Sweetest Day Update/CHITOWN con mi amiga

Well, I guess it looks like we're back together for Sweetest Day.. (see previous post about what happened leading up to this) 

On a teacher-related note, my friend and fellow math education major from NYU and I are in CHICAGO right now for a professional development seminar on math education in secondary schools (special focus on grades 6-9... I teach 8th grade & she teaches 9th!) focusing on teaching strategies, assessment strategies and CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT. 

Some things we're thinking of bringing back and trying out in our own rooms: 

• flowchart/"picture lecture" notes- for unit concepts that link closely with each other, kind of like a study guide that students copy down during the unit from the board (good prep for high school math) 
• homework passes- if students complete (w/ quality and relative accuracy/effort) 10 checked assignments in a row, they earn a homework pass good for 1 small assignment of their choice (read: NOT a project, study guide, etc... only a daily 5 pt. homework assignment) 
• using graphing calculators in the classroom- something I need to start trying w/ my Integrated Algebra class 
• 3-2-1 technique- when the class starts getting rowdy or uncontrollable, I'll hold up a "3" at first, then a "2" and finally a "1". At "1" students should be silent and refocused... this will take some getting used to but I feel that it could work with some enforcement. If not, class may face consequences such as a written assignment, staying past the bell or after-school detention
• A team boards- bulletin board for students who earned "A"s on unit tests! Multiple "A"s result in a special decoration like a star/sticker around their original "post" on the bulletin board... students would strive to emulate these students & get their names on the A team
• period-wise competition - behavioral strategy to award "points" for good behaviors that the class exhibits (ex. 100% HW completion, staying on task during groupwork, average of 85% or better on a quiz/test, quieting down quickly, good report from a sub, etc.) & period with most points gets a reward (ex. a pizza party!)
• peer critique- more for new Common Core standards, students "trade & grade" practice short answer/extended response questions and critique answers, a grade that THEY think the response earns, offer advice, etc. after being given a rubric and teacher explanation. Then, teacher collects critiques and original responses and adds his/her own comments and suggestions along with a final grade. 

Poll Everywhere... Why I Wish All My Students Had Smartphones

This week in one of my grad school courses at TC, Columbia University, we were talking about using Poll Everywhere in the classroom. Poll Everywhere is a tech-savvy and innovative app that students can install on their phones that will allow them to respond to questions on my PowerPoints in real-time. Responses can be multiple choice and extended response - and will immediately pop up on the  PP screen. All students need is their own phone, tablet, laptop, etc. with the Poll Everywhere app. Poll Everywhere is free for teachers because each class has less than 40 students and we can make as many classes as we want :) 

If I was teaching on Long Island or in Yonkers or in Jersey, I would have my students download Poll Everywhere in a heartbeat. 

Poll Everywhere could serve INVALUABLE to my classroom because I can see if students are learning things as soon as we are finished discussing a concept- rather than relying on traditional exit slips, quizzes, etc. This is an opportunity for me to integrate technology into my classroom, the big 21st-century-we-must-do-this topic in education. 

Additionally, with the new Common Core currently in its second year in NY, my students can get real-time practice with Common Core like multiple choice and extended response questions, and allow me to critique their responses and modify lesson plans if needed to spend more time on a concept or area they are struggling in by Common Core definition. 

However, teaching in the South Bronx means that every kid having a phone is not a guarantee. I DEFINITELY don't want to alienate those who don't have the technology to participate in this endeavor, so I guess this is an opportunity I have to pass up. Maybe in the future.

Learn more about Poll Everywhere: http://www.polleverywhere.com
Maybe if you teach in the suburbs, you learned a new way to spice up learning and your classroom environment :) 

Tour USA con los ROOMIES!!!

AHHH! It's the ultimate teacher summer dream! With some lesson planning and preparing for the school year already underway, some summer classes towards my M.Ed. in Curriculum & Teaching from Columbia University (it was Summer Session A if you were wondering...more on that later) completed, my roomies and I are officially planning a trip across the United States! 

If you are new to my blog, I live in a four bedroom house that is shared between three other 20-something professionals and I. There are two males, including me, and two females. Our vacation together will begin this Thursday and will last until Sunday, August 25th. 

Here are our sites: 

-from NYC to the Jersey Shore! 
-from NJ to Boston
-from Boston back to NY (we're playing "tourist") to Washington, D.C./N. Virginia/S. Maryland
-from D.C. to Nashville (country concerts galore!)
-from Nashville to Cincinnati, Ohio (my roomate's boyfriend lives there) 
-from Cincinnati to Chicago!
-from Chicago to Albuquerque (lots of Spanish for a Spanish minor who LOVES Spanish!) 
-from Albuquerque to LA and San Francisco!! 
-from Cali back home :) 

As for my previous mention about grad school... yes, I am going back to school. I'm enrolled in Teachers College, Columbia University. However, no worries, I AM still teaching and plan to keep teaching for at least a few more years after graduating from my M.Ed. program. 

See you soon! I'll try to update on my vacay with the roomies but I'll be too busy having fun. Oh and not too much computer access. 

Back from break!

In with the new year! 2013! :)

My students and I went back to school after a one week long winter break. One of my new year's resoultions was to take stronger control of my more difficult classes this year - namely 1st and 7th periods (that's 2 out of only 3 pre-algebra classes that I have this year). I started the new year by creating and copying color-coded calendars for both Pre-Algebra and Integrated Algebra with dates of tests, quizzes, major activities, VERY important lessons they should try their very best not to miss, major projects and project due dates and review sessions. I believe that this calendar will allow them to properly plan ahead for what to expect in class and will allow me to be more organized in assigning important dates.

Another thing I am trying to do is to for my "needy" students (those with grades at or below 73%, which consists of significantly more students this year - accross all five classes - than last year) is to let them know about the websites that are available for them for extra help:

• Khan Academy
• YouTube
• Regents Prep
• the NYS website
• Hotmath
• Coolmath

I always make myself available before and after school for students, but I don't normally see these "needy" students at the help sessions. The students who come are the ones that are more self-motivated, and are struggling with minor things or coming because they were absent for a class. However, it's these "needy" students that I'm trying to reach, and I am thinking about a program in which I can *gently* "force", for lack of a better word, extra help upon them. Any ideas?

A homework help blog recently contacted me on my blog asking me to tell my students about the availability of their free service for asking questions on homework in any of the core subjects. Link will be up soon for you guys!

Here's to a great 2013! (And to more blogging too!)

P.S. one year anniversary of my blog is coming up TOMORROW!!

Preparing for a year of teaching Integrated Algebra

As I reported at the end of the year, my principal, Ms. Lopez moved my schedule for this upcoming year around a little bit. In 2011-2012, I had five sections of 8th grade math (pre-algebra). In 2012-2013, I will have three sections of 8th grade math and our school's very first (!!) two sections of Integrated Algebra. Integrated Algebra is essentially the equivalent of a traditional Algebra I class here in New York, except intermixed with some geometry, measurement, data analysis/statistics and probability. Integrated Algebra is generally a class for high school freshmen, but is offered in NYC to accelerated 8th grade math students with a recommendation and a test-in.

Starting in late July up till now, I have started to educate myself about what to expect in teaching Integrated Algebra: scowering the NYC DOE website's "educator resources" and reading up all I can about what Integrated Algebra is and how to teach it. I browsed through the item analyses for the past years' Regents exams as well as analyzed previous questions, jotting down teaching ideas and strategies in a notebook. I also attended two professional development sessions on best teaching practices in and tips for Integrated Algebra. Who knew it was so complex? This new placement is definitely a tougher challenge than my first year of teaching - since 8th grade math is a lot more spelled out and easier to understand.

My Integrated Algebra students are in for a very rigorous year - since they have to take and pass both the 8th grade NYS and the Integrated Algebra Regents exam (to get high school math credit). It kinda reminds me of an AP class in high school, where we had to take the Regents as well as the AP test. Back when I was in 8th grade, we didn't even have the option of taking Integrated Algebra in middle school... if we wanted to get ahead in math, we'd have to take it over the summer at a college and test out in school. I know my AP teachers had significantly more work, and I have more work to do in Integrated Algebra than in 8th grade math. But, on the plus side, teaching accelerated students possibly means fewer/minimal behavioral disruptions! I don't know though, because from what I heard from their 7th grade teachers, my 8th graders next year are going to be tough across the board.  :(

The 7th grade math test scores at our school went down this year, meaning for 8th grade math I'm going to have to do more review to get them up to speed. But, because I'm entering my second year coming off a very successful first year and student teaching experience, I feel very confident in that subject. However, I'm still a first year teacher in a sense that it will be my first year teaching (and our school's first year offering) Integrated Algebra. I'm kinda excited to still have that "first year feel" in my attitude though, I believe it helped drive and motivate me to be a great teacher last year. There's a lot to learn (good thing I'm getting a head start now!) and I won't have a colleague to go to this time (well, except for my mentor, but he's never taught this before...) if I need any help, but I am determined to do an excellent job with this class! And, of course, if it doesn't work out, I can always stay with having five sections of 8th grade math.

Last summer, when I was applying to teach in the NYC public schools, I watched the I TEACH NYC recruitment videos from current teachers on their advice for new teachers. An English teacher in Queens said in her video, "... you have to be the rookie of the year, every year." I've always kept that with me, because it's true. Having that mentality drives you do great things. I will always remember this quote during my years of teaching. You have to be the rookie of the year, every year. There's always something you don't know... always something you haven't mastered yet. This year, that "something" is Integrated Algebra. Next year, there's going to be something else. My fourth year of teaching, another thing. Thank you, Ms. Cabrerra-Carrasco!

Re-Blog: Facts about American Teachers

This post was originally published on the blog "The Life of a Student Teacher" on February 11th, 2012. Here is a link to the blog: http://thelifeofastudentteacher-msmilitello.blogspot.com/ 

I found this post concerning the teaching profession in the United States extremely interesting. I think you guys should check it out!

Studies prove that a great teacher can impart a year and a half’s worth of learning to a student in one year. source

Good teaching over a sustained period can [help students] overcome the disadvantages of poverty. source

77 percent of U.S. adults feel teaching is among the most under-appreciated professions in the U.S. source

76 percent agree that many of the smartest people in society don’t go into teaching because being a teacher doesn’t pay enough. source

46 percent of teachers in public schools leave the profession within five years. source

14 percent of teachers leave the profession each year; in urban districts, the turnover is higher: 20 percent. source

High turnover of American teachers costs our country over $7 billion every year. source

Teachers are priced out of home ownership in 32 metropolitan areas. source

Only 4.7 percent of college juniors would consider teaching at the current starting salary. 68 percent of college students said they would consider the teaching profession if it paid 50 percent more than the current occupations they were considering. source

Teachers work an average of ten hours per day. source

92.4 percent of teachers spent their own money on their students or classrooms during the 2007-2008 school year.source

62 percent of teachers have second jobs outside of the classroom. source

Sweet, Sweet Summer

I'M BACK!!

Haven't been on the blog for quite some time since summer began.

I just wanted to let you all know that I am LOVING my summer so far!

I've been spending many days relaxing and cooling down from a successful but exhausting first year as a teacher in the Bronx. It's a feeling that I never got too much during the year since so much was going on at once, but now, I have a solid 2-and-a-half months of relatively less stress and workload. So far, I used up almost an entire "bottle" of sunscreen after spending so much time out in the city and the (very!) hot sun.

I'm also doing things that I never got to do during the year as well. Things like being the last one of my roommates to wake up (during the school year I was the first), watching all four hours of the Today show (I miss Ann Curry a lot, but Savannah Guthrie is a good co-host too), checking my Facebook more regularly, staying in touch with friends and family, etc. Yep, this really is sweet, sweet summer!

Back in elementary/middle/high school, summer was a welcome break from the hassles of the school year. I would hang out with my friends, stay up very late, go to huge parties, work as a camp counselor, be with my family and go on faraway vacations. In college, I spent summers abroad volunteering in Central America and in Africa, catching up on credit hours at NYU, traveling with my family and spending lots of time with old friends from high school that I rarely saw. As a teacher, I LOVE that my schedule is similar to what it was back in school - it's a similar structure and one that I can both get used to and love. Summer is still in its traditional place, and unlike the vast majority of my friends who are still working the same hours now, I am not. Of course, they definitely don't even come close to how much I work during the school year, but now it's a chance for me to get even! :)

I spent both yesterday and today hanging out with a really good friend of mine, Ryan. In high school, when Ryan was a freshman, I was a junior - but what really surprised me when I first met him was that he was only 8 months younger than me. Ryan was the kid that all the girls really liked: athletic, funny, smart and charming. Ryan also built great friendships, including our friendship. When I graduated, Ryan was still in high school, and we didn't talk as much as we used to when I was just starting out college. I ran into a Facebook status that he posted two years ago and realized that we stopped talking in the midst of our busy lives. Today, I am really glad Ryan and I are still good friends. We're kind of like twins in a way - hey, we both went to the same high school and we were both voted "most popular"! It was really nice to catch up with him and hang out like we did back when I was still in school. Ryan's considering Teach for America when he graduates at the end of the year next year, and I think my crazy stories about my classroom put him over the top! Oh my, if I could be teacher buddies with Ryan someday... #bestfriends #craziness

Those hashtags not only symbolize my friendship with Ryan, but also mean that I recently joined the TWITTER GANG!! It's something new all right, and I still have a lot to learn but I feel like I'm getting the hang of it pretty quickly. The privacy settings are definitely a lot more clear than on Facebook, so that's really good. Also, I like getting more real-time updates from the celebrities and people that I'm following. And I think my followers like getting more updates from me, since, ya know, updating constantly on Facebook is a social no-no.

Speaking of social networking, I'm still keeping up with our class page on Facebook that I started this winter! My students are sending me messages about their summers and I'm replying and telling them some things about mine. It's so nice that I get to keep up with them over the break and I've received countless notes telling me that "I'm the best teacher ever" and that the kids were "so so so lucky to have me as their teacher" :) I'm not allowed to be friends with them because of a new NYCDOE policy, but this is pretty close! Hopefully we can still keep up during the school year too...

I'm also planning my schedule for summer professional development and networking - so I'll keep y'all updated on that. Also, I'm looking into a graduate school program to apply to possibly next summer. Having a Master's degree definitely helps with a considerable salary raise, and although experts and teachers are divided on this, may help make me an even better teacher. So far, I have Teachers College (Columbia University), NYU Steinhardt, CUNY and Hunter on my list.

Thank you for reading! I hope to keep you updated even more in the future about my summer adventures!

Middle school grade configurations: K-8 or 6-8?

As my readers would know, I teach 8th grade math in New York City. Recently, education experts, professors, teachers and the community have started to debate about whether middle school should be included in the K-8 grade levels or the 6-8 grade level. My school in the Bronx is a 6-8 school. Today during my lunch period, I came accross this article in the New York Times:

http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2012/06/18/the-middle-school-conundrum

Read the debate and tell me what you think!

Professional Development From Your Own Home

Recently, I discovered https://www.teachingchannel.org/, an AMAZING website for teachers of all grades/subjects to get access to professional advice. This ranges from classroom management to building classroom culture to differentiating instruction. The videos often feature a teacher getting help from the mentor on a certain area of teaching. The mentor provides advice to the teacher that all teachers can apply to their classrooms. Sometimes, teachers even attach their lesson plans & activities for viewers to download, modify and use in the classroom. You can also sign up to be a member on this website and get access to a free lesson planner.

I recommend this website for ALL teachers. My principal loved this so much that she's actually showing all the teachers at my school the website at our next common meeting. We can all improve in our own ways, and the suggestions and scenarios presented on this website are very relateable and very applicable.