MA-01 Getting Ready for Algebra by Using Virtual Manipulatives
This course will prepare teachers to use virtual manipulatives to help their students get ready for algebra. Participants will explore the 17 Algebra Readiness indicators developed by the SREB (Southern Region Education Board) and ETS (the Educational Testing Service), including the five "process" indicators and the twelve "content and skills" indicators. Participants will learn how they can use virtual manipulatives and other technologies to help their students gain proficiency in order to be successful algebra students. Participants will complete a technology enhanced classroom project for their students that is aligned to NCTM and state standards.
MA-02 Differentiating Instruction to Accommodate Learning Styles in Mathematics
Addressing the individual learning styles of students can be a challenge for teachers. The World Wide Web contains a vast number of resources to assist teachers in understanding and planning for the different avenues through which students learn best. Suitable for participants of all grade levels and subject areas, this course will review a range of web sites providing information about learning theory related to learning styles and multiple intelligences, as well as resources to assist teachers in both identifying students' learning styles and intelligences and engaging students in activities which best suit those styles and intelligences. Participants will become familiar with teaching strategies and tools targeted for each learning style and intelligence and develop a preliminary lesson plan using those strategies and tools.
MA-03 Using Patterns to Develop Algebraic Thinking
In this course for middle school teachers of mathematics, participants will explore the nature of algebraic thinking and develop strategies for encouraging the development of algebraic thinking in their students. Through readings, video clips, and examination of student work, participants will learn to: 1) recognize and build on opportunities for algebraic thinking in a variety of mathematics contexts; 2) analyze their students' algebraic thinking; and 3) pose questions that encourage the development of algebraic thinking. Participants will also produce a lesson plan that incorporates the key concepts of the course.
MA-04 Using Real Data in Math Classrooms
Technology tools and web-based materials provide important ways for math educators to meet local and national standards that emphasize problem solving and making connections between mathematics, other disciplines and the real world. This course will enable middle and high school math teachers the opportunity to explore a range of web-based resources and exemplary projects which utilize technology to support these goals. Participants will learn how to find sources of real data on the web and explore technology tools that help students model, analyze, visualize and make sense of these data. Participants will complete the course with a collection of resources and beginning project ideas that serve their curricular goals.
MA-05 Using Technology in the Elementary Math Classroom
In this course, participants will explore technologies that can be used in elementary math instruction in kindergarten through sixth grade. Participants will review NCTM and state standards and examine the ways in which tools like virtual manipulatives, calculators, spreadsheet programs, online data sources, and applets can support these goals. In particular, the course will address ways in which technology can support elementary algebra, geometry, and data analysis standards. Participants will leave the course with complete lesson plans for integrating technology into instruction in their own classrooms.
MA-06 Using Models to Understand Fractions
This course provides an opportunity for teachers of grades 3 through 5 to explore how mathematical models can be used to promote a deep understanding of fractions and fractional relationships. All too often, students are taught mechanical ways to make sense out of fractions, whether in the form of an addition algorithm or a procedure that produces equivalent fractions. This course offers alternative ideas for fraction instruction and is premised on the belief that students can come to understand fractions in a number of different ways. Completion of a student interview and a final project are integral parts of this course. A variety of readings, applets, and videos form the content of this course, and participants are expected to share ideas with their online colleagues in the discussion forums.
MA-07 Algebraic Thinking in the Elementary School
This course will enable you to learn how to include opportunities in the upper elementary curriculum for children to think about basic algebraic concepts, and to appreciate the importance of algebraic thinking. You will read and discuss relevant research on the importance of algebraic thinking in elementary school instruction and explore a variety of problems that can be used with your students to develop their algebraic thinking. You will investigate student misconceptions about the sign “=” and why this is such a pivotal concept in elementary mathematics. For the final project, you will learn how to design and “algebrafy” activities which encourage algebraic thinking that can be immediately integrated into your classroom practice.
MA-08 Proportional Reasoning
In this course, you will learn about different components and levels of proportional reasoning. You will complete classroom tasks that illustrate ways to help your students develop stronger conceptual understanding about the components of proportional reasoning. You will explore both video and written examples of student work and will conduct a student interview in order to reflect on how students approach proportional reasoning and how to identify evidence of proportional reasoning among students. For the final project, you will create a lesson that targets a component of proportional reasoning and incorporates questioning techniques learned in the course. You will also provide a rationale for the lesson that relates to the material learned in the course and reflect on your own learning.
MA-09 A Conceptual Introduction to Functions: Using Visual Models
In this course, you will learn strategies to help students in grades 6-8 develop a strong conceptual understanding of function through the use of several different visual models. You will become familiar with common student misconceptions related to functions, as well as classroom tasks that address these misconceptions. You will complete and create classroom tasks that will allow your students to make connections between multiple representations of functions and to explore both linear and non-linear functions. In addition, you will explore the use of technology in supporting student learning about functions and will learn to use an analysis tool to evaluate various online applets. Your final project will be to develop a classroom activity that incorporates the use of technology focused on students’ conceptual understanding of function, and you will reflect on your learning in the course.
MA-10 Promoting Mathematical Discourse in Grades K-4
Ask a group of elementary school students to name a language, and chances are they will not reply “mathematics.” Yet from the time young children begin going to school, they are expected to discuss their mathematical thinking using the vocabulary, structures, and ideas of mathematics. In this module, participants will learn why communicating about mathematics is important for young students, as well as why it can be so difficult for them. They will consider how math and literacy instruction intersect in the elementary classroom, and explore ways of pushing students to explain their thinking beyond “I just know the answer.” Participants will learn questioning strategies that can help students communicate, justify, and defend their mathematical ideas, and watch videos of real classroom teachers using these strategies. By the end of this module, participants will have created a lesson plan that integrates communication-based activities into their elementary math instruction.
MA-11 Exploring the Common Core Standards for Mathematical Practices
The Common Core Math Standards describe eight Standards for Mathematical Practice applicable to students of all grades. Different than the grade-specific content standards, these practices describe the habits of mind--the ways of thinking about math--that mathematicians and successful students use. In this course, participants will explore and unpack the eight math practices, learning what they mean and how they can be developed across all grades. Participants will read articles to deepen their understanding of the practices, watch videos to see how other teachers are fostering the practices, listen to interviews with experts, and collaboratively develop ideas and strategies for addressing the practices. Participants will develop or rework a lesson to address two or more of the mathematical practices that can be used in the classroom now.
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Last updated February 25, 2015