Fabulous post here with good reasons not to display learning intentions all the time.
I enthusiastically agree that all learners need to know where they are going, how else can they know when they have arrived or gain an overall understanding of their progress. But sometimes I want to maintain an air of mystery in my lessons so that pupils can be truly surprised by some of the less obvious facts, formulae and links between topics in maths.

Aerosmith sing about life being a journey, not a destination – let’s not take the fun out of travelling.  Indeed I like the lyrics of this song in terms of learning more and more.

Split the pupils into 2 equal teams. (or have pairs of teams)

Give each pupil a mini whiteboard.

Give them a sequence with a missing value.

Put one value on each board.

Line the teams up facing each other.

3, 2, 1, show!

All the boards are turned over and the team that work out the correct missing value wins a point.

Practice a couple of times then ask the teams to make up their own sequences.

Be prepared for some interesting conversations about how the pupils came up with their sequences.

There are some heated debates about what’s acceptable and what’s not, let the class decide.

Numbers can be missing at the beginning or at the end or in the middle.

So, how does this help?  It brings a standard algebra lesson to life engaging the pupils as part of a team and asking them to think differently by looking for their own patterns.  The pupils love to challenge another team.  They can get quite creative.  They help each other, they argue – about maths!  They talk about the rules of the game – and the maths!  They all have a part to play.

We added some additional controls about who was allowed to answer on behalf of the team to avoid complete chaos and to give thinking time to the less able pupils.  We really enjoyed this task.  It was months ago and I know that we’d have to revise the ideas and concepts to repeat it tomorrow but the pupils worked hard that day and wanted to come back the next day – to maths!

Give it a go – please let me know how you got on and how you made it better?

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I’ve just plugged my DS’s in to charge again and ordered Mario and Sonic at the Olympics.
This time it’s for an S1 class who could use a little motivation to reach their full potential in maths.

Looking forward to trying it out and planning some activities for later in this year leading up to the 2012 Olympics.

Fingers crossed this is as successful as Mario Kart was.

Any and all ideas welcome if you don’t mind sharing please?

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Hasn’t life been hectic since these O’s and E’s have become part of our planning?

And far more fun!

So I thought I’d tackle these 2 at the same time by posing the question

“What do we use prime numbers for in modern life?”

As expected a wonderful S2 class came up with some fantastic research and great ideas from banking security to the reproductive cycles of cicadas.

I handed over the flipcam and asked them to record their group presentations whilst I wondered how to assess their work in some sort of summative and recordable manner.   Then I handed this problem back to the pupils instead by asking them; “What makes a good presentation?”  Together the class chose:

• Participation
• Preparation
• Informative and Interesting

Having chosen the criteria (and discussed what each meant) we watched the videos together in class and assessed them as we went along.  Staying positive to start, the groups chose the 2 criteria that they considered were best met and showed them using mini whiteboards.  Each group then held up a single board showing the area that they thought could be improved.  The presenting group was allowed to challenge this decision by asking why.

The discussion was positive and encouraging.  It was also honest and open.  Pupils took responsibility as a group relieving them of the individual attention that so often inhibits  high school classroom conversations.  The pupils were quick to accept the suggestions for improvement and humble about their strengths.

So what did they learn from this task?

• A little more about their individual strengths and weaknesses in group work and in oral presentations.
• A little bit about prime numbers and their use in the world today.
• A little more about how maths is linked to the real world.
• A little bit about technology.

Do all those “little bits” add up to a worthwhile experience which somewhat fulfills the  ideals behind the 4 capacities?  I do hope so because we even had fun along the way.

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Today I learned a new word.

Dialogic.

After a fair amount of blank search results in online dictionaries http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/dialogic did eventually come up with this:

I was pleased to see this because when I first hear the term “dialogic learning” today I had made the assumption that this was going to be something related to how we talk in the classroom and agreed to part of a working group on that basis.   I am also pleased that classroom dialogue will be one of our focuses across the school this year.

When I began teaching there was a transition already in progress to implement more AiFL and active learning strategies in classrooms across the country.  Of course, these changes in practice had group work and peer collaboration at their very core and we all had to learn how to get the pupils talking about their work effectively.  Cue the cooperative learning courses, ideas, trials, failures and ultimately success.

So we’ve cracked all of the above and even got a handle on Curriculum for Excellence and Glow at the same time.  Judged on any standards I would suggest to you that the teaching profession in this country has made very good progress recently.  Indeed, when you look at it all in one go above I reckon even Steve Jobs might shake our collective hand.  (In thanks we get a salary freeze and degradation of conditions but that’s a different post altogether.)

Is dialogic learning now a way to pull all of these new skills and techniques together and refocus on making classroom conversations even more meaningful?  Or is it more posh talk for what we’re doing already?

As always, I’d love to hear your thought and comments on this latest key phrase?

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What’s a good score in a test?

Generally my pupils would probably suggest that anything over half marks was good enough (not an opinion I am encouraging btw).  The high achievers in junior years and academically ambitious senior classes would likely raise that 75% to gain secure A grade.  Even that is only answering 3 out of 4 questions correctly but it’s good enough to get credit.  When I was at uni I seem to remember a 40% pass mark and assuming that meant that I could spend 60% of my time in the union.

Let’s head back into the real world for a moment then.  If I was only charged correctly for 3/4 of the items in my shopping basket you can guarantee I’d be asking questions.  If a judge and jury got 1 in 4 convictions wrong our justice system would fail.  If a heart surgeon…..you know where I’m going with this!

So in school and education standards are set quite low.  We’re allowed to make mistakes – that’s called a learning opportunity.  But in work we’ve to be superhuman and never get it wrong.

Where does that leave education professionals?  According to social opinion (entirely un-referenced, if you want a quote find a local pub and just do a quick survey) it’s either teachers or parents that are responsible for all of today’s problems so we can’t be getting it right.  That’s no surprise to me.  I’ve admitted to classes, and had them agree, that what I’ve tried to pass off as an educational experience has been a disaster and suggested that we try again differently the next day.  But there’s a difference between planning a lesson that just doesn’t work and being unprepared.  No amount of planning will ever prepare teachers for the fight in the canteen at break, the kid throwing up in the middle of a lesson or the devastating effect wind, rain, snow or sunshine can have on a class so can I really be expected to get 100% all the time?

Well, yes.  And as a professional I should always strive for the ultimate test result.  I’m still allowed to make mistakes but not ones that can be avoided by applying a mote of common sense and professional standards.

So the plan going forward is to always have a back up.  I can’t predict what challenges my next class are going to bring so I’ll just have to deal with them as they arise (bucket always handy!).  The back up is for those days when I am not in full on entertainment mode.  I’m going to create a file this week in my classroom called Plan B and keep it handy just in case.

I’m aiming for much more than 40% these days but have to accept that the full 100 might never be possible in school.  Perhaps Plan B will get me just one step closer.  We all know pupils who we would be proud of if they took just one step forward so for today that will be good enough for me too.

From - http://www.famousquotesabout.com/quote/Failing-to-plan-is/9391

When was the last time you had a perfect day? Every day brings it’s own challenges and we overcome them on a regular basis – if we didn’t, there’d be all sorts of trouble. Tragic events last week again hammered home to me the realisation that we have to play the hand we’re dealt and it’s how we play that makes the difference in the end.

This morning I managed not to growl at the pupils blocking my doorway when I tried to get to registration. My first class were just that – first class. All of my pupils so far have been nothing but pleasant and hard working. So regardless of what this afternoon chucks my way I’m going to stay positive and enjoy all the bits I can.

The longer term plan is to try to remember to jot down something good that happens every day from now on, in my planner, my diary, on Twitter, Facebook or here perhaps. Writing it will make it a habit, a positive one.

What happened to you today that made you smile?

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I know it’s convenient, cheap and easy to park at Tesco in Thurso.

But….oh don’t say you didn’t see the “but” coming!

My second veg box from Puffin Croft Farm in John O Groats was waiting in my porch when I got home from school today.

Here it is:

The Baking

Cheesy bread, Apple crumble, Bridie, Cheesy pie, Apricot flapjack, Steak pie and the choc brownie is missing already…..oops.

The Veg

Cabbage, Broccoli, 2 Red onions, bunch of Carrots, load of Potatoes, half a Turnip and a massive courgette.

When I first ordered the box I agreed to half and half baking and veg because it’s only for me so I’m loving the individual pies and portions.  You only get what’s fresh and ready on the farm and the best part is….I wouldn’t buy any of this veg in a supermarket anyway but will cook it because I have it.

So, my challenge to you?

Can you get the same quality, quantity, price and feel good factor of supporting local business and the environment from your local Tesco?  Feel free to use your own favourite or local supermarket instead.  Indeed, feel free just to take the challenge on price.   Ah, there’s the catch – price?  Wrong – the whole lot comes for just £10.

Off to pretend I am a domestic goddess….perhaps I’ll phone mum first!

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Two years ago when I first handed out the Nintendo DS’s in my classroom I had my doubts about the value of handing over games to teenagers instead of worksheets.  Now it’s over and the results are in I can say for sure that I would do this again without a second thought.

I don’t believe that the game made these people better mathematicians.

I’m not sure that the pupils fully engaged with the idea of taking ownership of the work.

I do believe that the project gave them a motivation to come to my class with a positive attitude and that’s what made the difference.

This allowed us to tackle even the harder topics with a little determination and ensured that revision time wasn’t entirely wasted.  The added bonus to all of this hard work from the pupils was that it freed me up to get to know them all a little better.  I know from the exam results that every one of these pupils met or exceeded their own expectations from the course.  I know from talking to them that every one of them has grown into a successful and ambitious young adult who will make a valuable contribution in some way.

Congratulations 4M7 – you made me very proud this year and I wish you all the very best.

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I gave in to my inner child back in and October and ordered a shiny tablet. I resisted ipad although to be honest only because I couldn’t afford the 3G option. So I am now the proud owner of a shiny Huawei S7. I don’t even know how to saythat so it better be good.

So far I have managed to get into the Android Marketplace and download every app I could dream of for free. These include;
Kindle – super. Standard lcd screen made easy to read with a combination of kindle options and good brightness settings.
Twitroyd – lovely. Easy enough to use and fast.
Facebook – exactly as you would expect.
Dropbox – recommended as an alternative to dropio for normal use and come as a handy app.
Various games and fun stuff – some good, some not so, just need to choose wisely but that’s more to do with content than how they work on the tablet.
How about using it?
It’s a resistive touchscreen. Ipad and iphone seem to know what you’re trying to type or touch and to be fair sometimes thia gets it wrong but sI’m typing this on the full keyboard and my spellong is more of an issue than the actual input. It also predictive text which is fantastically fast and useful. There are wonderful keyboard shortcuts like www. and.com to make life a little easier.
The menus – take a bit of getting used to. Thankfully there are mimimal buttons so options when I get stuck are limited. 1 day in and even I seem to have it sussed, verdict, easy.
Pre – installed apps. All the usual ones are there. The browser is very good and the others are as useful as you would expect.
Updates – Linking in to wifi or mobile internet is easy and you get warnings before it switches from wifi to 3G. It runs automatic updates which sync email, twitter, rss, google reader and anything else you tell it to. Harsh on the battery if not careful but it’s been running now tonight for 3hours already and is still quite happy.
I’m not going to write anything bad. The only thing so far was that it was very slow playing a youtube video today but that was because of the lack of 3G coverage.
Anyway for now I’m happy being in love with my new toy And would recommend it to anyone.