring and make “Flip Charts” for each chapter.  Read all about it and see pictures of the finished flip charts here.

Join the Math Teacher Wiki!

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Calling all math teachers!!

After teaching only HS (and specifically Alg II or higher) for the last few years I am moving on over to the wonderful world of middle school this fall!  I will be teaching 6th and 7th grades.

Since this is a new arena for me I am putting out the all call for resources!  So, I have set up a wiki for any math teachers to add resources.  Math Teacher Wiki

I am new to the whole wiki thing so the format is pretty basic right now.  I hope to improve it as time goes on.

Just updated:

You can add yourself to the wiki!   I fixed it so I do not have to add people.  Yeah!  Very exciting stuff!

Let’s do this!

Intrigued – Concept Based Assessment

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Alright already – I am intrigued if not yet convinced I can do it.  You math bloggers out there are really getting to me.  I know this – I hate the current method of grading.  I am forever tweaking at the end to give each child the grade that I believe matches their understanding.  Kids in the middle I can’t help – but kids on the edge are why I am up until 2am working on grades at report card time.

Can I do it?  I don’t know!  With all new subjects (and grade levels) it will be like I am going to be a first year teacher again in the fall.  But this time I have three kids who are heavily involved in sports and an equally busy husband.

The Good – I am in a private school so we do not have “standards” like the public school.  So, I will refer to it as “Concept-Based Assessment”.  I love the idea of the concept based assessment.  I love the idea that my students and I will know what concept each of them need work on.  I already made my list of concepts I would like to cover for 7th grade.

The Bad – I already made my list of concepts I would like to cover for 7th grade and I have almost 50!!  I loved doing this however bc it really laid the year out before my eyes and made me determine what was the most crucial to cover and what was not as important.

The Ugly – I don’t know how this will fly with my school or students.  I don’t know if I can keep up with the constant retesting that this seems to require while planning two new classes.  I may even do this in tandem for a while to see how it is working before jumping off of the cliff.

I made my first concept based assessment today.  It really felt TOO short.  I am a bit torn.  My ratio change has to be priority number one this year.  But I would really like to give this a stab as well.

Yes, as usual I am spiraling towards the “biting off more that I can chew” year.  Business as usual for me!  🙂

The Method to My Madness…Suggestions needed

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I love organization.  I love when everything has its place and there is a place for everything.  It makes me feel at peace.  However – I am just terrible at it!  My solution this year?  I am trying to create as much organization as I can NOW because I know I won’t take the time once school starts.  Spending hours trolling the internet and typing up cool worksheets is infinitely more interesting than labeling file folders!

So, I thought I would share how I am organizing and hopefully others will share some of their better organizational tips with me.  Because as I said before – this is not my forte.  Yeah, I know only like three people read my blog but ya’ll are great math teachers so…

Currently:
I make a file folder for each chapter.  In this goes the “planner“, any projects or activities that I would like to do but don’t know which section they will best fit into yet, and a copy of the concepts that I would like to cover.

I make a file folder for every section that I will cover in the book.  All of the great ideas that I find I am actually printing off instead of just saving to my ‘puter (sorry trees) and putting in these folders.  This time around I am labeling with concepts (mult/divide fractions) instead of chapters so I can easily find WHAT I am looking for in the future.

Other random folders in the box are review games, projects, ideas from math conferences.

Ok – that’s all I’ve got for now!  Help!

Learn by DOING takes a lot of work on my part!

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I am currently not working.  I will begin in the fall.  I have my books.  I would like to plan as much as possible in advance so that my life won’t be insane next year.  Plus, I will have my three beautiful, crazy, very high maintenance boys home starting June 1st.  I am running out of time!

My problem?  I am trying to change my ratio.  I am trying to incorporate learning by DOING.  This is hard to plan.  Writing down a warm-up, some examples, a few GP’s and a hw assignment?  No problem – it takes no time!  Trying to come up with creative, active, and interesting ways to present math each and every day?  It’s crazy fun but takes so much more time!

So, I spend countless hours trolling the internet, blogs, and Amazon.com for the newest, latest, greatest teaching math methods and books.  But, when it comes right down to it, no matter how many lessons you borrow off of the net, you still have to get them ready all by yourself.  You have to read, understand, edit, and incorporate your material.  You have to make it your own and make the supplies.  You still have to create, for every single lesson, for every single day.  I have yet to find an activity that I can just print off. 

NOW I am seeing why worksheets are so popular!  But still I resist.  I will change my ratio.  I do and I understand, I do and I understand, I do and I understand….

Changing My Ratio

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After reading many books and blogs on the subject I have decided that this year I WILL change my ratio.  (Is this Lemov language)?

I will not stand in front of the classroom the whole period.  I will not walk around just talking.  I will talk less.  I will walk more.

My students will take fewer notes.  They will do more problems.  They will work harder.  They will learn by DOING.

“I hear and I forget, I see and I remember, I do and I understand.”

I Speak Math – not the best blog name out there…

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Ok, it is pretty unoriginal – but I really wanted to start blogging and did not have any creative energy left with all of the planning I have been doing for next year!  I figure it will come to me one day and I can change it then.

Why it will do for now… When I teach math, I do not feel like I am teaching as much as I am translating.  I take massive, confusing bunches of math-formation and develop ways to organize it for my students.  I break it down into steps.  I make it sound like English.  I have been very successful with my brighter students.  But then, what does that really mean?  Aren’t we all successful with them?  What I would like to do going forward is to be more successful with my less successful students.  I really do want to speak math to them.  But, most importantly, I want them to not only understand what I am saying, but be able to speak it as well!  I am shooting for fluency this time around.

A New Beginning, Again…

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After not teaching for almost ten years I jumped back in mid-year last year, but then right back out again.  Extenuating circumstances prevented me from teaching this year.  It has been difficult (being at home the first week of school about killed me), but I have survived!  This year everything is working out better than I could have ever asked.  It is at times like this when you realize God’s perfect plan really is in place, even if you absolutely could not fathom it before.

I am ecstatic to teach again next year, as in I CAN’T WAIT!!  I am teaching middle school math – which I have never taught before.  I am so excited to not only teach something new, but to teach students as they first encounter algebra.  I hope to not only make them understand mathematics but also to become deeply fascinated by it!  I want to embed in their minds that math is not “hard” and that they can excel at mathematics.

My only problem – I am out of it!  My absentia from teaching coincided directed with the largest internet boon since the internet was developed when I was in college.  I am new to blogging, tweets, wiki’s, and a host of other amazing resources at my disposal.  I am soaking it all up as fast as I can.  I read every blog I can get my hands on.  It is thrilling! 

I feel like I am beginning again – and I am loving it!