Gearing up for the Common Core is both exciting, yet can be overwhelming.  This Top Ten List of activities are designed as different ways to process the Math Common Core Standards.  They could be used in a whole group setting, small group, professional learning communities, or for individual learners.  The Ten Activities are linked to more detailed information. I hope you find some of these helpful in your district.

Food for thought videos:

As I have been working with districts, there has become an increased emphasis in aligning the district assessment process to one that is aligned with the CCSS assessment.  As I write this blog, I am aware that the assessment has not been created.  Our state is a member of the Smarter Balanced Consortium.  The assessment itself has not been created, but some guidelines have. 

A few things I know:

A.   It will not just be a multiple choice assessment only

As schools struggle to make sense of the new Common Core Standards in Mathematics they are often left overwhelmed and highly anxious.  Change is hard for most everyone.  How does one balance the classroom, dealing with management and current standards while trying to learn the new expectations brought on by CCSS? 

The eight mathematical practices is the bi-product of two very important research products, the five process standards from Principles and Standards for School Mathematics and the five mathematical proficiencies from Adding It Up.  For educators to truly understand the 8 mathematical practices we must go deeper into where the practices originated.

As schools struggle to make sense of the new Common Core Standards in Mathematics they are often left overwhelmed and highly anxious.  Change is hard for most everyone.  How does one balance the classroom, dealing with management and current standards while trying to learn the new expectations brought on by CCSS? 

The past couple of weeks I began blogging about the 8 Mathematical Practices from the Common core.  I have finished Mathematical Practice # 1, Mathematical Practice # 2, Mathematical Practice #3, Mathematical Practice #4, Mathematical Practice #5, Mathematical Practice #6, and Mathematical #7.  This week the focus is on CCSS Mathematical Practice #8 - Look for and express reg

As educators, English as a second language learners are always a concern.  In the world of mathematics we must understand that we have 100% of our students who will have language issues in mathematics.  Math is essential a second language for all of our students.  Math vocabulary and symbolism is critical in the understanding of mathematical concepts.  In order to communicate mathematically precisely students must be able to "use clear definitions in discussion with others and in their own reasoning."  -- CCSS (Mathematical Practice #6 - Attend to Precision)

The very first sentence from CCSS - Mathematical Practice #5 - Use Appropriate Tools Strategically is "Mathematically proficient students consider the available tools when solving a mathematical problem."  So how does one go about accomplishing this goal in the classroom? 

I first heard of Dan Meyer from his TED video regarding real-world math where he outlines the problems with today's math textbooks and the lack of engagement of our students.  Dan has the desire to continue his work in changing math education in the United States.  Through his blogs and videos he discusses four signs of how we should know that we are doing math-reasoning wrong in our classrooms:

The Common Core Standards are sweeping across the nation. As states are gearing up to apply these new standards, I deeply hope they give due diligence not only to "what" students should learn, but also to "how" it should be learned. Research used for the Common Core includes the NCTM process standards and the strands of mathematical proficiencies as specified in Adding It Up.