School is winding down ... whew! Since our state test is taking the place of exams, we aren't giving an exam next week. That means there is a 2 hour void to be filled. Do you ever show movies in your math class? I know at some schools showing movies is a real no-no. That doesn't seem to be the case in my current placement. But I have mixed feelings about "just" showing a movie.
I'm trying to reconcile showing a movie next week. Can you help me? Any suggestions of what to show?
Oh, but I think there are so many great math lessons you could do. I know my son (HS school senior) asks me if he could just stay home when he knows that the teacher will just show a movie. You didn't mention what movie you have in mind. But often teachers say they can't do this lesson and that lesson because they don't have time, so after testing is a perfect time to do these.
ReplyDeleteHi Fawn - thanks for responding. We took our test on May 6, so we have been using this month to do some lessons that we didn't have time for before.
DeleteThe movie I'm considering is Stand and Deliver. It's my favorite "math" movie. I want my students to see a group of students learn to love math, learn to persevere. I wish I had shown a clip of it at the beginning of the year ... putting that down as a possibility. I have some amazing mathletes and then I have some who need inspiration. They believe that they "can't" do math.
Our PLC plans together ... and so far I'm hearing them say they aren't doing math next week. So that's why I thought I'd put my post out there and see what others are thinking :)
By the way ... your blog is awesome! I drop by every week. I've been telling folks at school that there is this awesome group of math teachers online ... the professional development through reading blogs is the best! Thank you for sharing.
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ReplyDeleteI was very anti-movie a year ago, but this year I showed two in my Pre-Calculus class: 21 (during probability) and Stand and Deliver (end of the year fun for seniors).
ReplyDeleteI wasn't a huge fan of it, but I've loosened up a bit - the kids have so many time sucks in addition to math class that sometimes a break does them good and lets them just relax for a few days. Both times I felt the days after the movie were very productive, so I think there's something to be said for "days off" that can still be intellectually stimulating.
Hey - thanks for your thoughtful reply! I have been anti-movies ... and certainly think that in some classes they may be well overdone.
DeleteI have been out of the classroom for several years, and in returning I am noticing how attached our students are to video. I want to explore ways to use video clips in my teaching next year ... noticed how this website: http://mathbits.com/MathBits/MathMovies/ResourceList.htm provided ideas. I don't want more worksheets but to use the movies as springboards for math discussion.
For this coming week ... a movie may truly be a time filler ... opportunity to let kids relax for a day.
One more thing ... stopped by your blog ... love the post on Eliminating Work in the Math Class!
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