or teachers who are proficient at navigating their current state standards, the Common Core Standards may have a completely different look. In the area of mathematics, the content of the document is divided into domains, clusters, and standards. Domains are…
Year: 2011
When Five Plus Five Equals Eight
For the last several months, I have been privileged to work with hundreds of teachers as they unpack the Common Core State Standards. In each session, which have been held in grade level groups, we have worked through the meanings…
Persistent Problem Solving
A question I have been asked frequently is, “What should the common core look like in practice?” In my opinion there is no one right answer to that question. However, the common core’s eight standards for mathematical practice suggests that…
All For One and One For All
Seven entities with vested interest in the area of mathematics and common core state standards have agreed to lend their collective expertise to the formation of a new coalition called MC3. The organizations include the National Council of Teachers of…
Good Advice From the Top
I just read a blog post by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics President, J. Michael Shaughness, about the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics. In his post, CCSSM and Curriculum and Assessment: NOT Business as Usual, Shaughness shares…
Tidbits from NCSM
Last week I attended a meeting of the Kansas State Mathematics Leaders. A good portion of our day was spent discussing the common core state standards and what is known about the future mathematics assessment. Several of the members had…
What’s Behind the Common Core Math Standards
The release of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) is a milestone in the standards movement that began more than 20 years ago when the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) published Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School. NCTM,…
Where Do We Begin?
A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. ~Lao-tzu Chinese philosopher (604 BC – 531 BC) With every new task we undertake, there is the question of where to begin. Sometimes the first step is obvious and…
Focus on Fractions
The Common Core Standards for Mathematics, have focused on fractions, and for good reason. In its comprehensive report on the state of math education in America, the National Math Panel said understanding fractions is “the most important foundational skill NOT…
Math: The Universal Language
Let’s face it; math is the same everywhere. What other subject can say that? In a very simplistic example the reason for math’s universal nature is easily explained: one thing is true of all people in all nations of the…
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