ACTIVITY FOR TEACHER EDUCATORS
Reflections provide participants an opportunity to think through big ideas, content, and their practice. When doing work on counting collections in professional development, we ask participants to reflect at the start and end of each day. Below are some possible questions and approaches to reflection.
by Megan Franke
Below are some possible questions and approaches to reflection that you might use in professional development settings where you are working on counting collections. Reflections at the start of the day are designed to connect to the previous day, the participants themselves, and their practice. Reflections at the end of the day often focus on the big ideas participants took from the work of the day. We invite you to take a look at what these questions might afford for participant reflection and consider how you might adapt these questions and approaches in response to your group of participants.
Start of Initial Day
Individual written reflection.
What are your strengths as a mathematics teacher? What do you most want to learn during this professional development program?
Following written reflection, facilitate a pair-share conversation.
End of Initial Day
Individual written reflection on 5 X 7 index cards.
List three or four big ideas that you are walking away with today.
Following written reflection, share at table groups. Collect cards before participants leave, read, and hand back to participants the next day to continue to list big ideas each day.
Start of Follow-Up Day (Option 1)
Individual written reflection (choose one prompt).
How is what we discussed yesterday similar to or different from the kind of math you already do in your classroom?
Given what you have learned so far what is one thing you would like to try in your classroom?
Think about a particular student struggling a bit in mathematics. How can the ideas discussed here help you think about meeting their needs?
After participants have written their responses, have them get up and share their ideas with one person. After a few minutes, have them switch and talk to another person.
Start of Follow-Up Day (Option 2)
Pair-share discussion. Take up an issue that came up the previous day that you think would benefit from additional conversation. For example,
Yesterday we talked about Counting Collections being student-directed rather than teacher-directed. What does that mean to you? How, then, do you as a teacher support children’s learning?
After the pair discussion, facilitate a whole-group conversation to bring it together for the group.
Resource Type: