Calling All Numeracy Instructors! We Want to Hear from You!

We hope to see many of you at the MCTM Conference on May 4-5. It will be an excellent opportunity to learn from other numeracy instructors from around the state and from a variety of contexts.

In addition to attending the MCTM Conference, here are a couple of other ways to get engaged with the ABE math community and share what’s working for you. We know that there are great things happening in ABE numeracy classes everyday, and your colleagues want to hear about them!

Lead a numeracy station at regionals

Do you have a great math activity that you do with your learners? Do you want to share an idea with other ABE professionals, but do not need an entire session to do so? Does the thought of presenting at Summer Institute seem overwhelming? Are you comfortable speaking to a small group? If you answered “yes” to these questions, we would love to hear from you!

The MN Numeracy Advisory Team is excited to be facilitating a new presentation option at all three Regional events: numeracy stations. We are looking for multiple presenters to share individual activities to a rotating group of participants. Each presenter would share a 10-15 minute activity, 4-5 times as participants travel from station to station. Think of it as an interactive poster session where you share one concrete idea with an activity that is working in your classroom.

Presentation ideas could include, but are not limited to:

• working with manipulatives
• building critical thinking skills
• developing conceptual understanding
• use of open-ended questions
• teaching math through technology
• useful websites
• project-based learning
• facilitating use of the math practices
• other ideas you may have!

If you are interested in leading a numeracy station at your regional event, please SIGN UP HERE >>

Have questions? Contact either >Rebecca Strom ([email protected]) or Molly Liberto ([email protected]).

Please note: A stipend is available for presenters!

Present a poster or session at Summer Institute (SI)

Are you going to Summer Institute? There are so many great presentations to help us all discover new ways to engage our students and help them build their knowledge and skills. But where do those presentations come from?

People engaged in the classroom, just like you, create those presentations to help their fellow teachers. You have done some great math lessons or activities in your classroom, so why not share them? Your fellow teachers are counting on you to help them with a topic that you may have some insight into. We would love to have you participate at SI, and there are a variety of ways to do so.

An easy way to start is by doing a poster session after lunch on Thursday. Create a display to showcase your idea and talk to your colleagues about it as they browse the poster sessions. This more informal presentation option is ideal for new presenters and is a fun way to network with others from around the state around numeracy topics!

There’s also the option to present a 45-minute or 90-minute concurrent session. Interested in presenting but would like some support? Try one of these:

• Organize or participate in a panel presentation or roundtable discussion. With others in the discussion, you have help and support with answering only the questions that you are comfortable with. Your voice also helps support the others.
• Invite a colleague to co-present with you.
• Recruit a few colleagues to be table coaches during your presentation.
• Ask for assistance! Many of the MN Numeracy Advisory Team members are willing to review your proposal for a session and may be able to help you develop it. If you would like someone to help you or review your idea, you can contact Amber Delliger, ATLAS Numeracy Coordinator, at [email protected] and she will have someone contact you.

The SI committee would love to be able to have math presentations throughout the three-day schedule.  Good ideas are too valuable to not share with your fellow teachers, so watch for the call for proposals next week!

Looking for a presentation idea?

Are you interested in presenting but not sure what to focus on? Here are some of the numeracy related professional development (PD) needs that emerged from the recent statewide PD survey:

• Level E math content
• Algebra
• Quadratic equations
• Fractions
• ESL and Math
• Integrating math and language instruction
• Best practices for numeracy instruction in the multi-level classroom or one-room schoolhouse
• Building conceptual understanding
• Incorporating numeracy instruction into other content areas
• Assessments- formative and summative
• Standards-aligned numeracy activities and projects

We’re looking forward to hearing what’s working for you!