Build Math Confidence   May 2016 Volume 84
May Events
Saturday May 21 New York City Math Project Lehman College, Bronx, NY
Tuesday May 24 Datacation Expo, NYC
Accessible Mathematics
"Are the students learning?  is a key component of the philosophy of Steve Leinwand, former National Council of Supervisors of Math president.  His book provides ideas for improving instruction by and posing questions like:
"Which class do you want your own child to be in?  Which class do you want your nieces and nephews and  brothers and sisters to be in?  Which class do the young people of this country deserve?".
Leinwand has visited 1000s of Math classrooms and offers 10 shifts to increase student learning and make Math accessible.  This short book offers 10 Calls to Action to raise the understanding and achievement of every one of your students.  Discover how minor shifts in teaching can put student learning into high gear like using cumulative review to keep skills and understandings up to date. 
Annual Math Meetings April 2016 Cali
The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics annual meeting was held in San Fran while the National Council of Supervisors of Math was held across the bay in Oakland earlier the same week.

The conference within the conference was called Shadowcon16 and was held on Friday April 15 with Robert Kaplinsky Periscope-ing the fun!  It continued on Twitter last week with Gail Burrill, Robert K and Rochelle Gutierrez
It extends into this week with Graham Fletcher, Kaneka Turner and Brian Bushart at 9PM EST with the hashtag #shadowcon16.   Hope to see you there!!

The Nation's Report Card
The 12th grade results in Math and Reading were released on April 27 and were mostly flat to lower which inspired NCTM to Call for Changes in the HS Math Curriculum.
The National Assessment of Educational Progress is every 2 years in the United States so latest sample items are actually from 2013.  I wonder if 11th grade might be better to survey students as for example in New York State, only 3 years of Math are required but 4 years of History and ELA.
2013 Grade 12 NAEP Sample Questions
Sample Questions for Grades 4, 8 and 12
Brain Teaser
 
Answers to last month's brain teaser: Roman numerals
Click here for the question and solution to April's Brain Teaser  
Thanks, Robin the Math Lady Schwartz
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