Description

It is a common practice in elementary school to use read alouds to teach core content, social and emotional skills, and for a love for reading. Storytelling is powerful because it is universal, joyful, and promotes genuine curiosity. 

On the other hand, the trend in school mathematics instruction and learning is the opposite. Students experience math classrooms as boring, hard, and lifeless. As a result, we produce generations of learners that are math-phobic and struggle with seeing real-life and genuine connections to the world. A deep understanding of math occurs when students are given the time to explore their curiosities, figure out what problems need to be solved, then play and experiment with coming up with an answer that can be justified. 

This course plans to address this problem of practice with a focus on how to successfully integrate the use of technology with core Mathematics and English Language Arts instruction. Our professional learning framework will be addressed through the following drivers:

1. The use of literature through read alouds: Using literature through read alouds cements the fact that there is a place for mathematics in stories and storytelling, that it is not a novel concept. 
2. Culturally Relevant Pedagogy (CRP): California’s public school children represent a rich and culturally diverse demographic that through traditional instructional practices or curricular offerings are often times unseen, unnoticed or ignored. Placing an emphasis on CRP helps to address that. 
3. Dan Meyer’s 3-Act Tasks: The lesson structure is based on the “Notice and Wonder” routine that allows students to begin by asking students to be curious and observant about the world around them. The use of quick images and videos brings a sense of urgency into the classroom with a simple prompt that asks learners to explore, predict and hypothesize the situation, which elicits a wonder and joy about the math all around us.

Course Proficiencies

The participant has successfully completed all tasks associated with using culturally responsive, inquiry-based pedagogy through the use of picture books and 3-Act Tasks.  The participant has demonstrated his/her ability to engage and reflect upon the Notice and Wonder routine and the 3-Act Task protocol. Additionally, the participant has modeled those routines in front of an audience.  Finally, the participant has demonstrated how to create a culturally responsive lesson using a picture book and 3-Act Task for implementation in the classroom.