Factoring Polynomials

I was able to teach today (well, half the time). The first half, Mr. Griffin introduced factoring and then I led them through an example. I realized that the kids here aren’t used to speaking up in class without raising their hands so when I just asked kids to complete my sentences, they didn’t know what to do. There was also the problem of the same few kids raising their hands to answer questions. I know they know, and in a class so large, it helps to have different people speak up in class. Then there are those kids who never talk in class because they just choose not to (it’s not that they are shy, it’s that they just don’t want to talk), even though these kids finish the homework first…so they obviously get it.

By the way, Mr. Kahn, today was one of the three possible days that I had invited you to come in and watch because this was a lesson day, not a review day.  

Anyways, I went through an example of factoring that was a bit challenging for people to see, but when I asked kids to tell me what to do and say what I should write, I knew they understood it. Furthermore, I related today’s factoring lesson with solving quadratic equations using Zero Product Property (actually, the best thing I have done in math). Maybe next week, I can show them completing the square, and the square-root rule, both good things to know before Algebra II next year, although they won’t have to know it for the quiz next week. I feel like I am connecting with the kids better, I’m more relatable because I live in Southborough and I went to Trottier. They seem to listen to me, and I like giving them opportunity to speak up, instead of me just lecturing. I think they listen to me more that way; they’re less bored. I know that when I have seen other student teachers take on the class, they don’t get much of a response in questions because their questions are very statement-like, more rhetorical. I see the kids lose attention in those situations, so I made sure that I wasn’t mumbling and I’d get students to participate as much as I can.