Math(s)

 Good morning, I watched a video this morning about issues affecting boys in the US.   https://youtu.be/Qi1oN1icAYc I realized, as one of the relatively rare male teachers in my schools, I might have been an asset to the boys in my classrooms.  However, there are many real reasons I chose to leave that profession, at least in its current incarnation in public schools.   Male teachers are encouraged to develop rapport, in the same way as female teachers.  However, when students try to give them a hug they have to back away and put their hands up, try to go for a handshake instead.  When we chaperone things, we have to clearly identify ourselves as such to keep people from trying to protect their children from us.  As a society, I think we've become so scared of pedophiles that we've stopped men from being able to interact in a positive way with youth, at least comfortably.  Every interaction is first measured by a, "could this be taken the wrong way, by anyone" scale,

 I think nature may have been my best teacher.   To be fair to all my human teachers, I have had some excellent ones, as well as mentors in the teaching profession and in life.  However, none of them is quite as extraordinary as the natural world around us.  If one pays attention, like Davinci, there's not much it cannot teach us or inspire us to do.  If one examines root structures, for instance, while weeding the garden, we might start to notice similarities between those and our lung brachii.  Fish and bugs have curves that are adapted to their survival, but also turn out to be great for hydrodynamics and all sorts of other things.   When I learn things from nature, the challenge is to describe these things to others, or use them for something that makes sense in my life.  But if we watch, and listen, we can learn.  

 Good morning, I've been a Math Teacher for the last 18 years.  I liken that to selling a product that no one seems to want to people that can't afford NOT to have it.  We live in a society where not having math knowledge just gets you taken advantage of.  If you don't understand compound interest, credit card companies will be all too willing to give you a free card in college at 0% and then change the interest rate to 22% after a few months.  This works for cell phone companies, mortgages, bank accounts, investments, financial advisors, car loans and a host of other things I didn't think to mention.  Knowing the math can keep you out of those scenarios, and allow you to argue with the "final boss" of a car dealership, the finance guy.   In addition, we are bombarded with information and graphics that can easily lie to us with statistics if we don't do our fact checking.  But how can you determine if they are making valid claims if you don't understan

 Good morning all, I've been working in schools but not as a typical educator this year.  We generally are told in education to prioritize standards, retention and knowledge, and hope for rapport and that by modeling how much we love our subject, students might see it and start to love it too.   Lately, I've been working with Gear Up and Upward Bound as a math tutor and teacher.  They seem to start with rapport, and once the students start to believe that you care about them and their future, they start to listen to what you have to say about your discipline and how it can help them achieve it.  They start with they why they should care, and then work backwards to the how.  I've been really impressed by how hard students will work once they believe you are on their side, helping them overcome whatever subject they are struggling with.  In short, start with their dreams and aspirations, and help them figure out what they have to do to get there.