The Math Learning Center Blog

ROUNDING UP: SEASON 2 | EPISODE 2 If there were a list of social skills we hope to foster in children, empathy is likely close to the top. Empathy matters. It helps us understand how others are feeling so we can respond appropriately, and it can help teachers understand the way their students are experiencing school. Today on a podcast, we talk with Dr. Kara Imm about a practice referred to as an...

ROUNDING UP: SEASON 2 | EPISODE 1 What if it were possible to capture all of the words teachers said or thought about students and put them in word clouds that hovered over each student throughout the day? What impact might the words in the cloud have on the student’s learning experience? This is the question that Beth Kobett and Karen Karp pose to start their book about strength-based teaching...

We are sad to share the news that our co-founder, Dr. Eugene Maier, passed away earlier this month after a long illness. Gene was a pioneer in developing visual methods for understanding math, and had an unshakeable belief in the ability of each person to find their inner mathematician. Over the span of his distinguished career as a professor, author, and thought leader, Gene had a profound impact...

ROUNDING UP: SEASON 1 | EPISODE 20 Many elementary educators recognize that timed memorization activities have the potential to seriously derail a child’s identity as a doer of mathematics. But if we want to build fluency, what alternatives are there? Today on the podcast, we talk with Lori Bluemel, a curriculum consultant at The Math Learning Center, about a play-based alternative for building...

ROUNDING UP: SEASON 1 | EPISODE 19 Participation is an important part of learning to make sense of mathematics. But ask yourself, what counts as participation? In this episode, we talk with Dr. Juanita Silva from Texas State University about an expanded definition of participation and what it might mean for how we engage with and value our students’ thinking. More Episodes RESOURCES Todos...

The year is coming to an end. Soon your classroom will be quiet. No more pencils, no more books, no more finger counting, no more area models, no more calendar grid markers, no more pattern blocks and geoboard bands and base ten pieces littering the floor. As Sam Keen said, “Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability.” You’ve earned all the relaxation you can get this summer; enjoy it...

ROUNDING UP: SEASON 1 | EPISODE 18 Many educators were first introduced to the content they teach as a series of items on a checklist. What impact might that way of thinking have on a teacher’s approach to instruction? What if there were another way to understand the mathematics our students are learning? In this episode, we talk with Graham Fletcher about seeing mathematics as a progression and...

Meet Stephanie Quarantotto What grades do you teach, and/or your title/role? I teach fourth grade, all subjects. What school, district or institution do you work for? Location? Pennell Elementary School in Penn-Delco School District (in Aston, PA). Who inspired you to become an educator? A former teacher at Sun Valley High School, Chuck Grassano. He was the kind of educator that led from behind...

ROUNDING UP: SEASON 1 | EPISODE 17 When you look at the results of your students' work, what types of things are you attending to? Many of us were trained to look for the ways that students were not understanding concepts or ideas. But what if we flipped that practice on its head and focused on the things students did understand? Today on the podcast, we’re talking with Tisha Jones, senior advisor...

ROUNDING UP: SEASON 1 | EPISODE 16 Kindergarten is a joyful, exciting and challenging grade level to teach. It’s also a time when educators can develop a set of productive norms and routines around discourse that can have a long-lasting effect on students. On today’s podcast, we talk with Dr. Hala Ghousseini, a professor at the University of Wisconsin, about building a solid foundation for math...