The questions How many triangles are in this picture? How many of them are the same? With some careful observation and counting, you can answer the first question. You can’t answer the second one, though. Not until you decide what you mean by “same.” Counting the triangles Show the picture of the triangles to a friend and count them together. That’s a good way to make … [Read more...] about What is the Same?
A Book for Your Birthday
Every birthday, you get a new number. However old you might have been the day before, on your birthday, the number changes and you are a year older. Here’s a little game you can play with yourself on your birthday. It gives you a chance to fool around with the new number. You also get to think about your life a bit, which is always good thing to do on your … [Read more...] about A Book for Your Birthday
Starting the Day
In the school where Ms. K taught, students would begin trickling into Room 103 a quarter of an hour before a school-wide bell rang to announce the start of the school day. In the classroom, the designated Bell Ringer rang a tiny hand bell on Ms. K’s desk exactly 10 minutes after the school-wide bell had rung. The little bell signaled that it was time for the students to be in … [Read more...] about Starting the Day
Taking Notes in Room 103
I came to Room 103, an elementary school classroom, for the first hour of the day, every day for the first few months of school. I watched as the teacher, Ms. K, gradually showed the children how to be students. I was interested in her thought-process and decision-making. I would arrive in the morning before the students and settle into a spot in the corner where I could … [Read more...] about Taking Notes in Room 103
Reading About Teaching
During the time I was visiting Room 103, these two books offered valuable insights that helped me interpret what I was observing: Life in the Classroom and Playground by Bronwyn Davies The Enlightened Eye by Elliot Eisner Bronwyn Davies carried out a research project at an elementary school by setting up a space in the library where children could spend their spare … [Read more...] about Reading About Teaching