Week Four 1512

I am going to start with a memory that I have of Geometry as a freshman in High School.  I was not very good at sitting and watching my teacher explain angles and lines and degrees on the chalkboard (Yes chalkboard.  I used to clap erasers as a chore after school!).  I distinctly remember taking a test that had 25 questions on it.  I did all the homework, I studied from the text, and then took the test.  I ended up getting 13/25 on the test.  I was devastated!  After class, I approached my teacher, practically in tears, and asked "what now?"  He looked at me and said "I have no idea, but you would have done better had you just guessed the answers rather than tried to figure them out."  Ugh!  That was not the response I was looking for.  I walked away from class that day telling myself that I have no ability in math and my teacher doesn't have much faith in me either.

As I reflect on that day, I know that my teacher didn't mean to crush my hopes of becoming an excellent math student.  Math tends to be difficult and requires extra effort for a person, like me, who doesn't see the equation or the answer or the reason for the answer.  I have no ill-feelings toward my teacher and I do remember that he had me come in after school for about a week as he helped me, but I was already mentally checked out.  Note to self:  as a teacher, never use sarcasm.

All of that to say that I was interested to read about the NCTM Geometry Standards for grades 3-5.  (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics).  As I scrolled through the information, I noticed how much the concept of visualization and relationships between shapes is stressed in the Standards.  "The study of geometry in grades 3-5 requires thinking and doing.  As students sort, build, draw, model, trace, measure, and construct, their capacity to visualize geometric relationships will develop."  (NCTM)  As I think about teaching, I am thankful that the standards are explicit in their objectives.  I see the standards that are written for all the subjects as a great tool and assurance that students are getting the best possible education they can get.  I look forward to challenging my students in their educational goals and will guard my tongue against the kind of "knee-jerk" remark that was said to me.