Leaping without Bridges: Implementing the Common Core with Students Not Previously Instructed Within Its Expectations

Teachers in most states across the nation are now engaged in transitioning their instruction and content focus to the domains of the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSSM). They are working very hard to make adaptive decisions about their practice and they are serious about understanding the ways in which the CCSSM “are not intended to be new names for old ways of doing business” (CCSSI, 2010, p. 5). As the states transition to the CCSSM many teachers will be working with students whose mathematics instruction took place under a different set of mathematics learning expectations. In our work with our own students and through the CCSSM professional development that we have provided for other teachers in multiple states, we have observed how difficult this transition can be for both teachers and students. The purpose of this article is to share what we have found to be productive ways for teachers to leap into the CCSSM and overcome the fact that many students are missing curricular and instructional bridges that might have otherwise made the transition smoother

Improving Attitude and Problem Solving Through Mathematics Camps

This poster describes the results of preservice teachers’ involvement in providing mathematics camps to children that focus on enjoyment of problem solving through their teaching program at a university in Southeast Asia