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After each group session, our project teachers were asked to reflect on their project-related experiences and how these experiences may have made an impact in their classrooms.  Here are excerpts from some of their written reflections.

Teachers' Reflections

The experience helped me to remember my own students and where they may be coming from.  The idea of the materials just sitting there and other students using them tempted me enough to engage my learning also.  It seems as if the gray area of play and learning was crossed and I went into the shady area of the two.  It started out as curiosity and then soon it emerged into a learning experience.

Fifth grade teacher

... math isn't about "the answer."  Math is the way you think.  It's the patterns and the relationships between numbers.  It's how these  numbers relate to life.

Resource Teacher

The first lesson I tried in class was beginning algebra.  We worked on patterns and then not just predicting and figuring out the patterns, but how to name the patterns.  I allowed the children time to think, predict, discuss, explain and learn from each other.  THEY LOVED IT AND I LOVED IT!  At the end of the lesson, they asked, "When can we do this again?!"

Anonymous

I like how Helen and Ellen have us reflect on our ideas by restating our ideas back to us.  I think this is very beneficial for kids as well because they can reflect on their statements to either confirm or enhance an answer.

Fifth grade teacher

I enjoyed the many lessons taught in the Measuring Up project and in the assigned articles to read.  Most of them were easily replicated in our classrooms.  I feel fortunate to be part of this project.  It has made me grow as a teacher by expanding my skills in the area of math.

Resource teacher

I enjoyed the Origami type activity of folding paper.  We were given a blue and a white circle for folding.  This opened up a discussion on symmetry, intersecting lines and folding on the diagonal . . . I learned a lot about how to draw out answers from students using a line of questioning . . . The line of questioning was important to me because I want to incorporate more techniques for higher level thinking in my classroom.  I want my students to develop the ability to use a variety of tools and ways to think about math.

Fifth grade teacher

When reflecting on this class and how it is affecting me as a teacher, I am constantly amazed with how much I am impacted by the learning that I take away from this class.  For one thing, I am reminded over and over again how important the use of manipulatives is in the mathematics classroom.

Third grade teacher

This project has encouraged me to truly think about the role of mathematics in a young child's life.

I feel so much more relaxed about mathematics since participating in the project.  I feel prepared and comfortable about teaching many of the concepts that would have frightened me before.  I also feel excited when I teach math because I understand things better and I have been able to see the elegance in geometry and the fun in algebra that eluded me before.

Fourth grade teacher

"Wow!  I like doing this!"  "Math is my favorite subject."  "What are we doing in math today?"  "This math is fun!"  "Oh, I get it!"  These are all quotes from students in my classroom.  In all cases, the students were talking about math in our classroom.  When asked how the Measuring Up project has affected my teaching, I pay attention to comments such as these and realize that I have this project to thank in helping me be a more effective teacher of mathematics.

Third grade teacher

This project, however, has offered me the opportunity to increase my understanding of the thought processes that the children go through when they are working a math problem.  I have also learned a great deal about the use of questioning to encourage the children to think mathematically.  In addition, I now have a better understanding of how to begin teaching a concept to my students.

Third grade teacher

One of the first things I noticed and appreciated about this course was the manner in which the professors guided the lessons.  I was constantly engaged in the problem solving activities and allowed time to question, think, work together and discuss.

Anonymous

My participation in the Measuring-Up Project has helped me to gain insight into the various ways individuals think about and construct math . . . It was easy to see that we all use different styles and they they are not wrong . . . I liked how the lessons were not strictly bound to one topic.  This lesson  involved fractions, geometric shapes, repeated addition, division and creating a line graph using information . . . I have learned new ways to enjoy math and intend to pass that on to my students in my future lessons.

Fifth grade teacher

Our instructors with the project encouraged class discussion with every problem solving activity by focusing on "different ways" that a person could arrive at an answer.  This emphasized that there is often more than one good way to arrive at a solution.

Anonymous

I became aware that arriving at a formula was not the main purpose of the lesson.  Instead, we took a more in depth look into the logistics behind the formula.  Additionally, we tried to understand how our own students would attempt to solve the problem.

Fifth grade teacher

I feel that the Measuring Up program has provided me with experiences that have enhanced my teaching.  Since I have become a better math teacher, I also feel that I have become a better teacher overall.

Kindergarten teacher

My instruction is so much richer and much more in-depth than it ever has been.  My class and I go much further than simply trying to arrive at the correct answer.  Instead, we ask each other to explain and demonstrate the thinking that went into a certain problem.

The Measuring Up class is a powerful class in many ways.  It addresses mathematical concepts and creates lively discussion about mathematics.  In addition, the class enables teachers to have professional experiences that enhance their teaching.  Finally, Measuring Up allows us to think about how our students are thinking about mathematics.  The class makes us more sensitive to the problems and successes they are experiencing.  I highly recommend it to all teachers.

After having been involved in the Measuring Up sessions, I have been seeing my students and my teaching styles through a different perspective.

The biggest impact this math class has had on my teaching has been the way I encourage my students to think, visualize and explore relationships and patterns with numbers.  Finding "the answer" used to be the goal in every problem.  Now we stop and ask why.  We look at how we arrived at the answer.  Now I ask them if there is another way to get the answer, and we focus on different strategies.