Transcript

Welcome to BLaST the Airwaves with BLaST Intermediate Unit 17. Here at BLaST Intermediate Unit 17, we strive to transform lives and communities through educational services. On this podcast, we will provide you with educational solutions for all, no matter the learning environment. So teachers, administrators, caregivers, what are you waiting for?

What would happen if we started questioning, what if? What if we had a positive perspective on education? What if we flip the switch on education? What if we were the solution?

Hello listeners. Welcome back to season two of BLaST the Airwaves! We are excited to connect with you and provide educational solutions for all. Specifically this season, we will focus on support for our caregivers. My name is Rebecca Gibboney and I am the Coordinator of Professional Learning here at BLaST Intermediate Unit 17. Today, we talk about the importance of mathematics and having the right mindset with your child or children when it comes to the subject. So, let’s get started!

Fisher, Frey, and Hattie called me out. Right there on page 45, they called me out. “Don’t tell them, ‘I am not a math person’ or ‘I hated math class in school’. Guilty. This girl, right here. I think about how many times I worked with a student or even my little and I say, hmmm ‘Math, isn’t really for me. This is why I taught Spanish.’ I know that I am not alone. At least, I don’t think I am. Caregivers, think about how often your child brings home math homework and asks for help and you might say, ‘I’m not a math person. I can’t help you’ or something along those lines? I’m sure we have said it more than once. And, it’s okay! It happens. Remember, I’m guilty, as well. The important thing is, however, that we become more aware of our words. Our children pick up on more than we think.

Math is all around us, and, unfortunately, a skill that gets a negative connotation more times than not. Comments like I mentioned earlier do not help this situation. We need to be developing a positive mindset about mathematics because math is in everyday life. It is our job, as caregivers, to show them just how visible it is in the world in which we live. We do not want our children believing that just because maybe I struggled with mathematics, they will too; because that is not the case at all.

“Mastery requires maintenance”, states a teacher that works for Fisher and Frey. Boy, is that statement true in more ways than one. Literacy and mathematics, we all strive for mastery; but, we tend to forget that this mastery does not just happen overnight. It takes time. It takes maintenance. It takes making a mistake and starting over, sometimes ten steps back. It takes resiliency and relevancy. That relevancy is a key factor and is brought to life even more so when you, as a caregiver, have daily conversations with your child or children about “why he or she might have to learn this” or how this applies to that. That relevancy encourages urgency for learning because there is value and there is a deeper appreciation. Sometimes even a deeper connection on the relational level.

It goes back to that conversation about literacy. Make time to take the time for your child or children. Go on a walk outside and make some word problems out of it. Count how many birds you see. How tall do you think the tree is? Reinforce telling time. What about elapsed time? Or even how about just have the conversation about how you use math in your daily life? Calculate bills or talk about finances with your child. Discuss time management (yes, that’s math). The time, the elapsed time. How much time do I need to make it to work on time? Take them grocery shopping with a calculator and give them a budget.

Make math fun. Make math real. Make math all about their life!

We would like to thank you for blasting the airwaves with us today. If you like the show, please subscribe or leave a review. If you want to know more, check out www.iu17.org for further resources and show notes. As always, we want to thank you for what you do every single day. Remember, keep shining. We’ll be back next episode to provide you another educational solution for all, as we continue to transform lives and communities through educational services.

Additional/Suggested resources mentioned in the episode:

The Distance Learning Playbook by Douglas Fisher, Nancy Frey, and John Hattie

BLaST Intermediate Unit 17 – www.iu17.org 

Professional Learning Opportunities at BLaST IU 17 – https://www.iu17.org/professional-learning/ 

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