"This book is an amazing resource for teachers who are struggling to help students develop both procedural fluency and conceptual understanding..."
                                                                                                                       --Dr. Margaret (Peg) Smith, co-author of 5 Practices for Orchestrating Productive Mathematical Discussions

Robert Kaplinsky, the co-creator of Open Middle math problems, brings his new class of tasks designed to stimulate deeper thinking and lively discussion among middle and high school students in Open Middle Math: Problems That Unlock Student Thinking, Grades 6-12. The problems are characterized by a “closed beginning,” meaning all students start with the same initial problem, and a “closed end,” meaning there is only one correct or optimal answer. The key is that the middle is “open” in the sense that there are multiple ways to approach and ultimately solve the problem. These tasks have proven enormously popular with teachers looking to assess and deepen student understanding, build student stamina, and energize their classrooms.
 

• Professional Learning Resource for Teachers: Open Middle Math is an indispensable resource for educators interested in teaching student-centered mathematics in middle and high schools consistent with the national and state standards
• Sample Problems at Each Grade: The book demonstrates the Open Middle concept with sample problems ranging from dividing fractions at 6th grade to algebra, trigonometry, and calculus
• Teaching Tips for Student-Centered Math Classrooms: Kaplinsky shares guidance on choosing problems, designing your own math problems, and teaching for multiple purposes, including formative assessment, identifying misconceptions, procedural fluency, and conceptual understanding
• Adaptable and Accessible Math: The tasks can be solved using various strategies at different levels of sophistication, which means all students can access the problems and participate in the conversation

Open Middle Math will help math teachers transform the 6th -12th grade classroom into an environment focused on problem solving, student dialogue, and critical thinking.
 

In her practical and inspirational book, Literacy Essentials: Engagement, Excellence, and Equity for All Learners, author Regie Routman guides K-12 teachers to create a trusting, intellectual, and equitable classroom culture that allows all learners to thrive as self-directed readers, writers, thinkers, and responsible citizens. Over the course of three sections, Routman provides numerous "Take Action" ideas for implementing authentic and responsive teaching, assessing, and learning. This book poses a key question: How do we rise to the challenge of providing an engaging, excellent, equitable education for all learners, including those from high poverty and underserved schools? 

Teaching for Engagement: Many high performing schools are characterized by a a thriving school culture built on a network of authentic communication. Teachers can strengthen classroom engagement by building a trusting and welcoming environment where all students can have a safe and collaborative space to grow and develop.

Pursuing Excellence: Routman identifies 10 key factors that describe an excellent teacher, ranging from intellectual curiosity to creativity, and explains how carrying yourself as a role model contributes to an inclusive, caring, empathic, and fair classroom. She also stresses the importance for school leaders to make job-embedded professional development a top priority.

Dismantling Unequal Education: The huge gap in the quality of education in high vs low income communities is the civil rights issue of the 21st century, according to Routman. She spells out specific actions educators can take to create more equitable schools and classrooms, such as diversifying texts used in curriculums and ensuring all students have access to opportunities to discuss, reflect, and engage with important ideas. 

From the author, "I wrote Literacy Essentials, because I saw a need to simplify teaching, raise expectations, and make expert teaching possible for all of us. I saw a need to emphasize how a school culture of kindness, trust, respect, and curiosity is essential to any lasting achievement. I saw a need to demonstrate and discuss how and why the beliefs, actions, knowledge we hold determine the potential for many of our students. Equal opportunity to learn depends on a culture of engagement and equity, which under lies a relentless pursuit of excellence." 
 

Talking and writing about unfinished ideas is vital to learning mathematics, but most students only speak up when they think they have the right answer - especially middle school and high school students. Amanda Jansen and her collaborating teachers have developed a breakthrough approach to address this challenge. In Rough Draft Math: Revising to Learn, Jansen shares the power of infusing math class with the spirit of revision so that students feel comfortable thinking aloud as they problem-solve rather than talking only to perform right answers.

• Creating a Community of Learners: As part of the rough draft framework, a class of students becomes an equitable and inclusive community of thinkers, one where students feel safe to engage in discourse while developing mathematical competency and confidence
• Practical Application of Innovative Ideas: This book includes specific teaching techniques and a range of classroom vignettes showing rough draft math in action within a student-centered teaching approach. Children can develop solutions at their own pace and share thought processes behind their conclusions
• Classroom Tested: Jansen has developed the concept of rough draft math in collaboration with a diverse group of dynamic and reflective teachers. Rough Draft Math provides a blueprint for educators to allow free-thinking discussion while maintaining the mathematical learning goals

In Rough Draft Math, Jansen shows how to create an energetic classroom culture where students readily participate and share their evolving understanding while engaging in math talk, collaborative problem solving, and ongoing revision of ideas.

 

Most teachers enter the field of education to make a difference in children’s lives. But many end up, as author Dr. Lisa Lucas puts it, “tired, wired, and running in circles.” This leads to many new teachers abandoning the profession or to burnout among veteran teachers.

In Practicing Presence: Simple Self-Care Strategies for Teachers, Dr. Lucas invites the reader to learn how to fully inhabit the present moment. Written in an informal and conversational tone, Practicing Presence is filled with ideas, exercises, checklists, personal anecdotes, and practices you can use to reframe and establish a mindset that will enhance your focus and engagement in the classroom.

With approximately 50% of new teachers leaving the education field before the 5-year mark, it is more important than ever for educators to prioritize self-care. Each chapter of Practicing Presence includes self-care strategies that explore how to self-regulate, nurture self-acceptance, and promote compassion. Inside you’ll find:

• Quotes and affirmations throughout the texts
• Scientific research and reflections on how these theories and practices can apply to your own life
• Paths to Mindful Teaching and how to integrate into your daily life
• Additional resources and online content to further support your practice

 
When teachers care for themselves deeply and deliberately, they are better able to care for the people that matter most in their lives—their students, friends, and families.  Practicing Presence focuses not on doing, but rather on being present in the life of the classroom.
 

During his years working as an instructional coach for a national network of schools, Geoff Krall had the chance to witness several inspirational moments when math class comes alive for middle or high school students--when it is challenging but also fun, creative, and interactive. In Necessary Conditions: Teaching Secondary Math with Academic Safety, Quality Tasks, and Effective Facilitation, Krall documents the essential ingredients that produce these sorts of moments on a regular basis and for all students. They are Academic Safety, Quality Tasks, and Effective Facilitation. 

• Academic Safety: Krall implements equitable classroom experiences that help fight stigmas associated with race and gender in schools. This allows students to feel socially and emotionally secure while nurturing their identities as mathematicians and increasing engagement during classroom discussions
• Quality Tasks: Teachers can adapt or create dynamic, student-centered lessons that break down math into small, manageable sections, removing the frustrations felt by students who aren't considered "math people"
• Effective Facilitation: This book shows how to incorporate teaching moves and math routines designed for engagement, persistence, and interactivity. Teachers can allow students to explore safely while maintaining consistent classroom expectations

"My work as a math instructional coach for a network of schools has afforded me the unique opportunity to visit exceptional teachers across the country, documenting their tasks, teaching moves, and academically safe learning environments. You’ll experience dispatches from these effective classrooms in which we’ll observe how teachers attend to all three elements that make up the ecosystem.”

                                                                                                                                                                                            -- Geoff Krall from his book, Necessary Conditions