10/13 - homework

I have been writing the homework assignment on the board at the start of class. Some students will come to class and write it in their planners before class starts. The question that I have been having is that some of the students will start on the homework when I start going over the lesson. This just decreases participation during the lesson and then some of them have extra time at the end of class with nothing to do. I have started to ask these kids when they are done to assist others who might have questions. I feel that if these kids can get through the homework during class on their own (mostly with a partner to ask questions to) that it should not be a bad thing. I guess that what I am struggling with is how to get the other kids that need help to ask questions while the others are asking in small groups.

10/10-insight

I was talking to my sister this weekend who happens to be a high school senior in Las Vegas. She is not the best student, but she is looking to graduate this spring. It is nice to talk with her because she is completly honest to me about what she is doing in school. I was talking to her about my classes and her classes and there was one comment that stuck with me. She said that she likes it when a teacher stands at the front of the class and talks because that gives her time to text her friends on her cell phone. I had a junior in one of my freshmen Algebra classes tell me that he has a much harder time zoning out this year because we are working in groups everyday. Once we let the students do more of the work in learning, I think it will be more beneficial to all parties involved.

10/10 - Algebra 2

I have been reviewing in my Algebra 2 classes to get ready for a test and I was talking to one of the groups. There was a girl that said math was her favorite class (sarcastically). She then said that she likes math more this year because she is not as frustrated as she was in the past. I asked her why and her response was that I explained things better in class then in the past. I told her that this is the least amount of explaination that I have done in five years of teaching. She was convinced that I just explain things better, but I am convinced that she is getting a better understanding because of working in groups everyday. She is getting more of her questions answered in a small group that is allowing for more individualized learning. I am convinced that this is not an isolated incident and that most of my Algebra 2 students are seeing better results from working in groups.