April 2024 CCTM Newsletter

andrewMessage from the Board: 

Welcome to the April 2024 CCTM Newsletter. CCTM is a non-profit designed to support educators with the teaching and learning of mathematics. This month our message come from Andrew Busch, Region2 Representative who teaches high school mathematics at Ralston Valley High School in Jefferson County Public Schools.

 Click Here to Read the Welcome Message

 

Upcoming Events, Celebrations, Happenings, and Opportunities (ECHO)

Click here to view upcoming CCTM math events and happenings, including:

  • Registration for CCTM’s Summer Conference is Now Open!  The theme of this year’s conference is Embracing the Challenge: Empowering Students Through Struggle.  Join us June 13 and 14 in Englewood, CO where our featured speaker, current NCTM president, Kevin Dykema, will share insights from the book Productive Math Struggle.

Click HERE to view other math celebrations and opportunities, as well as to view additional information regarding the above CCTM learning opportunities

dykemaTeacher Voice - Kevin Dykema President’s Message March 2024

Each newsletter we will highlight the voice of educators within Colorado and beyond to share some of their amazing work and ideas. In this issue, we are elevating the voice of Kevin Dykema.  He is our current NCTM president, but brings a unique perspective to the position as he stepped out of a role as a classroom teacher to lead NCTM during his presidency.  His monthly messages speak directly to teachers who work hard to support the students they serve. Kevin’s March message, Tricks are NOT for Students, delivers that same promise and practicality for classroom teachers.   

Read the full version on the NCTM website here: Tricks are NOT for Students! - National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (nctm.org)

Click here to read more!

Practical Practices - A Prime Time for Discussions

In each newsletter we will highlight the voice of educators within Colorado and beyond to share some of their amazing work and ideas. In this issue, we are elevating the voice of Richard Blankman in conjunction with Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. A central component in learning is how students make sense of and share ideas and understanding. In A Prime Time for Discussions Richard discusses the role of discourse in student engagement with mathematical ideas and analyzes systems and structures for generating various types and levels of discourse in both whole-group and small-group settings.

Click here to read more!

Teacher Awards

The Colorado Council of Teachers of Mathematics (CCTM) recognizes teachers who display excellence in teaching mathematics.  CCTM Partners, Imagine Learning and Zearn, will sponsor awards and recognition for two teachers from the state of Colorado.  One elementary (K-6) and one secondary (6-12) teacher will be selected to receive an award.

Each awardee will be recognized at our CCTM Summer Institute June 13 & 14, will receive a cash award for $500, a plaque, complimentary summer conference registration, and a group membership to CCTM for you and your colleagues.  They will also be featured in a CCTM newsletter. Awardees already registered for the summer institute will be reimbursed.

If you would like to either (1) nominate a teacher for this award or (2) nominate yourself for this award, use the link below:

CCTM Teaching Awards 

Be mindful that all applications must be submitted by May 15th, 2024!

 

Spotlighting Colorado Mathematics Educators and Teams: 

This section of our newsletter allows us to recognize the amazing mathematics teams, educators, and leaders in our community. This month we want to spotlight a High School Math Teacher, Ryan Block, from Greeley Central High School,  part of Weld County School District 6.

Please click here to read more about this amazing educator. Our spotlighted teacher will receive a care package of teacher goodies as well as CCTM shirts or Water Bottles!

If you want to nominate an educator, leader, or team, please use the following form. Those selected to be featured in the spotlight will receive an educational care package (and the person nominating will also receive a care package). Use this link to nominate an individual or a team!

Trivia - A History of Mathematics

Each newsletter will have a trivia question. From those that answer correctly, five winners will be drawn and receive CCTM swag (either a water bottle or a tee-shirt). 

THIS MONTH’s TRIVIA QUESTION:

Which famous 20th-century mathematician, largely self-taught and originating from India, made profound contributions to mathematical analysis, number theory, infinite series, and continued fractions, and is known for his remarkable formulas related to pi and his intuitive grasp of deep properties of numbers, even though he had almost no formal training in pure mathematics?

Submit Your Answer Here

Last month, we asked you, the members of CCTM “This American mathematician and hidden figure is known for her contributions to mathematical modeling of the shape of the Earth, and her work on the development of satellite geodesy models, that were later incorporated into the Global Positioning System (GPS). Who is she?”

Last month’s winners were:

  • Beverly DeVore-Wedding, Nebraska Indian Community College
  • Anita ChakrabortySpotts, Peak to Peak Charter school
  • Brandy Bourdeaux, Englewood High School
  • Horch, Glenwood Springs High School
  • Leigh Ann Kudloff, Douglas County Public Schools


Colorado Math Teacher Journal - Featured Article 

Featured Article:  Archived President’s Message - 2016

Author:  Joanie Funderburk

Abstract: Avoid temptation to keep students from experiencing struggle. Promote students’ productive struggle, by providing rich tasks and problems for students to engage with, anticipating student difficulties, and planning questions and supports.

Read More

Get YOUR Word Out

Would you like to advertise or elevate an upcoming mathematical opportunity happening around you - in your school, district, region? Do you want to celebrate successes in your mathematical community? Share your happenings in the CCTM’s next newsletter?  Click HERE to submit your events, news or celebrations and be included in the next CCTM Newsletter’s ECHO (Events, Celebrations Happenings, and Opportunities) Section.