George Polya, a master in mathematics education in the early twentieth century, is credited with saying that if a problem takes fewer than 24 hours to solve, it isn't worth solving. When I first heard this, I was discouraged. How can I help my students to understand math if everything worth knowing takes so much… Continue reading Productive Struggle in Math
Author: Sarah Kiesewetter
Classrooms Reflect our Classical Values
Civilized Meal Time and the Virtues of School Lunch
There's a reason why the image of a family gathered around a table enjoying a meal together invokes warm feelings of communion and kinship. While we can't recreate a shared family dinner with all its intimacy inside the schoolhouse, teachers can help to develop in children the kinds of virtues and conversational skills that are… Continue reading Civilized Meal Time and the Virtues of School Lunch
What Are Classical Teachers Doing in Their Classrooms?
So what do we do in our classical classrooms? How do we form citizens who know where they come from, and where they are going? Citizens who know how to avoid repeating mistakes made in our past? Citizens who can creatively solve problems and who have been formed by the repeated practice of doing the next right thing?
Playing with Words in Math Class
What I Owe My Students
Protect Their Hearts
For me, February is the longest month of the school year. Boasting only 28 days, the weeks seem to drag on as we slog through classes. My students feel it too. Some who started the school year off with a fantastic work ethic and a sense of energy and excitement are now struggling to complete… Continue reading Protect Their Hearts