Musings from Mrs. Galvan

Coming back after Thanksgiving, I decided to use the spare ten minutes of class time usually dedicated to homework review to do what my kids call "yoga". Really, we do a bit of stretching in our seats and I lead them in a brief mindful meditation . I know it is ambitious to expect 13-year-olds to refrain from giggling while also telling them things like, "just focus on breathing" or "pay attention to the rise and fall of your chest as you breath slowly," but my students are awesome. I of course have to give consistent reminders to close your eyes, but overall they are quiet, calm and engaged in the exercise. Today while finishing our meditation, I shared with them the story The Station by Robert J. Hastings: “The Station" Tucked away in our subconscious is an idyllic vision.   We are traveling by train, out the windows,   we drink in the passing scenes of children   waving at a crossing,   cattle grazing on a distant hillside,   row upon row of c...

So every summer I make a grand, dream to do list... ...then every summer reality sets in with this dilemma: I want to spend time with my kids and take care of my home (where regularly during the school year, mystery sticky spots on the counter remain for weeks). So the annual question becomes how do I balance my ambition to increase innovation in the classroom and spend quality time with my little ones in a (sorta) clean house (I read Lean In ; I know I can't really "have it all"). Arg. I am (again) running out of time. What should I focus on? Here is the list: 1. Study for and retake the GRE s (my scores have long expired) and start applying to grad school. 2. Plan more PrBL tasks and games for Algebra and Geometry, even more, I want to get better at encouraging students to own the process and ask the questions and discover the concepts (less lecture... oh but what about all those videos I made to flip my classroom a few years ago. Blended learning environme...

I have been teaching for 12 years now and I still experience a small sigh of relief when students actually do the assignments... This year I added digital math portfolios to my list of goals for students and they are coming in! *sigh of relief* 1. First assignment: Just create the blog with title and description.   I like her witty title and LOVE the background. 2. Prompt #1 (I felt like an English teacher). I casually put this prompt on the HUB (our school's name for Canvas). I told students about the prompt being on the HUB in class, but many did the assignment BEFORE I told them about it! Example for Algebra 1. 3. Collect the Blog URLs via Assignment Drop Box Google Form. Thank you Will Kimbley for showing me how!  I embedded my form on the HUB. The google form generates a nice spreadsheet from which you can click through your students' portfolios. I made a template, which hopefully, you can use here . You will have to be a ...

A colleague sent me this video over a year ago (yikes, I am behind on my email!) and I just got a chance to watch it. It is from 2010 so it might be old news for many, but it's new to me! It gives me much to ponder, a new tweeter to follow and perhaps more to add to the old to do list....