Winter Break Online Advanced Number Sense Class Dec 30 through Jan 1st 10am to 12pm

 

Click HERE to add to cart

Winter Break Online Advanced Number Sense Class

Back by popular demand this December, Anthony Gillespey the founder of MathNinja.Org and coach of the highest scoring state championship TMSCA Number Sense Team will be hosting 3-day online Winter Break Advanced Number Sense Class.  The class sizes will be kept small so make sure you sign up early.  Once the class is full, I will not be letting anyone else attend, last year we had a full class so purchase early. I typically charge $40.00 an hour for tutoring so this is a great bargain for 6 hours of classes for $150.00.  All classes will be via internet.  If you are unable to attend the camp. I will be recording the class each day and sending you a copy of the video.  So even if you can’t make the class that day you will still get the learning.   All that is required is a computer, tablet, or phone with internet access with a microphone. I would also recommend that you purchase the Advanced Number Sense Volume 2 book  (Blue book) as we will be using this extensively.

This class will be a fast-paced format where I will try and cover as many of the newer tricks that are appearing on TMSCA tests the last 4 years.

The Class will be at 10am to 12pm CST each day starting Dec 30th through Jan 1st.

I guarantee that you will learn many new tips and tricks to improve your scores.

Sign Up Today at http://mathninja.org/shop/

Email me for more information [email protected]

Click HERE to add to cart

TMSCA/ UIL/ PSIA and MATHCOUNTS Online Summer Classes sign up Today!!!

Online Summer Number Sense, General Math, and Calculator Application and MATHCOUNTS Classes

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP

Back by popular demand this summer, Anthony Gillespey the founder of MathNinja.Org and coach of the State 5A TMSCA Number Sense, Calculator, and General Math Champions will be hosting weekly online summer classes for all 3 TMSCA Math Events and Basics of MATHCOUNTS.   The classes sizes will be kept small so make sure you sign up early.   The cost  per class is $125.00 dollars but if you sign up for 3 or more class each class after the first two will be giving a $25.00 discount on each class.  All classes will be via the internet.  All that is required is a computer, tablet, or phone with internet access and microphone.  All classes will be recorded and sent to the class members.    

Sign Up Today at http://mathninja.org/shop/

Email me for more information [email protected]

Class Schedule

Class Schedule

Class Date Time Cost
Number Sense Level 1 June 10 to June 14 9am to 10:30 am $125.00 per class

Sign up for 3 or more classes and save $25.00 per class after the first two.
Number Sense Level 2 June 17 to June 21 9am to 10:30 am
Calculator Application Level 1 June 10 to June 14 11:00 am to 12:30pm
Calculator Application Level 2 June 17 to June 21 11:00 am to 12:30pm
General Math All Levels June 24 to June 28 9:00 am to 10:30 am
MATHCOUNTS All Levels June 24 to June 28 11:00 am to 12:30pm

If you enroll in 3 or more classes there is a $25.00 discount per class after the first two 

Class Descriptions

Number Sense Level 1

Who:  For 5th and 6th grader or those new to Number Sense.   If you are scoring below a 150 on Number Sense tests this is the class for you.

What :   Basic number sense tricks  ( typically the first two columns of the test) , along with test taking strategies,  and rules of the test.   This is a great overview for new coaches.

Materials Needed:  None, although purchasing my book Number Sense Workbook and Video Series is encouraged.

Number Sense Level 2

Who: For returning 6th, 7th, and 8th graders scoring above 100 on Number Sense tests or any students that has previously enrolled the Number Sense Level 1.

What:  Advanced Number Sense Tricks (typically the last two columns) and advance forms of the basic tricks.    It will be assumed that you know the foundations of Number Sense in this class.  This is a great class for Coaches that would like to help their team get more competitive.

Materials Needed:  None, although purchasing my book Number Sense Workbook and Video Series is encouraged.

Calculator Application Level 1

Who:  Any student new to Calculator Application Tests or those not familiar with a HP 35S calculator.  This is a great overview for new coaches to the contest.

What:  The basics of the HP 35s calculator and HP Prime, learning correct key presses for ALL number problems on the test, the rules, and test taking strategies.  The basic word problems and formulas on the test will also be taught.

Materials Needed :  Purchase a HP 35s Calculator or HP Prime

Calculator Application Level 2

Who:  Students that are already familiar with the HP 35s or HP Prime calculator or any student that has previously enrolled in Calculator  Level 1 class.

What:  A thorough overview of the Word problems and picture problems on TMSCA Calculator Tests.  Along with tips and tricks to increase your speed.

Materials Needed:  Purchase a HP 35s Calculator Or HP Prime .  It is also highly encouraged to purchase a TI Nspire calculator.

General Math All Levels

Who:  Anyone with basic understanding of Algebra and Geometry

Materials Needed :  None

MathCounts All Levels

Who:  Anyone with basic understanding of Algebra and Geometry

What:  The Focus of the class will be on most important skills you need in order to become successful in MathCounts.  We will cover Combinations, Permutations,  Counting Principals,   Number Theory,  Advanced Geometry, and Advanced Algebra.

Materials Needed :  None, although you are encourage to purchase Competition Math for Middle Schools (purchase on Amazon)

Here are some comments from those that took the class in the past.

-I am a relatively new coach to a TMSCA team for Number Sense, General Math, and Calculator. Taking the Number Sense classes 1 and 2 and General Math was a great experience! Anthony did a great job of clearly explaining, breaking down how concepts were related and gave really smart ways to apply math based reasoning to some interesting and complex math problems. These classes have helped my confidence in tackling math problems that I, quite frankly, don’t really remember anymore! Having the videos available to refer back to during the year will be a great resource for me as well. I think these courses were a great investment for me as a coach and I would highly recommend the classes to others!

-Like every other human being, we always have a second thought when it comes to a decision. To be honest, after taking part in the sessions online, it was really worth it. This class packs a punch; Mr. Gillespey thoroughly answers questions and takes the time teaching some valuable tricks. Unlike some online discussions, where one may feel isolated, as the only companion may be his or her own computer, Mr. Gillespey’s class brings liveliness into the “air”. His good-natured humor and the immense amount of patience he has makes him extremely entertaining as a teacher, winning the majority of us with his likable personality. Not only does he actually have the passion to teach students, but it actually makes me wish that I had a better math team teacher. Mr. Gillespey engages students in learning new skills with new materials, turning classes into an experience that, like I said, is worth it.

-I am a math coach still learning the ropes of TMSCA and all that it involves. I took the Number Sense Level 1 and 2 courses, as well as the General Math course to gain a better understanding of what my students need to be successful. Anthony took extra time with me being a coach to make sure that my questions were answered. He gave personal tips that he uses with his team that you won’t learn anywhere else. I highly recommend taking these classes if you want to take your team to the next level. I’m excited to implement what I learned in the upcoming school year.

Thank you Anthony for taking the time out of your summer to provide these great learning opportunities.

-This was a great experience and I thoroughly enjoyed it! Thank you so much for all of the information you shared. I can’t wait to get back to my team and share with them the different strategies I learned from your course.

-Classes were great I learned many new things and tricks that will help me get better and faster. THANK YOU!

New Book Advanced Number Sense Volume 3 and Spring Break Online Camp

Spring Break Online Advanced Number Sense Class March 11th through 13th
Anthony Gillespey the founder of MathNinja.Org and coach of the State 5A TMSCA Number Sense, Calculator, and General Math Champions will be hosting 3 day online Spring Break Advanced Number Sense Class covering the materials in his newest book Advanced Number Sense Volume 3. All students and Coaches are welcome. Please note that this class is advanced and is good for both advanced middle schoolers or high schoolers. All classes will be via internet. If you are unable to attend the camp, I will be recording the class each day and sending you a copy of the video. Even if you can’t make the class that day you will still get the learning. All that is required is a computer, tablet, or phone with internet access and a microphone.
This class will be a fast-paced format where I will try and cover as many of the tricks that are appearing on TMSCA tests the last 4 years.
The Class will be at 8:30am to 10:30am CST each day starting March 11th through March 13th.
I guarantee that you will learn many new tips and tricks to improve your scores.
Sign Up Today at http://mathninja.org/shop/
Email me for more information [email protected]

Advanced Number Sense Workbook Volume 2 is now for sale!!!!

Well everyone its been many years in the making but the new Number Sense book is now for presale.

Click here to purchase

[wp_cart_button name=”Advanced Number Sense Workbook Volume 2″ price=”25.00″] [show_wp_shopping_cart]

If you would like to purchase multiple books please email me at [email protected]

Here is a quick excerpt of the table of contents for the book. This book was written specifically for all the new tricks we have seen on the TMSCA test in the last 4 years. I guarantee you will find many tricks that you haven’t seen before.

Flour Bluff Hornets 33 year in a row TMSCA State Champion

Congratulations to my amazing team at Flour Bluff.  You all have an immense amount of pressure on you each year to keep our win streak alive.  We know how hard you guys worked and it showed at state.  You guys winning nearly 40% of all the top 10’s in 7th and 8th grade math events and every member of the math team placing in the top 15 in Calculator was awesome.   I couldn’t be prouder of you all.  Way to go Hornets!!!5A_team_ms 5a_8th_ms 5a_7th_ms 5a_6th_ms

 

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Dec 02

Results of Duless TMSCA 11/23/13

Results Dulles Meet TMSCA 11/23/13

Rank School Math Score Calculator Score Number Sense Score Science Score Overall Score
1 Fort Settlement 1000 1438 1510 855 5916
2 Quail Valley 1000 1384 1402 863 5767
3 Flour Bluff 950 1438 1393 757 5562
4 Northpointe 804 838 980 580 4032
5 Beckendorff 881 816 584 751 4011
6 Sartartia 768 561 823 631 3622
7 First Colony 728 520 311 601 2957
8 Seven Lakes 645 439 177 527 2491
9 Hassler 516 533 314 326 2194
10 Kleb 226 274 337 72 1088
11 YMCPA 234 309 109 124 991
12 Keller 202 0 0 222 678
13 St. John’s 150 149 103 83 625
14 Spring Branch 124 0 47 96 399
15 Latexo 239 0 0 0 382
16 Goodson 119 17 98 0 305
17 Creekside Forest 170 0 0 0 272
18 Krahn 69 0 0 54 197
19 Sugar Land 0 139 0 0 139
20 Harmony 55 0 0 0 88

 

 

Category Sweepstakes Winners

Science Winners

Rank School Score
1 Quail Valley 863
2 Fort Settlement 855
3 Flour Bluff 757
4 Beckendorff 751
5 Sartartia 631
6 First Colony 601
7 Northpointe 580
8 Seven Lakes 527
9 Hassler 326
10 Keller 222

Calculator Winners

Rank School Score
1 Flour Bluff 1438
2 Fort Settlement 1438
3 Quail Valley 1384
4 Northpointe 838
5 Beckendorff 816
6 Sartartia 561
7 Hassler 533
8 First Colony 520
9 Seven Lakes 439
10 YMCPA 309

Math Winners

Rank School Score
1 Quail Valley 1000
2 Fort Settlement 1000
3 Flour Bluff 950
4 Beckendorff 881
5 Northpointe 804
6 Sartartia 768
7 First Colony 728
8 Seven Lakes 645
9 Hassler 516
10 Latexo 239

Number Sense Winners

Rank School Score
1 Fort Settlement 1510
2 Quail Valley 1402
3 Flour Bluff 1393
4 Northpointe 980
5 Sartartia 823
6 Beckendorff 584
7 Kleb 337
8 Hassler 314
9 First Colony 311
10 Seven Lakes 177

 

6th Grade Calculator Winners

Rank Student Name School Score
1 Shanth K. Beckendorff 278
2 Stephen C. Fort Settlement 216
3 Sid M. Fort Settlement 200A
4 Siddhant A. Fort Settlement 200B
5 Helen W. Quail Valley 196
6 Avi G. Beckendorff 195
7 Alvin X. Beckendorff 185
8 Wallace C. First Colony 184
9 Dillon D. Fort Settlement 182
10 Ronak A. Sartartia 180
11 Calvin C. First Colony 178
12 Hubert J. Hassler 163
13 Daniel X. Fort Settlement 161
14 Harshitha G. Beckendorff 158
15 Tony J. First Colony 157A
16 Ronit K. Quail Valley 157B
17 Eric C. Northpointe 155
18 Adam T. Quail Valley 154A
19 Prince P. Quail Valley 154B
20 Arnav G. Quail Valley 150A

6th Grade Number Sense Winners

Rank Student Name School Score
1 Ben Z. Sartartia 296
2 Benjamin W. Quail Valley 273
3 Ronak A. Sartartia 265
4 Allen Z. Quail Valley 231
5 Shanth K. Beckendorff 191
6 Bryan P. Fort Settlement 167
7 Tony J. First Colony 166
8 Shankar P. Fort Settlement 156
9 Amish K. Sartartia 155
10 Hubert J. Hassler 147
11 Junhao Y. Quail Valley 140
12 Harshitha G. Beckendorff 137
13 Shanaya A. Beckendorff 136
14 Siddhant A. Fort Settlement 128
15 Allen T. Fort Settlement 127
16 Kevin C. Fort Settlement 125
17 Miguel D. Beckendorff 120A
18 Ryan A. Quail Valley 120B
19 Alvin X. Beckendorff 116A
20 Helen W. Quail Valley 116B

6th Grade Math Winners

Rank Student Name School Score
1 Benjamin W. Quail Valley 250
2 Sid M. Fort Settlement 236
3 Junhao Y. Quail Valley 229
4 Shankar P. Fort Settlement 228
5 Allen Z. Quail Valley 215
6 Kevin C. Fort Settlement 208A
7 Helen W. Quail Valley 208B
8 Siddhant A. Fort Settlement 208C
9 Ben Z. Sartartia 208D
10 Tony J. First Colony 201
11 Alvin X. Beckendorff 197A
12 Avi G. Beckendorff 197B
13 Audrey L. Beckendorff 197C
14 Shanth K. Beckendorff 190
15 Ethan Z. Quail Valley 180
16 Daniel X. Fort Settlement 175
17 Gary C. Fort Settlement 174
18 Favian S. Quail Valley 173A
19 Hubert J. Hassler 173B
20 Harshitha G. Beckendorff 171

6th Grade Science Winners

Rank Student Name School Score
1 Kevin C. Fort Settlement 187
2 Prince P. Quail Valley 176
3 Jason Y. Beckendorff 171
4 Andrew Y. Quail Valley 166A
5 Junhao Y. Quail Valley 166B
6 John L. Fort Settlement 164
7 Ryan A. Quail Valley 162
8 Sindhu Y. Beckendorff 154
9 Ella Q. First Colony 152
10 Allen T. Fort Settlement 151A
11 Maggie M. Fort Settlement 151B
12 Anish L. Fort Settlement 151C
13 Shreya J. Beckendorff 149
14 Calvin C. First Colony 148
15 Tony J. First Colony 145
16 Helen W. Quail Valley 139
17 Ryan Z. Quail Valley 138A
18 Daniel X. Fort Settlement 138B
19 Harshitha G. Beckendorff 138C
20 Audrey L. Beckendorff 135

7th Grade Calculator Winners

Rank Student Name School Score
1 Abhijith V. Fort Settlement 364A
2 Archer W. Fort Settlement 364B
3 Claire Z. Fort Settlement 364C
4 Adarsha P. Quail Valley 355A
5 Kevin J. Quail Valley 355B
6 Shree M. Quail Valley 355C
7 Braydon B. Flour Bluff 346
8 Owen Z. Fort Settlement 337
9 Aidan O. Flour Bluff 319A
10 Eric W. Fort Settlement 319B
11 Lora S. Flour Bluff 301A
12 Ammarie W. Flour Bluff 301B
13 Brittney B. Flour Bluff 283
14 Prathik K. Quail Valley 281
15 Pranav M. Kleb 274
16 Alex W. Flour Bluff 238
17 Ryan C. Northpointe 229
18 Radha M. Northpointe 228
19 Akash K. Fort Settlement 223
20 Ethan S. YMCPA 220

7th Grade Number Sense Winners

Rank Student Name School Score
1 Archer W. Fort Settlement 400
2 Eric W. Fort Settlement 382A
3 Shree M. Quail Valley 382B
4 Akash K. Fort Settlement 373
5 Aidan O. Flour Bluff 355A
6 Abhijith V. Fort Settlement 355B
7 Claire Z. Fort Settlement 355C
8 ZeeShawn W. Quail Valley 346
9 Braydon B. Flour Bluff 337A
10 Kevin J. Quail Valley 337B
11 Pranav M. Kleb 337C
12 Prathik K. Quail Valley 328
13 Adarsha P. Quail Valley 323
14 Andrew L. Quail Valley 319
15 Kevin L. Quail Valley 295
16 Ryan C. Northpointe 292A
17 Raghav B. Fort Settlement 292B
18 Radha M. Northpointe 287
19 Lora S. Flour Bluff 256
20 Brittney B. Flour Bluff 241

7th Grade Math Winners

Rank Student Name School Score
1 Archer W. Fort Settlement 250A
2 Shree M. Quail Valley 250B
3 Akash K. Fort Settlement 250C
4 Claire Z. Fort Settlement 250D
5 Braydon B. Flour Bluff 250E
6 Raghav B. Fort Settlement 245
7 Sameer R. Fort Settlement 243A
8 Eric W. Fort Settlement 243B
9 Abhijit V. Fort Settlement 243C
10 Adarsha P. Quail Valley 240
11 Aidan O. Flour Bluff 238
12 Andrew L. Quail Valley 236
13 Rafay A. Fort Settlement 229
14 Owen Z. Fort Settlement 228B
15 Radha M. Northpointe 228B
16 Shivani G. Quail Valley 226A
17 Kevin L. Quail Valley 226B
18 Pranav M. Kleb 226
19 Kevin J. Quail Valley 224A
20 Ryan C. Quail Valley 224B

7th Grade Science Winners

Rank Student Name School Score
1 Shree M. Quail Valley 224
2 Sameer R. Fort Settlement 216
3 ZeeShawn W. Quail Valley 212
4 Cameron D. Fort Settlement 210
5 Adarsha P. Quail Valley 205
6 Marws M. Flour Bluff 201
7 Andrew L. Quail Valley 200
8 Divya N. Fort Settlement 196
9 Neo S. Fort Settlement 194
10 Lalitha K. Beckendorff 185
11 HanZheng L. Quail Valley 183
12 Archer W. Fort Settlement 181
13 Jay M. Quail Valley 179
14 Shivani G. Quail Valley 177
15 James W. Fort Settlement 175
16 Jacob W. Flour Bluff 173
17 Varun B. Quail Valley 169
18 Braydon B. Flour Bluff 167
19 Patrick W. Sartartia 165A
20 Aidan O. Flour Bluff 165B

8th Grade Calculator Winners

Rank Student Name School Score
1 Jennifer K. Flour Bluff 373
2 Brendan S. Flour Bluff 364
3 Leora O. Flour Bluff 355A
4 Ripley O. Flour Bluff 355B
5 Dillon B. Flour Bluff 355C
6 Warren W. Fort Settlement 346A
7 Stephen Z. Fort Settlement 346B
8 Jasmine G. Flour Bluff 337
9 Langyan Z. Fort Settlement 327
10 Brittany N. Quail Valley 319A
11 Andy T. Quail Valley 319B
12 Brandon W. Quail Valley 301
13 Nicholas P. Fort Settlement 292A
14 Chloe R. Flour Bluff 292B
15 Drake L. Fort Settlement 268
16 Andy X. Quail Valley 256
17 Jackie S. Quail Valley 247A
18 Caitlin L. Fort Settlement 247B
19 Riddhimaan N. Quail Valley 246
20 Alex S. Northpointe 212

8th Grade Number Sense Winners

Rank Student Name School Score
1 Brendan S. Flour Bluff 382
2 Brittany N. Quail Valley 337
3 Warren W. Fort Settlement 323
4 Jennifer K. Flour Bluff 319
5 Carter C. Quail Valley 313
6 Dillon B. Flour Bluff 310A
7 Stephen Z. Fort Settlement 310B
8 Riddhimaan N. Quail Valley 301
9 Jasmine G. Flour Bluff 292
10 Leora O. Flour Bluff 283
11 Star N. Quail Valley 280
12 Brandon W. Quail Valley 272
13 Alex S. Northpointe 232
14 Nicholas P. Fort Settlement 228
15 Michael Z. Quail Valley 223
16 Caitlin L. Fort Settlement 205
17 Ripley O. Flour Bluff 193
18 Jackie S. Quail Valley 185A
19 Andy T. Quail Valley 185B
20 Jacob L. Flour Bluff 182

8th Grade Math Winners

Rank Student Name School Score
1 Warren W. Fort Settlement 250A
2 Stephen Z. Fort Settlement 250B
3 Star N. Quail Valley 250C
4 Brandon W. Quail Valley 250D
5 Michael Z. Quail Valley 250E
6 Jackie S. Quail Valley 250F
7 Drake L. Fort Settlement 250G
8 Jake J. Quail Valley 250H
9 Andy T. Quail Valley 243A
10 Carter C. Quail Valley 243B
11 Riddhimaan N. Quail Valley 243C
12 Caitlin L. Fort Settlement 236
13 Brendan S. Flour Bluff 233A
14 George L. Beckendorff 233B
15 Brittany N. Quail Valley 231
16 Michael Z. Quail Valley 229A
17 Ripley O. Flour Bluff 229B
18 Anusri S. Beckendorff 229C
19 Jenny Z. Quail Valley 229D
20 Jennifer K. Flour Bluff 229E

8th Grade Science Winners

Rank Student Name School Score
1 Valerie T. Keller 222
2 Drake L. Fort Settlement 215A
3 Eric W. Quail Valley 215B
4 Caitlin L. Fort Settlement 214
5 Jake J. Quail Valley 212
6 Suravi S. Quail Valley 208
7 Eric C. Quail Valley 201
8 Jenny Z. Quail Valley 199
9 Jeffrey Z. Quail Valley 196
10 Shayan P. Quail Valley 195
11 Andy X. Quail Valley 194A
12 Star N. Quail Valley 194B
13 Chloe R. Flour Bluff 194C
14 Tiffany D. Quail Valley 191A
15 Vignesh V. Beckendorff 191B
16 Jacob L. Flour Bluff 189A
17 Langyan Z. Fort Settlement 189B
18 Anusri S. Beckendorff 189C
19 Jason Z. Quail Valley 187A
20 Ronald H. Quail Valley 187B

Nov 19

Direct Inverse and Joint Variations

 

Direct and Inverse VariationsJoint Variation

Sep 17

SOH CAH TOA

Heres a quick lesson on SOH CAH TOA

Sep 03

Over Night Trip Form

Parent please note your child can not go on any trips with the team this year without this form turned in.  It must be Notarized by a notary public.  The school will notarize free of charge at the Junior High front office.

Overnight trip permission form 2013 2014

Aug 27

Random Drug Testing Information

As many of you already know this year the district is requiring all students who participate in any extra curricular activities to submit to a random drug test.  The details of which can be found on the district website .

In order for your child to participate in any afterschool activities (math team practice)  they must first do two things.  1)  Fill out the consent to test form and return to me (I gave these out already) and 2) Hear a presentation on the drug testing program ( I will do this in class).  Please get the forms in ASAP so that your child doesn’t miss a day of practice.   Here is a copy of the form if needed.

  Random Drug Testing Consent Forms

Aug 20

Parent Information Meeting Flour Bluff Academic Team

When:  Tuesday September 3rd 5:30pm

Where:  Flour Bluff Junior High Library

Who:  All returning Academic Team member,  New Team members, or anyone wanting more information.

Why:  We will discuss why the Academic team is such a valuable resources in the Junior High Year.  Give information about what we do along with the travel schedule, and requirments to be on the team.  I would like all parents to please make the time to attend this meeting.  We will be filling out paper work along with answer any and all quesitons you may have.

Aug 17

Stepping Out of the Shade

The greatest lesson I ever learned as a teacher happened to me even before I started teaching.  It all started in 1990 with a bench, some shade, and a lazy teacher.  I was in college beginning my degree in engineering when I stumbled across a job at a local day care.  I soon realized that I enjoyed being around kids and that engineering was not the right profession for me.  Within one semester, I switched my major to education and never looked back.  I started out my job with a  pretty unruly bunch of kids.  As the weeks went by I started to clean up a lot of the behavior and things were going great.  The students I was in charge of were normal kids, but I noticed as the months went by that they were slowly getting into more and more trouble fighting, throwing rocks, and causing mayhem. One day I was sitting on a bench on the shade pondering why they were starting to behave so poorly, and then it hit me.  I was sitting comfortably on a bench in the shade, doing the job that was expected of me, but nothing more.  You see it was hot out on the playground but that was where the kids were.  I realized that I had started cutting corners as their teacher.  What I needed to do if I expected their behavior to change was to leave the shade, step out into the sun, and choose to do what was best for the kids not what was easiest for me.

Unfortunately my early years in school included a long line of teachers who were doing their jobs by sitting in the shade.  To be fair I wasn’t exactly the model student.  I struggled.  I was in sixth grade before I learned long division and junior high before I learned my multiplication tables.  On the outside, I looked like just another struggling student—one more student that would “fall through the cracks.”  I was socially awkward, talked with a lisp, and did the bare minimum.  By junior high, the problems I had spiraled out of control.  By the end of my seventh-grade year, I had a cumulative grade point average of 13 and was informed that I would be attending summer school.  No one called home, had a conference with me or my parents, or asked why I was struggling so much.  The sad truth was that no one stepped out of the shade. .

Despite all negative experiences I had in grade school I made the choice early in my teaching career that sitting in the shade would never be an option for me.  I needed to ask myself daily, “Why am I doing what I am doing?  Am I doing what is easy for me or what is best for my students?”  Not only did I need to teach math well, but my students needed to know without a doubt that I cared about them and that I believed that they could be and do more than they ever thought.  Just doing my job was not enough.

My challenge to each of you as educators is to periodically ask yourself where am I?  Am I sitting in the shade doing what is expected or am out in the sun trying to reach kids. Take an honest look at yourself at least once a week.  It is so easy (it has happened to me countless times)  to start doing things the easy way instead of the best way.  If you can stay out in the sun and really do what is best for kids amazing things can happen.  So this year my challenge to you is to step out of the shade get a sun tan, heck maybe even a sun burn and watch amazing things happen.

 

Aug 16

My Philsophy of Teaching

Excerpt taken from an essay I wrote:    

If a surgeon performs a surgery and doesn’t make a single mistake–and the patient still dies–the surgeon does not pat himself on the back and consider it a successful surgery.  Likewise, if I do everything I know to do in my efforts to reach a child yet fail to change that child in a positive way, then “the surgery” was not successful.  A child’s failure is my failure.  I have to be willing and able to continue to try things with a student until I find what it will takes to change that student.  In education, there are certain things that every teacher is required to do:  teach the lesson, cover the standards, call parents for failures, and be professional.  Teaching is not a bunch of boxes that need to be checked off.  Doing the bare minimum does not reach children.  There have been many children over the years I did not reach.  I tried everything I could with them, but I did not pat myself on the back and say “Good job for trying.”  Trying is not succeeding, so I consider that child a failure on my part.

Being a natural-born athlete, sports have always come easily to me.  I was usually the star of the team.  Then one day I took up golf.  It only took a few rounds for me to realize that I hated it, not because it wasn’t any fun but because I was horrible at it.  People do not enjoy doing things they don’t do well.  If I can teach my students to be good at math, then they will like it.  If they learn to like it, then they will spend more time doing it and will ultimately get better.  When a child says, “I hate school,” he is not really saying he hates school. What he is saying is “I hate failure.”  Why does a first grader love school, but in junior high the same student hates it?  I believe this is based on past successes and failures.  When a child begins a new school year, he opens the window of his heart to the teacher and says, “I am going to give you a chance because I believe I can learn.”  Some students barely crack the window while some fling it wide open, each based on his/her past experiences in school.  The art of teaching is finding a way to keep the window open.  I believe this is done by building lots of small successes each day for every child. This not only keeps the window open, but it opens it even wider.  Success breeds success.  If I can somehow make children believe that they are good at whatever I am teaching them, then they will want to learn and will enjoy doing it.  Any child who cannot be reached is a child who is saying “I don’t trust that you can change me.”

My goal each school year is to make sure all of my students are successful.  I will do whatever it takes to make sure they have high grades early on.   If a student misses a question, I don’t say it’s wrong. I say, “You were so close; if not for that one mistake.” Then we correct it.  I teach to mastery, working one-on-one with each student until all are successful. Slowly I begin to see the culture of my classroom change.  Students no longer complain when asked to do math; actually, they are happy to do it because they understand.  That is the art of teaching.

An amazing thing happens each year around Christmas.  I offer to sit down and work with anyone struggling, but no one needs help, because they all get it.  How does this happen?  I have come to realize it’s a million “little things.”  Being consistent with classroom rules and not allowing for excuses about homework, laziness, or disruptive behavior, I am not only creating an environment conducive to learning but also communicating to students that I believe in them.   I make it my goal to know about each child I teach.  The simple gesture of greeting them at the door, shaking their hands, and asking the simple but important question, “How are you doing today?” goes a long way in establishing trust with students.

 

 

Aug 15

Protected: Worksheets Unit 1

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Aug 09

Algebra Unit 10-1

10-1 Graphing Y= X²+Bx+C

10-1 Graphing Quadratics without B