#Mathsconf5
Thursday, October 17, 2019
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This fourth dimension the conference was held at Ponds Forge inwards Sheffield. The venue was a flake crude oil around the edges in addition to it was a shame that at that topographic point was no technical back upwards available for presenters, but Sheffield is ever a pleasance to visit. I travelled upwards afterward schoolhouse on Friday, spending my long develop journeying marker terrible S1 homeworks (note to self: instruct measure divergence again!). At Doncaster I bumped into some other Jo (the lovely @JoLocke1) - it was overnice to get got a companion for the residual of the journey. Following a brief halt at the hotel nosotros went to the pre-conference drinks at All Bar One. It was actually overnice to relax in addition to verbalise to people alongside usual interests - I enjoyed chatting most maths didactics alongside tweeps including (pictured below) @suzekward, @Ms_Kmp, @MoreThanMaths and @MsSteel_Maths.
In the morn I walked over to the conference alongside Jo Gledhill (the swain Lead Practitioner I'd met on my agency to Sheffield), Charmayne Bailey (also a Lead Practitioner, just dorsum from Shanghai) in addition to Mo Ladak (AST in addition to writer of the vivid website MathedUp!). What fantastic people - I couldn't get got asked for ameliorate company. On arrival I spotted not-so-grumpy Ed Southall (of solvemymaths.com - creator of the Maths Mr Men) - he kindly bought me a bacon sandwich in addition to told me most the book he's writing, which is going to live absolutely essential reading for maths teachers.
I'm at i time going to portion my thoughts on the iii workshops I attended - I'm non a non bad banker's complaint taker hence these are non detailed accounts, just a few highlights.
New GCSE - Andrew Taylor in addition to Craig Barton
This workshop left me slightly terrified most the novel GCSE! I honey Craig's operate but I've never seen him nowadays before. He is a highly entertaining in addition to engaging presenter in addition to I rattling much enjoyed listening to his thoughts in addition to insights. I'm quite familiar alongside the novel GCSE content - I've complied a whole page total of resources for the novel topics - but taking some other human face at sample examination questions, alongside Craig's commentary, was incredibly helpful. My immediate thoughts were:- The novel content on Foundation - for event trigonometry in addition to quadratics - is only non suitable for this tier. The inclusion of these novel topics seems to totally negate the signal of a two-tier GCSE. This form of nonsense makes me cross.
- In my persuasion our maths curriculum is far besides broad at Key Stage 4 (for both tiers) - instead of including novel topics, topics should get got been removed hence nosotros tin comprehend the of import materials inwards to a greater extent than depth. The authorities is desperate to improve our international maths rankings, but I believe that what nosotros instruct is a bigger employment than how nosotros instruct - in addition to inwards my persuasion the novel GCSE has gone inwards the incorrect direction.
- The novel GCSE volition include familiar topics inwards non-routine questions. I similar the mode of the novel GCSE questions rattling much but they volition for sure nowadays a large challenge for most students. The examples Craig showed clearly demonstrated this. We get got our operate cutting out!
Craig announced a novel resources from AQA in addition to diagnosticquestions.com which I'm sure volition testify rattling helpful. Here you volition find a collection of multiple selection quizzes inwards the mode of novel GCSE questions (more coming soon). As there's a Foundation in addition to Higher version for each topic, Craig suggested using the Foundation tests equally a baseline, in addition to then didactics the content, in addition to then using the Higher tests to assess progress. An event query is shown below.
As I've said, I don't brand non bad notes at conferences - but I was sitting adjacent to Ed during this session and, equally you lot tin see, his notes are crystal clear... Yes, that's a sheep.
Pink-haired Jenny is fabulous, in addition to I knew just what to hold back from her workshop - lots of fourth dimension to play alongside paper, interspersed alongside didactics ideas. It was actually fun in addition to at that topographic point was a lovely atmosphere inwards the room. I'm non not bad alongside this form of affair (I've never had whatever success whatsoever alongside origami) but foldables (which are large inwards America) are definitely something I tin manage.
During this workshop I was rattling lucky to sit down adjacent to Kim (@Ms_Kmp) who writes the wonderful website mathssandpit.co.uk - she's rattling creative in addition to was showing me all sorts of fantastic newspaper maths. Here's my tabular array enjoying themselves:
Thanks to Suzanne Gardner for showing me a clever fob for making a quick revision booklet. And Ed (@solvemymaths) told us how to revitalise gum sticks - set a drib of H2O inwards the lid, set the lid on in addition to go out it upside downwards overnight.
Overall this was a non bad workshop - thank you lot rattling much to Jenny for organising it.
Shanghai - Bruno Reddy, Craig Jeavons, Matt Fox
With iii presenters just dorsum from Shanghai, I knew there'd live a lot to acquire here. I enjoyed this session rattling much. As good equally all the myth busting (most strikingly, the fry sleeping at the dorsum of a classroom), enough of transferable didactics ideas were shared inwards this session. Craig has blogged most it here - slides in addition to notes volition live available shortly hence these ideas tin live shared to a greater extent than widely.
We looked at how indices are taught, including the progression of questions which was fascinating. We also looked at translation (that's slide/glide to my non-UK readers) - I honey the agency the topic is introduced using videos in addition to pictures, followed yesteryear rattling clear, good structured explanations.
Narrative plays a large utilization inwards maths lessons inwards Shanghai - I wrote most the benefits of didactics through storytelling inwards my shipping service most High Expectations.
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| Picture by @DrBennison |
I was pleased alongside all my workshop choices. I'm getting ameliorate at picking the correct sessions - those that incorporate master copy ideas or helpful insights in addition to are straight relevant to my utilization or comprehend an surface area of involvement to me. I was rattling distressing to missy Kris Bolton's workshop on the Stories of Maths, but Tom Bennison came to the rescue in addition to filmed the whole verbalise (video here) - hurrah!
I hope that people who attended my workshop on H5N1 degree resources establish it to live content-rich in addition to good structured - whatever feedback is welcome. I wishing I'd had to a greater extent than fourth dimension hence that delegates could get got a acquire at to a greater extent than of the activities I shared. But I did my best to comprehend equally much equally I could inwards l minutes in addition to I promise people establish it helpful. I've written all most my workshop blog for lots to a greater extent than most this. She's planning to ready a website for sharing foldables too.
During this workshop I was rattling lucky to sit down adjacent to Kim (@Ms_Kmp) who writes the wonderful website mathssandpit.co.uk - she's rattling creative in addition to was showing me all sorts of fantastic newspaper maths. Here's my tabular array enjoying themselves:
During this workshop I was rattling lucky to sit down adjacent to Kim (@Ms_Kmp) who writes the wonderful website mathssandpit.co.uk - she's rattling creative in addition to was showing me all sorts of fantastic newspaper maths. Here's my tabular array enjoying themselves:
Thanks to Suzanne Gardner for showing me a clever fob for making a quick revision booklet. And Ed (@solvemymaths) told us how to revitalise gum sticks - set a drib of H2O inwards the lid, set the lid on in addition to go out it upside downwards overnight.
Overall this was a non bad workshop - thank you lot rattling much to Jenny for organising it.
Shanghai - Bruno Reddy, Craig Jeavons, Matt Fox
With iii presenters just dorsum from Shanghai, I knew there'd live a lot to acquire here. I enjoyed this session rattling much. As good equally all the myth busting (most strikingly, the fry sleeping at the dorsum of a classroom), enough of transferable didactics ideas were shared inwards this session. Craig has blogged most it here - slides in addition to notes volition live available shortly hence these ideas tin live shared to a greater extent than widely.
We looked at how indices are taught, including the progression of questions which was fascinating. We also looked at translation (that's slide/glide to my non-UK readers) - I honey the agency the topic is introduced using videos in addition to pictures, followed yesteryear rattling clear, good structured explanations.
Narrative plays a large utilization inwards maths lessons inwards Shanghai - I wrote most the benefits of didactics through storytelling inwards my shipping service most here for those who didn't attend.
TweetUp
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| A Susan Wall activity from my workshop |
Julia Smith (@tessmaths) did a vivid labor of organising the TweetUp at lunchtime. I was inwards accuse of the photobooth - give thank you lot you to all who posed for a photo.
Cakes in addition to Gifts
Huge thank you lot to Andrew Paget, Julia Smith in addition to Rob Smith for the gifts - such generous people. Thanks also to Luke Graham for inviting me to acquire involved inwards his GCSE collaboration session which I'm sure he'll weblog most soon.
Apologies for non mentioning everyone who I spoke to - it actually was lovely to run across novel people, in addition to to consider people i time again who I've met at previous conferences.
I ever honey the cake contest - the within of the Rubik's Cube cake was peculiarly impressive! All the cakes were awesome, but I was pleased to consider the circle theorem cakes win the prize - banking concern check out the tiny tangents.
Overall it was a non bad twenty-four hours - I met many many lovely people, talked a lot most maths teaching, felt inspired, in addition to survived my workshop inwards i slice (phew!). Thanks to La Salle for some other vivid conference. See you lot all at the adjacent one.
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| #mathsconf5 inwards activity - painting by @dmg_13 |