Update #41 - April 2014 - Oregon Department of Education

OREGON MATHEMATICS TEACHER UPDATE #41
April 2014
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Welcome to the 41 edition of the Mathematics Teacher Update! This electronic newsletter is designed to provide
up-to-date Oregon mathematics information directly to classroom teachers. Please remind your colleagues that they
can subscribe to this newsletter at: http://listsmart.osl.state.or.us/mailman/listinfo/or_math_teachers.
1. PAEMST Deadline extended to April 15, 2014: Nominate an outstanding K-6 mathematics teacher today
2. Revised Instructional Materials Adoption Schedule
3. 2014 NW Mathematics Conference
4. 2014 Oregon Math Leaders (OML) Conference
5. Khan Academy Unveils Free Math Exercises for Students Aligned to Common Core
6. CC Better Lesson site offers free Common Core aligned resources
7. Searchable database of CCSS aligned tasks from NYC Department of Education.
8. Updated LearnZillion resources
9. Parent Toolkit to help navigate a child’s academic journey
10. Updated CCSSM Resources on ODE website for English Learners and Parent FAQ
11. Noetic Learning Math Contest – April 10, 2014
12. OCTM Professional Development Cadre Workshops
13. edWeb.net professional learning community Winter webinars
14. New articles on MSPnet:
15. Article: A Parent's Guide to 21st-Century Learning
16. NCTM SmartBrief Newsletter
17. Mathematics Assessment Project (MAP): Free resources for educators
18. Inside Mathematics Website: Free resources for educators
19. Google Apps for Education
20. ODE Resources (in every issue)
21. Request for Articles
1. PAEMST Deadline extended to April 15, 2014: Nominate an outstanding K-6 mathematics teacher today
As we begin the new year, it is a great time to nominate an outstanding mathematics and science teachers for
the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST). The Awards recognize
outstanding K-12 teachers for their contributions in the classroom and to their profession. Winners of this Presidential
honor receive a $10,000 award from the National Science Foundation to be used at their discretion. They also receive
an expenses-paid trip to Washington, D.C. for an awards ceremony and several days of educational and celebratory
events, including visits with members of Congress and science agency leaders. These teachers become part of a
network of leaders in mathematics and science teaching and work to improve education at the local, state, and
national level.
One mathematics and one science teacher from each state can receive this award each year. The online
nomination period for K-6 Mathematics and Science Teachers is open until April 15, 2014. Please visit
www.paemst.org for more information.
2. Revised Instructional Materials Adoption Schedule
At the January 2014 meeting, the Oregon State Board of Education approved state staff recommendations to
begin work revising current state laws relating to the state review of instructional materials. The goal of a revised
process is to better support Oregon educators in selecting high quality student and teacher materials in all subjects. A
new process would aim to examine electronic and open source materials in addition to traditional print options.
The State Board also adopted a new mathematics review criteria for materials aligned to the Common Core
State Standards (CCSS). These criteria will support the local or regional review of available mathematics materials
aligned to the CCSS. Current laws allow for the local review of materials at any time while the state review process is
being revised. Use the link below to find the adopted version of the CCSS Mathematics criteria.
Click here to see the ODE announcement with revised schedule online.
Click here to see the revised CCSS mathematics criteria adopted by the state board in January.
Please contact Mark Freed (email: [email protected], phone: (503) 947-5610) if you have any
questions about the State Board's actions or how the local adoption of CCSS mathematics materials will be supported
by ODE.
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[OREGON MATHEMATICS TEACHER UPDATE #41]
April, 2014
3. 2014 NW Mathematics Conference
October 9-11 • Portland, OR
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The 53 Northwest Mathematics Conference will be in Portland, OR this fall as teachers at all levels come
together to share ideas, experiences, strategies and technologies. The theme of our conference is “Reaching the
Pinnacle in Mathematics”.
For more information, please visit the NWMC 2014 website at: http://www.northwestmathconf.org/NWMC2014/
4. 2014 Oregon Math Leaders (OML) Conference
August 2-4 • McMinnville, OR
Join us at this year’s Oregon Math Leaders conference August 2nd- 4th at Linfield College located in
McMinnville, Oregon. Hear from panels of professionals implementing Common Core and proficiency based grading
in their own classroom. In breakout sessions, learn games that not only get your students engaged but make them
think and learn how to turn your classroom into a place where students find their "inner mathematician", find new ways
(and rediscover old ways) to organize your students learning. Interact and engage with fellow math teachers from
across the state to share your resources, learn new ways to integrate technology into your math class. Answer age
old question---“Why is Algebra so hard?”’ and so much more! Sign up now at:
http://www.octm.org/octm-events/conferences/oregon-math-leaders-conference
5. Khan Academy Unveils Free Math Exercises for Students Aligned to Common Core
The Khan Academy site released this week a comprehensive set of free, interactive, online math exercises
meant to support the new Common Core State Standards in grades K through 12. The site enables students to go
through math problems at their own pace. Learn more online at: https://www.khanacademy.org/commoncore
6. CC Better Lesson site offers free Common Core aligned resources
CC.BetterLesson website has launched that offers free, year long, common core aligned lessons made by
teachers for teachers. Master Teachers contributing to the site represent schools all across the country and their hard
work is yours to explore and share. Learn more online at: http://cc.betterlesson.com/
7. Searchable database of CCSS aligned tasks from NYC Department of Education.
NYC educators and national experts are developing Common Core-aligned tasks embedded in a unit of study
to support schools in implementing the Citywide Instructional Expectations. Educators may choose to adopt these
resources in their entirety or adapt the materials to best address students’ diverse needs. Search a growing
assortment of Common Core-aligned tasks, units and student work by keyword, grade level, subject area and
Common Core Learning Standard.
http://schools.nyc.gov/Academics/CommonCoreLibrary/TasksUnitsStudentWork/default.htm
8. Updated LearnZillion resources
Learn Zillion has recently published another batch of lessons for grades 2-HS mathematics and ELA. There's
something here for almost everyone, but especially HS Math teachers. Find out more at: http://learnzillion.com/lessons
9. Parent Toolkit to help navigate a child’s academic journey
The Toolkit is designed to help you track and support your child’s progress at each stage. It includes an
academic growth chart, tips to help you support and encourage your child’s educational achievement, and guidance on
how to approach parent-teacher conferences. These resources will help you better support your child both
academically and personally. Learn more online at: http://www.parenttoolkit.com/
10. Updated CCSSM Resources on ODE website for English Learners and Parent FAQ
The ODE CCSS website has been updated to include more resources for English Language Learners and
Parent FAQ:
 English Language Learners: http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/page/?id=3823
 Updated Parent FAQ document:
http://www.ode.state.or.us/wma/teachlearn/commoncore/parent_workshop_faq.pdf
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11. Noetic Learning Math Contest – April 10, 2014
The 11th biannual Noetic Learning Math Contest, a national problem-solving contest for elementary
students(grades 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6). The contest will be held on Thursday April 10, 2014. Last year 19,000 students
representing 369 schools in 46 states participated in the contest.
For more information, visit the Noetic Math Contest at: http://www.noetic-learning.com/mathcontest/
12. OCTM Professional Development Cadre Workshops
Learn all about the latest topics in math in Oregon while enjoying other math enthusiasts from your local
region! For a current list of offerings, go to http://www.octm.org/pdc/professional-development-opportunities/
13. edWeb.net professional learning community Winter webinars
edWeb.net, a professional social network for the education community, and Action Learning Systems, Inc., a
national professional development company, announce the creation of an online professional learning community to
provide a forum for K-12 educators all across the nation to come together to learn about and discuss the
implementation of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). The community will be focused on issues from the
teacher perspective, but is open to all K-12 educators. There is no charge for educators to participate in the program
which will be promoted to more than 3 million K-12 educators across the country.
Register now for the next CCSS webinar:
Tuesday, April 15, 2014 - 4pm / Eastern Time
Understanding Operations: Building Fluency across the Grades
Tuesday, May 13, 2014 - 4pm / Eastern Time
Understanding Operations: Putting it All Together
More information online at: http://www.edweb.net/math
14. New articles on MSPnet:
 "Rigorous Math Courses for Middle-School Math Teachers," Gary Harris, Tara Stevens, Raegan
Higgins, Zenaida Aguirre, Xun Liu, WT Middle School Math Partnership, Research Council on
Mathematics Learning (RCML) Annual Conference, March 2014.
 "Summary of Research on the Effectiveness of Math Professional Development Approaches,"
Russell Gersten, Mary Jo Taylor, Tran D. Keys, Eric Rolfhus, Rebecca Newman-Gonchar, Regional
Educational Laboratory Southeast, January 2014.
 "Mathematics Teachers' Learning: A Conceptual Framework and Synthesis of Research," Lynn
Goldsmith, Helen M. Doerr, Catherine C. Lewis, Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education, February
2014.
 "The Development of Beginning Mathematics Teacher Pedagogical Content Knowledge," John K.
Lannin, Matthew Webb, Kathryn Chval, Fran Arbaugh, Sarah Hicks, Cynthia Taylor, Rebecca Bruton,
Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education, December 2013.
15. Article: A Parent's Guide to 21st-Century Learning
Download or share this PDF with grade-specific resources to help parents nurture 21st-century skills at home.
16. NCTM SmartBrief Newsletter
Designed specifically for the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, the NCTM SmartBrief is a FREE, daily
e-mail newsletter. By providing the latest need-to-know industry news and information, NCTM SmartBrief saves you
time and keeps you smart. To learn more visit: http://www.smartbrief.com/nctm/index.jsp?campaign=launch
17. Mathematics Assessment Project (MAP): Free resources for educators
The Mathematics Assessment Program (MAP) aims to bring to life the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) in
a way that will help teachers and their students turn their aspirations for achieving them into classroom realities.
Funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, MAP is a project of the long-established Mathematics Assessment
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Resource Service (MARS) collaboration between the University of California, Berkeley, the Shell Center at the
University of Nottingham, and the Silicon Valley Mathematics Initiative, working with school systems across the US
and UK to develop improved assessment. The materials from this project will exemplify CCSS in explicit down-to-earth
performance terms.
Mathematics Assessment Project (MAP) materials can be found online at: http://map.mathshell.org/materials/
18. Inside Mathematics Website: Free resources for educators
Inside Mathematics is a professional resource for educators passionate about improving students' mathematics
learning and performance. This site features classroom examples of innovative teaching methods and insights into
student learning, tools for mathematics instruction that teachers can use immediately, and video tours of the ideas and
materials on the site.
Inside Mathematics Website: http://www.insidemathematics.org/
Instructional videos indexed by the CCSSM Practices can be accessed online at:
http://www.insidemathematics.org/index.php/commmon-core-math-intro
19. Google Apps for Education
Google Apps are available for free to Oregon public schools on a voluntary basis and are designed to help schools
improve digital literacy and reduce IT costs while maintaining the security of school and student data. More
information is available at: http://oregonk-12.net/
20. ODE Resources (in every issue)
ODE CCSS Website: http://www.ode.state.or.us/go/commoncore
ODE Mathematics Homepage: http://www.ode.state.or.us/go/math
ODE Math Content page: http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/page/?id=1527
ODE Assessment page: http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/results/?id=239
ODE Math Problem Solving: http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/page/?id=501
ODE Math Problem Solving Tasks: http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/page/?id=281
21. Request for Articles
If you or your colleagues would like to submit articles to be included in this publication, please submit publicationready short articles for the Oregon Mathematics Teacher Update.
Please send your input to [email protected]. The newsletter will be posted and e-mailed early each month.
Please forward this e-mail to any interested educators who might also want to assist me. With your help, we can make
this an outstanding resource for all.
To submit an article to the Oregon Mathematics Teacher Update, just follow the simple steps:
1. Write an article
2. Keep it brief
3. Make sure that it is of interest to statewide or regional readers (subscribers are part of the mathematics education
network in Oregon, with a focus on k-12 mathematics or STEM education)
4. Including links is encouraged, but attachments are not allowed (please check the links before sending them)
5. Make sure that the articles are “publication ready”, with no heavy editing necessary
6. Use articles in earlier Updates as models (available at http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/page/?=1871)
7. Send articles in the body of an e-mail message to [email protected] at least four working days before the
first of the month.
For more information:
Contact Mark Freed: ODE Mathematics Specialist
[email protected] 503-947-5610
****Disclaimer****
The materials contained in the Department of Education’s Oregon Mathematics Teacher Update are drawn from
both internal and external sources and inclusion of external materials does not necessarily indicate
Oregon Department of Education endorsement.
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