Confessions of a Math Teacher

 So its been years since I have blogged but I am so inspired this year and .... well lets face it I really want to be a part of the Twitter community of teachers because you all inspire me to to do better.  I read a few teaching books this summer like most summers I am always looking for something that will help me in my classroom. But nothing has inspired me like Mathematical Mindsets by Jo Boaler. I have read different people on Twitter tweeting about problem solving; letting students struggle. A piece here, a tidbit there but not enough for me to get it. You know how to actually implement it in my classroom. Then I read  Mathematical Mindsets and my eye were opened (cue music and singing animals here). I was so excited that I went to YouCubed and signed up for the course on How to Learn Maths for teachers. I really am a visual learner. Seeing the videos really helped me.  But the real excitement for me is learning about a growth mindset. I see so many of my students faces from the past few years and now I know one of the reasons I could not reach them was they had a closed mindset. It bugs me that I let them down. I did not make math open and show them the beauty of it. I tried but I know I let them down. No I am not beating myself up, I am going to use those faces as a reminder NEVER AGAIN!
   My students and I will be on a journey this year to learn about Growth Mindsets. We will celebrate mistakes not gloss over them. I will give my students time to delve deeply and allow them time to struggle. I cannot totally throw out my pacing guide but I can creatively ignore it as much as possible. I have never been one to teach to the test. Yes I am guilty of teaching memory tricks but only after hands on learning and really teaching the math. I love math. I want to share my love with my students. So I am blogging again because I want to be accountable. I also need your help, this is new for me. But let me tell you I am sooooo excited for this year.