I wanted to start with just saying how much I loved going to this conference. I forgot about how much I like to learn new techniques and share ideas and thoughts with fellow teachers. During this time I was also able to get closer with the Sara and Mary Beth learning about them personally and professionally. I went to three different speakers where I gained resources, tools, and techniques to use in my classroom to become a more effective teacher.
Building Agency: Helping Students Deal with Anxiety
Build positive relationships; build community
Establish classroom norms and agreements
Embed small group interactions in classroom instruction
Model expectations
Differentiate instruction to meet students where they are
Give students voice
Math anxiety is a big topic of issue with my current students. Our students range from being a freshman in calculus to being a sophomore in pre algebra. Just from peer influence and outside pressures of college and home life students are having anxiety about math class. Our students need to be in the right mindset to even be able to come and learn. Being able to figure out the root of the anxiety is the very first step. To be able to do this you will need a safe and comfortable classroom environment where students feel they are able to share this information with you. One of the underlying roots that we can take action on is a positive relationship. If we are able to become aware of this need we can plan our teacher moves around them. Robert Sylvester said “We know that emotion is very important to the educative process because it drives emotion, which drives learning and memory.” This really stuck with me because we want our students to be in a place where they can even have the ability to learn.
Your statement "…you will need a safe and comfortable classroom environment where students feel they are able to share this information with you." really resonates with me. I have a reputation for being a "hard" teacher and many students have a preconceived fear that my classroom may not be "safe and/or comfortable." Every year I have to work hard to show the students how much I care about them. When students realize that it is possible to feel safe and comfortable in class while still being held to a high standard is a lightbulb moment for them.
I love that you included the connections that you made at this conference. Often I get nothing new out of conferences, but they do remind me of things that I'm doing well, or that I haven't emphasized in years, and those interpersonal connections are fantastic as well-thanks for sharing!
The idea of Math anxiety is super interesting and probably most relevant to your subject. Your students are lucky to have you knowing how mindful you are of this! What might you do different this semester to address this? I'd love to hear how we can apply this in other subject areas
love this post and love everyones comments… sounds like this was an amazing conference… and the topics were so very pertinent