Going Beyond the Task When Building Thinking Classrooms with the Special Guests in Our Book Study

Transcript

Welcome fellow Recovering Traditionalists to: Going Beyond the Task When Building Thinking Classrooms with the Special Guests in Our Book Study

We are fully geared up for this summer’s book study on Mathematics Tasks for the Thinking Classroom Grades K-5 by Peter Liljedahl and Maegan Giroux.  In the last episode I said we would be having some special guests and this episode is the last one I’m talking about the book study so I thought I’d let you know who they are.

We’ve decided to change the format, somewhat.  Each week of the book study you’ll get a link that will have a video by Rosalba or myself along with the reading prompts for that week.  Then later in the week you can hop on live to the Q & A with our special guest.  We decided to do that later in the week to give you time to read and actually have questions.  We will start our Q & A with questions that have been submitted by our Build Math Minds members and then if there is time we will open it up for everyone.

The book study will officially start on July 14. Join now so you can get the discount code we have from the publisher that gives you 20% off and free shipping in the United States. 

So who are our special guests?

The first week of the book study we will be hosting Tammy McMorrow.  Tammy has been teaching first grade in Kuna, Idaho for 31 years. She started implementing Building Thinking Classrooms by Peter Liljedahl in January of 2022 and quickly became won over by its magic and messiness. Watching her young students think, really think, lit a fire in her, and she became determined to start a movement — to spread the news of BTC to whomever would listen. She started a Facebook page for K-2 teachers, led and co-led book studies both locally and for her state, provided PD at a variety of conferences, and recently created a podcast for elementary teachers who are implementing thinking classrooms called Little Minds, Big Thinkers. She’s forever grateful for the power of Peter Liljedahl’s research and how it has transformed mathematics in her classroom. I can’t wait for you to be able to ask questions of an educator who is doing this in her classroom.

The two weeks in the middle we get the pleasure of having the co-author of the book, Maegan Giroux, join us for the Q & A’s.  Maegan is a dedicated mathematics instructional coach, specializing in supporting teachers in the implementation of BTC. She firmly believes in the power of growth mindset, productive struggle, and Thinking Classrooms to foster optimal learning environments. Throughout her career, she has provided guidance to educators in over 60 classrooms across diverse demographics as they establish their own thinking classrooms. Currently pursuing her master’s thesis at the University of Regina, she is deeply passionate about disrupting power dynamics within mathematics classrooms. Alongside her academic pursuits, Maegan is the co-author “Building Thinking Math Tasks K-5,” with Peter Liljedahl. So we are super excited to have Maegan join us.

The last week we will get to ask Kim Rimbey questions.  Kim has devoted her career to supporting districts, leaders, teachers, and parents as they transform teaching and learning experiences at all levels. A veteran classroom teacher and seasoned leader, Kim holds a Ph. D. in curriculum and instruction, a Master’s degree in educational leadership and early childhood education, and is National Board Certified in Early Adolescent Mathematics. A recipient of the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching, Kim has authored and co-authored many publications, including Corwin’s Mastering Math Manipulatives and Meaningful Small Groups in Math. Kim currently serves as the Chief Learning Officer and CEO at KP® Mathematics and an Official Building Thinking Classrooms Consultant alongside Peter Liljedahl.

If you’d love some extra guidance as you read through the book, make sure to get registered so you can participate in these Q & A sessions.

Go to BuildMathMinds.com/bookstudy25 to join us.

Until next week, my fellow Recovering Traditionalists, keep letting your students explore math, keep questioning, and most importantly, keep Building Math Minds.