News from the Eastern 2 Region
Sue Vohrer, Eastern 2 Regional Director
Winter 2018/2019
Thinking about…. math with kindness. In the book, How Full Is Your Bucket?, authors Tom Rath and Don Clifton remind us that kindness and positivity are essential ingredients to making others feel valued. Studies prove that being positive and showing kindness tends to predict better health and well being as well as increased productivity. So, it makes sense to "fill buckets!" This can be especially true in a math classroom. How many times have you heard someone say, "I’m not a math person" or seen a student shy away from or become frustrated with a math problem? This is a perfect time for building that person/student up by using kindness and a positive approach to that feeling of inadequacy. This is "filling" a person’s bucket and making them feel worthwhile and even happy. In changing math mindsets, bucket filling may play a very large role in achieving that comfort with productive struggle and thinking through problems. Rath and Clifton identify five strategies for bucket filling. If you have not read this book yet, check it out, along with its’ companion for children, How Full Is Your Bucket for Kids by Rath and Reckmeyer. A great read!
Welcome!
I would like to welcome Cindy Burke as our new Regional Team Leader for West Virginia! Cindy is the Math Coordinator for the West Virginia Department of Education. We are thrilled to have Cindy join our Eastern 2 Regional Team!
Save the Date!
So many great conferences…so little time!
The NCSM Annual Conference, Making Waves with Effective Math Leadership, will be held in San Diego from April 1-3, 2019. Don’t miss this exciting event in a beautiful city right on the water! Be sure to sign up to volunteer as well. It is a wonderful way to network with colleagues and speakers and feel the energy of a national conference!
Below are upcoming events in our region:
- Delaware Mathematics Coalition will host its annual Math Equity Conference on April 13, 2019, from 8:30 – 3:30. Featured speakers include Dr. Francis Su from Harvey Mudd College, Dr. Robert Berry who is the current President of NCTM, and Dr. Mandy Jansen, creator of rough-draft talk.
- The Delaware Council of Math Leaders (DCML) will host their first conference – A Triple Crown Event on May 18! The conference will be a half-day event so there is plenty of time to see the Kentucky Derby.
- The West Virginia Council of Teacher of Mathematics will host their Annual Conference on March 15 and 16 at the Stonewall Resort. Dr. Christopher Danielson will be the keynote speaker to kick off the two-day event.
- The Maryland Council of Teachers of Mathematics will host the Southern Regional Conference on February 2, 2019, from 8:30 – noon in Leonardtown, MD. The keynote speaker will be Dr. Sue O’Connell, who is always a crowd favorite.
- Pennsylvania Association of Math Teacher Educators will host its 13th Annual Symposium on May 15-16 at Shippensburg University.
Get Connected!
Sign up for eNews, a brief and informative electronic communiqué, for anyone interested in receiving updates and tips about opportunities and resources.
Stay in Touch – Your Eastern Region 2 Team Leaders
We are so appreciative of having these dedicated team leaders working in your state! Feel free to contact them (or me!) if you need information or have questions.
- Delaware: Crystal Lancour () and Jamila Riser ()
- Maryland: Ed Nolan (), Andrew Todd (), and Amanda Salvaron ()
- New Jersey: Jill Perry () and Dianna Sopala ()
- Pennsylvania: Please contact me if interested.
- Washington DC: Michael Barnhart ()
- West Virginia: Cindy Burke ()
All the best,
Sue