Archive for 2018

Infusing Mathematics into Storytime

I recently had the privilege of attending a Colloquium on Early Mathematics Learning with Dr. Megan Franke from UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies.  The workshop was put on by Grand View University’s Jacobson Institute for Innovation in Education.  Dr. Franke is the 2018 Jacobson Visiting Scholar.

During the workshop, Franke demonstrated some ways to infuse any story time with mathematics, beginning with a Describe, Draw, Describe.

Describe, Draw, Describe

Geometry is all about relationships and movement in space.  Picture books offer opportunities to have conversations with young learners about spatial relations.

According to Stanford University’s DREME TE website, which is a math resource for early childhood educators:

Spatial language provides children with essential tools to describe their environments and negotiate their wants and needs (“No, I don’t want that one, I want the one under it!”). And, it turns out, adults’ and young children’s use of spatial language predicts children’s skills at spatial problem solving later on. Spatial language includes words describing location/position (under, in front of), attributes (long, high, side, angle, same, symmetrical), orientation and mental transformation(left, turn, match), and geometric shape names (rectangular prism, triangle, sphere). [Photo from DREME TE blog]

Dr. Franke demonstrated an activity she called Describe, Draw, Describe. It’s a technique that anyone can couple with story time to help kids practice their spatial and communication skills.  Note that the activity is not about copying the original image, it’s about practicing spatial relations.

Franke used the book There’s a Bear on My Chair by Ross Collins as her example.

Here’s how Describe, Draw, Describe works:

  1. After reading a picture book, pick one place in story to go back to.
  2. DESCRIBE: Return to that page or picture and ask “What do you notice?”
  3. DRAW: Ask students to “Draw what you see.”
  4. DESCRIBE: When they are done drawing, invite them to “Talk about what you drew.”

Tips for Educators and Parents:

When reading as story as a catalyst for a mathematics conversation, Dr. Franke suggests:

  • During the story, pick one place to pause and ask a math question, which could be based on numbers, spatial relationships, shapes, etc. Be mindful of interrupting too much and think carefully about your questioning.
  • Don’t intervene too much! Make it your practice to put the story first, keeping it alive by limited interruptions.
  • Pick one place to go back after the story is over. (This is where you do Describe, Draw, Describe)

Note: Draw, Describe, Draw can also be done using works of art for an art and mathematics infusion.

Scaffolding Skills: Early Childhood and Beyond

Reading picture books is a strategy to help develop mathematical language. It puts the terms into context and provides a visual way to remember them. When students have the language of spacial relationships, they have a scaffold to support geometry skills. This helps them articulate directional relationships, draw models, and understand use of space and time.

Consider this strategy when drawing simple geometric shapes and turning those shapes into 3-D renderings. An example is when a square becomes a cube so that a student can determine volume. They can draw a better model if they understand spatial relationships, and modeling is the key to simple and complex geometric shapes.

To the left are a few more books that lend themselves to spatial skills, but any picture book can be used.

 

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Want to Learn More?

For more information about this resource and more can be found at http://prek-math-te.stanford.edu/.  The DREME TE resources are intended for teacher educators, and are available free with a log in.

Post by Dr. Sarah Derry, SC STEM Hub Manager and parent to three energetic boys.

This blog is dedicated to connecting STEM and literacy. If you have ideas for this blog OR would like to be a guest blogger, please email the Hub.

SCI Book Recommendation–Grace Hopper: Queen of Computer Code

SCI Scale-Ups

     The Science Center of Iowa (SCI) set out to do ground-breaking work all across Iowa. If all students couldn’t get to the SCI, then the SCI would try to reach all students.
     To accomplish this, they created STEM curriculum for PreK-12 students: Pint-Size Science and Making STEM Connections. Both programs are part of the Iowa STEM Initiative’s Scale-Up Program, and both feature incredible books.
      We caught up with Jolie Pelds (pictured right), SCI’s Director of Innovative STEM Teaching. Pelds introduced us to the books featured in this year’s kits and her new favorite read–Grace Hopper: Queen of Computer Code written by Laurie Wallmark and illustrated by Katy Wu. When I asked Pelds why she liked it so much, she said “just look at the first page” (see it below).

Grace Hopper: Queen of Computer Code

“If you’ve got a good idea, and you know it’s going to work, go ahead and do it.”
–Grace Hopper
     Who was Grace Hopper? Even the end sheets tell the story: “Rule breaker. Chance taker. Troublemaker. AMAZING GRACE.” Beginning as an young girl interested in how everyday things worked, Hopper took things a part to learn more about them. Her parents encouraged her curiosity.
     At age seven, Hopper dismantled several clocks in her house to find out what made them tick. She finished high school two years early and then attended Vassar College. Dedicated to making a difference in the World War II effort, Hopper enlisted in the U.S. Navy and embarked on a lifelong military career writing computer programs.
    The book is full of delightful anecdotes. For example, after finding a moth trapped inside a navy computer, she coined the phrase computer bug.
“She didn’t wait for someone else to figure it out–she came up with solutions herself!”
–Jolie Pelds
     “It’s an awesome book,” said Pelds, “because she’s a rebel and a hacker in the way she thinks. She had the ability to take something difficult and make it easier. She didn’t wait for someone else to figure it out–she came up with solutions herself!”
     Hopper’s legacy lives on today. She revolutionized how we use computers, creating what would become COBOL, a common programming language that is still used around the world. Hopper served as a trailblazer for others, especially women, who wanted the challenge of solving difficult problems while defying expectations of the era.

Enter to WIN a CODE/STEM prize extravaganza! 

From Rosie Revere, Engineer to How to Code a Sand Castle to On a Beam of Light: the Story of Albert Einstein, do you have a favorite STEM picture book? If so, please send us an email with the 1.) title, 2.) author, and 3.) why you like it so much. All emails received will go into a drawing for a Code.org/STEM prize extravaganza!
  • Open: August 1, 2018
  • Deadline: all emails must be received on or before August 10, 2018
  • Email: lisa.morlock@drake.edu
  • Announcements: all prize recipients will be notified via email by August 12, 2018

Get This Book: What’s Math Got To Do With It?

The Hub asked Drake professor Dr. Maryanne Huey for ideas on working with young students on math confidence. She recommended the incredible resource: What’s Math Got To Do With It by Jo Boaler. Currently, Boaler is a professor of mathematics education at Stanford University. She also created a website called YouCubed and given TED Talks.

This is one of those rare, important books that every new parent and teacher should read. Boaler explains the importance of introducing math literacy at a young age. She identifies classrooms that consistently develop strong math students and how those teachers do it, and she looks at what parents can do to constantly enrich math at home.

Boaler cites a recent study in which the United States ranked 36 among 64 developed countries across the world. She says that when middle school students asked if they’d rather do math or eat broccoli, over half said they’d rather eat broccoli. While this is humorous, what’s not funny is that many students go into the world with insufficient math skills. The top paying, fastest-growing jobs in the world require employees with strong math skills. If you want a great career = learn math!

But the best part of the book, for me, involves the challenges interspersed through the book. Here are three to check out, but know all of her recommendations are awesome.

1. Page 16: Fibonacci’s Sequence

We loved showing the Golden Ratio, as it’s proof math is everywhere. From the spiral of a snail shell to the spin of hurricane to the way a flower bloom opens, evidence is everywhere! Here’s a website that helps explain this concept. You’ll never walk outside again without thinking about math.

2. Page 170: Tangrams

Introduce geometry in a fun way with tangrams. Preschool kids love the colors and older kids enjoy the puzzle challenge of the project. There’s a website that offers free, online tangrams for teachers and parents to use.

3. Page 211: Race to 20

This is a simple game two people can play in the car. In the game, two people race to reach 20, staring at 0 and using integrals of 1 or 2. While you’ll eventually realize the key to success, the game can be modified by changing the ending number or the integrals used.

Not everyone needs to major in life, but the problem-solving skills learned transfer to all of life’s situations.

In the last chapter, Boaler talks about math’s future: “Let’s move together from the mathematics trauma and dislike that has pervaded our society in recent years to a brighter mathematical future for all, charged with excitement, engagement and learning.”

Kids are born to love numbers. From the first time they hold up their pointer finger when asked their age, to figuring out how much candy they can buy with piggy bank savings. And it takes all of us to nurture their curiosity and ability. If you want to learn how, check out this book.

Humans Helping Nature: If Sharks Disappeared + Me and Moto

“Modern day storytellers carry the message of environmental stewardship to future generations,” states the Nature Generation website. I’d go a step further and say that the readers of these books will also become our environmental stewards. Recently, this group started a book award, and the 2018 Green Earth Book Award List was just released. It has something on it for everyone! Introducing a child to nature books is the first step to creating an environmentally conscious and scientifically literate adult. 

This week, we have a guest blogger for you. Emma, a fourth grader, is helping us out with a post. She loves animals, nature photography, and books. Her favorite food combination is chips and queso. And her favorite place to go in nature is the beach. Emma, at left, is waiting for the perfect shot. “You have to be patient to get a good picture,” she says.

In her own words:

Hi, my name is Emma. This past week, I read lots of books. I think you should read these two: If Sharks Disappeared and Moto And Me. They all talk about how humans can help save animals.

  1. If Sharks Disappeared
    Written and illustrated by Lily Williams

In this book, the main character is a little girl who talked about what would happen if sharks disappeared. Sharks are very helpful! Most sharks typically eat slow, weak prey. If sharks don’t eat them, pinnipeds would take over the ocean. Pinnipeds are animals like seals and walruses. They eat lots of fish. Soon the fish would be gone, then the pinnipeds would die out. Plankton would take over the ocean, and it would become a thick sludge of pink mess. Yuck!

Sharks have been around for 450 million years. Currently, over 400 different species exist. We need sharks in the world, so don’t buy anything with shark in it, like jaws, oil, fins, soup, etc.). It’s the least we can do.

  1. Moto and Me
    Written by Suzi Eszterhas

In Moto and Me, Suzi Eszterhas, a wildlife photographer, went to Masai Mara, a wildlife reserve in Kenya to photograph animals. One day, a park ranger was taking a jeep with people in it on a safari. Moto’s mom was taking Moto to safety, when she heard the sound of a vehicle approaching them. She quickly dropped Moto off on the side of the road, and then skidded away.

When the safari jeep went past, the ranger saw Moto and thought the mom would come back and get him, but after a long while, Moto’s mom didn’t come back. So, the park ranger, who was still sitting there with the safari jeep, picked Moto up (he was only 2 weeks old) and took him back to the ranger station. This trip took hours. When Moto arrived, the rangers knew Suzi Eszterhas, the author, had been studying wildcats. They called Suzi, and asked if she wanted to be a foster mom. Suzi said YES!, and took him in.

One day, Suzi didn’t see Moto, and she knew that a leopard had been prowling around, and she thought: “Oh no he’s dead!” Then, one day she went on safari, and saw Moto. It was such a happy reunion. About a year and a half later, when Suzi returned to the US, rangers where still watching Moto. One day Suzi heard that Moto was now a father, and had kittens of his own! He is all grown up and safe in Africa.

 

 

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We are seeking READERS! If you’d like to read a book on the 2018 Green Earth Book Award Shortlist (or any STEMie-type book), we want to hear from you! Email lisa.morlock@drake.edu and share your thoughts on the story. You can answer a few simple questions or even create your own post. Happy reading!

 

Book Review: What Can’t Wait

Click here for teacher/writer resources.

By day, Dr. Sarah Derry manages the SC STEM Hub and a busy family life. Still, she makes time to read each night, and her choices often involve books with a STEM element.

Today, she’s sharing one of her favorites: What Can’t Wait, by award-winning author Ashley Hope Pérez. The book is a fictional narrative that explores some of the real-world challenges faced by youth under-represented in STEM.

One of the things Derry likes about the book is that contains an important example that girls like math and are good at it! “This book helps illustrate social factors that can complicate a student’s academic success,” she said.  “I wish I had read it before my first year as a high school teacher.”

Derry on a quest for the book.

Through a program called Teach for America, Derry found her calling in STEM education. As a high school teacher in the Houston schools, Derry realized first-hand some of the struggles urban students face in their journey toward academic success. This book parallels those real-life stories.

The main character, Marisa, has an affinity for calculus.  She is the 17-year-old daughter of immigrant parents and, potentially, the first in her family to attend college.  Throughout the narrative, the reader witnesses Marisa’s struggle to define her expectations for herself among the conflicting expectations of her teachers, friends, y familia.

Derry recommends What Can’t Wait for a wide audience, which follows the growing trend of YA books moving into adult fiction. “This is the perfect book for middle/high school students and educators,” said Derry. “Whether they come from a background that is under-represented in STEM or not, the theme of defining oneself among the expectations of others (real or perceived) is universal.”

Author Ashley Hope Perez

This is just one of Pérez’s three critically-acclaimed books.  In addition to What Can’t Wait, check out The Knife and the Butterfly and her most recent, Out of Darkness. She currently teaches world literature at Ohio State University and conducts research in the areas of Latin American literature, Latina/o literature, and narrative ethics.

Here’s what Kirkus Reviews thought about Pérez’s book:
“Pérez fills a hole in YA lit by giving Marisa an authentic voice that smoothly blends Spanish phrases into dialogue and captures the pressures of both Latina life and being caught between two cultures…. Un magnífico debut.”

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