BTC Chapter 1 Reflection: Types of Tasks

The end of the year just begs for reflection.

And after implementing Thinking Classrooms,

The list of changes and what went well keep swirling in my mind.

So to organize my thinking, 

I plan to reflect on each chapter. 

Soooooo....

Let's start with Chapter 1: What Types of Tasks We Use in a Thinking Classroom

What Went Well (with changes in red)

It is imperative to start with non-curricular tasks to set up the expectations of VWBs (Vertical White Boards).  We started with the Painted Cube problem the very first day.  While it was a good problem and tied in nicely to upcoming 8th grade standards, I might switch it out next year.  The Tax Collector problem is a good one to get conversation going at a level everyone feels comfortable in.

We also did the problem finding solutions for 1-20 with only four fours.  This was excellent to review the order of operations in a non-traditional type lesson.  

We did the Palindrom problem.  The students really got into this.  I would like to dive deeper into this problem so see where it can go.  

Lastly, we completed the Locker Problem which was also a good one.  

Our first attempt at using curricular tasks was when we reviewed operations with integers.  I used a missing number puzzle to really emerge them into thinking about what happens with adding and subtracting negative numbers.  Once I got to understanding thin-slicing problems better as the year progressed, this would have been an excellent way to extend thinking and get more practice in.

The non-curricular tasks definitely did their job in propelling students to WANT to think.  Many times, especially here at the end of the year when I threw a couple of non-curricular tasks at them, the students DID NOT WANT TO STOP for the discussion piece.  They wanted to KEEP THINKING!!!  This was my entire reason for moving to a Building Thinking Classrooms approach.  I wanted more thinking happening in my classroom!

Things to Think About for Next Year

I need to get better at extending the problem.  For example, in the Tax Collector problem once they figured out they could beat the Tax Collector, we then moved on to the question: What is the largest amount you could make?  After they figured that out, we extended it to 24 paychecks.  

Do I still continue the Simulation Trainer lessons from MidSchool Math, when all they are is essentially mimicking a task??? At this point, I believe that I can continue to use this component of the curriculum if I make a valiant attempt to push their thinking and fluency afterwards.  This can be ONE problem that extends the learning.  Or it can be the Check Your Understanding (Practice Printable).  But my goal will be that if the Simulation Trainer is used, we spend more time on a rigorous problem(s) afterwards.