Extra Homework Component

The kids are coming Monday, and shockingly, I'm still not ready. This past week we've been doing teacher prep and district-wide math in-service. Last Monday I found out that I'd be switching rooms, so the afternoon was devoted to rolling all my things from one end of 2nd floor to the other to get to the elevator, then down to 1st floor, then roll roll roll all the way to the other end of the building to my new classroom. My body was in shock after an alluring summer of sitting most of the day.

Wednesday we went to break out sessions for various math components. I learned 2 interesting things that I want to explore this year. The first is THIS WEBSITE. I really liked his "reading and sketching graphs" sheet, so maybe the others are as useful. The second was the idea of Webquests. I've never done such a thing, and apparently there's a ton of them already made up for us to choose from. The instructor said she'd e-mail us the link ... you know, in her free time between getting ready for the school year.

I also formalized the extra component I want the kids to do on each homework assignment. I'll have them cut out this sheet and paste it to the front cover of their composition books for a quick reference. I'm eager to see if it improves their work habits (if they need it). I like question 5 because it's another avenue for them to communicate with me if they have questions and may possibly forget the next day. The sheet looks like:

Two things I want to do in my classroom this year

I'm thinking if I gave a pop quiz to my high school students with just a variety of clock faces (with hour and second hands) and asked them to write the time, too many (for comfort) would fail. I guess that would mean that even if just one failed that would be too sad for words. Anyway, I came across a picture in an educational book about teaching ideas, and it was probably meant for an elementary classroom, but I'm so going to steal it. The teacher took the little yellow stickies and just to the outside of every number put the correct minutes: 5, 10, 15, 20, ..., 50, 55. I'm thinking that I don't even have to do a lesson on it; it'll just be a silent lesson every time they look at the clock.***

My second idea came from the book, "Eat, Pray, Love". I want to make a poster of it. If I remember correctly, one of the author's friends in Italy said to her after she was berating herself for her language mistakes, "Be polite to yourself when you're learning something new." (or something to that effect). What a nice way to approach the scary waters of unknown math.

*** of course a former student just sent me e-mail about THIS clock, and I bought it, so who knows how good of a "time telling lesson" this will turn out to be.

*** and of course now that I look at each hour, there are 2 I DO NOT LIKE .... but maybe that will spark good discussion in class (cough cough)

Group Work

These past few days I've been in a small town in Texas working with people I don't know very well on a job we all had to get done (not work related) and get done accurately. We would only be together for about 3 days, and we had to get along. Well, we didn't have to get along, but it sure made the time more pleasant if we did. Also, we had jobs to do, and all our jobs depended on other people and other people depended on our jobs. Lots of us were new to our tasks, many had done things before and had set ideas on how to do things, many people had strong personalities or weird personalities or quiet personalities, but we still had to work well together.

So that got me to thinking, "group work" just crops up everywhere in life, and the more we get exposed to it in school and the more there are issues that we have to resolve while we're in our groups and the more troubles that arise, then THE BETTER. If you never have the chance to figure out how to solve "group work" problems early on in school and such, then later on when it's not a choice, you'll have a hard time managing, and you'll be part of the problem.

I'm one of those people that inwardly groan when we're assigned groups in an educational setting and think, "I just want to do it by myself". But now I'm thinking, okay, if "bad" things come up (someone doesn't contribute, someone dominates, someone thinks they can do it better themselves (ahem)...), then this will be my opportunity to think of ways to address problems that may come up. Maybe I won't do it perfectly, but I'll try something out and if it doesn't work, then I'll know to try something else next time. ... Now this all sounds like I think I'm the jewel of the group work and never do ANYTHING wrong (it's hard being so perfect), but I don't think that at all. I guess I'm more along the lines of thinking I have to adjust my attitudes about it and maybe even I'm a thorn in the side of the group and don't know it. Viva la group work!

Old and New Ideas

OLD IDEA:


I was/am Queen of the Sticky Notes. All my to-do lists for school would be scattered about and usually I'd find all of them, but who knows. I saw the teachers at my school carrying around various composition notebooks and such to meetings and recording things. It turned out this was their "Book Of To Do Things". I loved it. I started using one in the middle of the year, and here are the pros:

*portable
*everything is in one place
*you have a record of your year
*portable, portable, portable so you don't have to be at home and stress that you're forgetting something

A To Do List:


Planning My Line Project:


Visual of the End of the Year:


NEW IDEA:

Next year I want to put up a classroom comment board ala Whole Foods. I'll pass out some cards to the kids to keep in their folders, and have a box up front where they can turn them in, with extra cards available. I can respond in writing on the card and post the cards. If at any time during any class a kid notices something or wants to say something, but it's not feasible for whatever reason during class, they can submit a comment. I'm thinking in this way, I'll get a better sense of what's what during class, and I'll promote more of a sense of community, and the other students can read the comments/responses on the board.

Here's what I'll print & cut out to hand the kids:

Retests

As probably for many other teachers, this is a hot-button topic for me. The first 6 years I taught, I'd never heard of the concept. No students asked for a retest; I didn't know such a situation could exist. My next 6 years of teaching in another state and another type of school, I got indoctrinated. Eventually, I felt I "bowed" to the pressure and allowed retests. I finally worked out a system that sat "okay/well" with me: anyone with all their homework assignments turned in could retest, and your final grade on the test is an average of your 2 tests, so technically, your grade could go down if you did worse on the retest.

One reason I didn't like retests was that I saw too many kids either not studying for them, or not studying for the original test, knowing they could have a do over.

Now that I've moved schools, I gave no retests. You got what you got.

This summer in Philadelphia, I happened across this book, and there was a discussion on retests of some sort. As I felt my hackles rising, I ran across a statement that gave me pause:

If a kid fails a test or does poorly and shows they don't know a particular concept and you just move on, you are in essence saying that you're okay with them not having that knowledge under their belt, that it's okay not to ultimately understand something in your course.

I don't know that I'll move back to retesting as I've done before, but I want to think further on this idea for next year. I know there's been discussion on the blogs on this, and I've been reading it, and I think I need to find something that works for me and is manageable in my classroom and that I buy into; otherwise, obviously, I won't effectively implement it, and it's doomed to fail.

My initial kernel of an idea is to have a list of concepts they need to know, and by each concept I have 2 boxes with a room for the date of success. This may be on box.net or something with each student's name in a chart, and when they have successfully mastered the concept twice (time frame?), then they are good to go. Grading? Haven't thought of that yet. I was thinking more of a general holistic idea because realistically, maybe all kids don't get to all concepts twice. Maybe their final grade will include a percentage based on what they've shown .... but then I'm still saying that I'm okay with them not knowing things .... ARGH .... must ponder more.

On My Mind

There's been a running thread of thoughts peeking in and out of my mind all summer, and it seems that lots of things conspire to keep me thinking along the same lines. Or maybe since I'm already thinking of "it", then my devious mind is making connections to various experiences I have.

Start: early in the summer I got a call that a previous colleague had committed suicide in the past few days. Aside from being horrific and so sad, it started the thoughts in my brain. This person seemed fine. This person was a great teacher. This person had tons to contribute. This person seemed happy with life. The public face I saw of this person gave no indication of the turmoil that must have been going on inside.

Now this is not a post about suicide, but I guess more about how we perceive the experience of others' lives. I'm guessing you have interaction(s) with people, and you make a judgment about how you think their lives are going. Many times you think: wow, they have a great life, or how lucky are they, or look how much they have or have it together. I'm wondering what percentage of the time you are wrong, and maybe it's a much higher percentage than you would think.

Next: I don't have cable TV at home for various reasons: husband severely dislikes TV, I don't get home until late, if I had convenient TV, I could see myself sucking away a ton of time channel surfing and watching. Anyway, that's not to say I don't like TV. When I go away on trips where I happen to be alone, one of my treats is to channel surf away late into the night at my heart's desire. On my past trip I came across the MTV show, "If you really knew me". I guess it was episode 101 (from the pictures on the website). Here was another instance on the same theme running through my head. You may see these students daily and know their public persona but not the struggles they're going through.

Next: During the same trip I was reading, "Mrs. Perfect", and the main character looked as if she had a fabulous life, but ..... well you get the picture.

Next: Love math, but also love other non-math blogs and check them either daily, or frequently. On one such blog, I came across a link that AGAIN added to my pile of thoughts on this topic. From browsing her other posts, she's an author and teacher and I picture her as seeming to have a ton going for her. Then you scrape a little deeper and see that she's going through this gut-wrenching continuous heartache.

Finally: I've been to a workshop these past 2 days, and in the course of it got to meet 2 new educators to our school. The first day they seemed outwardly fine about the coming school year. Now I just have to say that my new-to-me-school-of-one-year is an intense school with high expectations of everyone. I only mention this because of what happened the 2nd day of the workshop. I don't know how the conversation got started the 2nd morning, but one of the teachers said, "after yesterday I went home and started panicking and doubting myself about being able to do a good job next year." The second new person heaved a relief sigh and echoed that she had the same thoughts. Now if they hadn't shared this, I'm guessing I'd have continued to see them in a certain light of "everything's fine and functioning as it should be" instead of "take extra care to make sure they're okay".

So while this is continually popping up in my thoughts when I was wandering around Philadelphia, I took time to look at people I passed. There was the usual person type of "I look smashing", "I have it together", "my life is great" mixed in with others. But I have to wonder and most likely, no, they could possibly be going through some painful events and they're just continuing to function.

What do I come away with for all this wondering? I guess more of an awareness and a thought to treat everyone as if they're a precious commodity and not make assumptions as to how excellent things may be going for them (which may lead to me not treating them so gently or making me question my life experience more). For various reasons life is hard many times in different ways for everyone, and though it may not solve everything, hugs and smiles and kind thoughts towards others may help.

Home Sweet Home

Phew. We're finally home after a marathon travel session. My husband's Canadian aunt and uncle were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary (we should all be so lucky), and their children set up a surprise gathering for them. It was so nice to see all their friends and family showering them with love at the party. My husband and I don't have children, so that's one thing I'll miss as we get older - all the offspring and their families and so on all gathered together and being a big party. Of course, if it was my family, we'd probably all be at our separate corners stewing or fighting or not showing up for the party because of issues or dancing drunk on the table tops and embarrassing everyone.

I'm thinking that as the years pass, we have to get a phone chain of our other older, childless friends and call each other every morning, "are you still alive? okay. talk to you tomorrow." or something to that effect. Maybe we can get a commune going and have an on-site nurse.

Then I got to visit with a friend of 13 years (in Pennsylvania) who I haven't seen for 2. She was one of the 1st math teachers I taught with in New Jersey, and I always am thankful that I ended up (by a fluke) at that particular school to learn about teaching with that particular group of people. They're passionate, smart, nice, reflective and just plain old fun to be around.

Before visiting with her, I got to walk around Philadelphia for a day. Love It. Here are some cool things about Philly:

* They have solar compacting trash and recycling units scattered throughout the city.
* They have nice signs on several corners indicating where you are and what might be interesting to see in the area.
* It's uber walker friendly.
* Tons of history you just happen upon by walking.
* Many parks and trees sprinkled throughout that provide shade and places to chat.
* Gourmet groceries that also have a breakfast bar for travelers.

But it's nice to be home and get back into a routine (soon). Here's to gaining weight on vacations and now having to deal with it (did I mention all the frozen yogurt places I was FORCED to frequent in PA?). I guess I'm pretty active during the school year (running (okay jog walking, but running sounds better), yoga, dancing, weights, walking around all day during teaching). But the TRUE me is a couch potato happy to just sit around reading books and doing puzzles and movies and napping. Hello extra summer weight. I basically sat around either on planes or couches or cars the WHOLE trip. One guess as to the effect THAT had on me. Oh well, back to the weight loss drawing board.

Lucky Traveler

We just got back from Maui, and boy it was beautiful and relaxing. We stayed in a B&B in Haiku and rented a car from a local company and just decided each morning what to do. Lovely. We went to the beach a lot, hiked into the crater, tried paddle boarding, ate too much, and swam. Life's good.

One of the many beaches:


Post paddle boarding ... my shoulders are sore, waves are scary, it's not too bad falling in warm tropical water ... a lot:


A shop where my husband rented his windsurfing equipment:


Growing at our B&B:


Also at our B&B:

Friendly Reminder

I traveled recently to visit my dad near Lake Tahoe, and I flew Southwest (love them). I don't know if you've flown them lately (I haven't), but they have a great system of boarding. When you check in you're given a letter-number combination, and when it's "time" you stand in a particular place and follow orders to board in an orderly fashion and then get to pick your seat at that time.

Anyway, as I said, it was the first time I'd been through this, and I didn't know what was what and figured I'd wait for the directions from the Southwest employees over the loudspeaker. Obviously, there were no written directions. So here's basically what I heard, "We're ready to begin boarding, people with an A something something something do something and get ready to something and others please something something ....". You get the idea. I heard a bit and then by the time I finished processing it, the next part was already said and moved on, and then of course I couldn't THEN make sense of the following part. Sheesh. Reality check on teaching for me.

I know the kids say I talk too fast (sometimes?). In my mind everything's clear (like I'm sure it is to the Southwest employee who's said the same speech many times), so I'm probably on autopilot (ar ar ar). I guess I need to make myself a poster for next year to hang in the back of the room to remind myself to slow down or to write simultaneously or to give kids processing time more consciously. My sign will probably be: SOUTHWEST INCIDENT!

Yes I figured out what to do, but, no, I still got stuck behind the smelly lady I was trying to avoid.

Randomization

I modified my Excel Slope Quiz program. Now there are extra buttons, so the students can try any number of extra random problems to test their skills. I'm pretty sure it's bug free. And Again, if you want to try it, you have to "enable macros" when you open the Excel file. Thanks Mrs. H for the idea.

Programming Attempt

Well, I don't know if Excel will be the best tool for this, but I sure had fun making the following program. My vision is that eventually I can create several of these and put them on my class website for the kids to practice their skills. I know there are great practice tools on the web, and I do link to those. My thinking in creating this type of program is that the kids will see what I think is important for them to know.

Anyway, it looks like:



It's interactive and provides hints for the tester. When you open the Excel file, you have to enable the macros in order for it to work. Now I have to figure out how to create my Geometry Proof Excel "quizzes".

More Thoughts on Geometry Proofs

What does a math teacher think about on the plane while she's traveling to see her dad in another state? Teaching, of course. I'm still working out how I want to start teaching proofs in geometry this coming year, and I had 2 extra ideas that I haven't quite fleshed out yet.

One idea came from a news article I saw the other day. It was something to the effect of school officials allowing nurses to hand out condoms to elementary school kids. The original article JUST stated that they're going to start making them available for K-5, and if my memory serves me correctly, that was ALL the article stated. Well, of course, it sounds so ridiculous and my 1st thought is, "crazy! why?", etc. Then I had to step back and think, what could be the real story behind this, and I came up with a few possibilities.

I discussed it with my friends, and sure enough, a few days later the WHOLE story came out. The school district was making condoms available to any student of ANY grade that asked for them, and I'm guessing that in their minds they were mostly thinking about high school kids. Then maybe the newspaper people got the story and JUST reported that the condoms were now available to elementary kids.

Anyway. What does this have to do with geometry? Here's my thinking. One reason to teach proof in geometry is to get kids to think logically and to think of all (groups of) events or statements that can lead to other events/statements. In this way, they won't be "victims" of people trying to sell them one version of a situation. So I thought this story would be a perfect example of just such a situation.

Somehow I'll begin the proof unit discussing why we learn them and just show them the 1st news story. Then I'll have them get with a partner or in a group and think of what events may have lead up to this article or that may have justified such a move by the school board. Then show them the 2nd article. Then maybe I'll find a provocative picture (in the sense of it may look like something bad or good is happening at 1st glance), and then have them think of things that may lead to this picture (or result from the picture scenario). Anyway, like I said, it's not fleshed out yet, but I think this will be a good start.

My 2nd idea has to do with Excel programming. I don't know if I can pull it off, but it seems like you can do some cool stuff with Excel if you learn a bit of VBA programming, and I'd like to create some sort of interactive proof-filler-outer that will be a quiz for them. If it's easy, then I can pop out several and have them online for the kids to practice with. I'm guessing that's a big if.

Anyhow, vacation with dad is over, and now I have a glorious week to do mathy stuff ... before my next vacation trip. WooHoo! Maui here I come (me and my fish-white belly). I'm guessing I'll look like a pale white tourist, but guess what? That's because I AM a tourist. Maybe I'll just have to drink a lot to be okay with it :).

Meeting Potential Students Outside of School

I started taking Lindy Hop Lessons a couple of months ago because I saw some people doing it, and it looked SO fun. The nice thing about it is that you don't have to be a couple to take lessons, and even if you come in as a couple, you rotate partners frequently in class, so it's not an issue.

Since the "leaders" (guys) and the "followers" (girls) are learning the same steps at the same time, and so we all know what step we'll be doing next, it's hard for me as a follower sometimes to "listen" to the pressure of the hand of the leader to determine what to do next, since I know what we're "supposed" to do, so I just do it (did that make ANY sense)??? Anyway, as with everything, there are good leaders and not-yet-perfected leaders (just as I'm a so-so follower). So, I always like when I rotate to a couple of particular guys because they have that leader thing down. They've got the hand pressure and rotation, and so I know to turn or move back or forward or whatever.

Last class, I was with a great leader, and we were learning a new step where I had to "turn outside". He had to lead this by doing a certain thing with his hand, which I had heard from ANOTHER dance class described as, "just like you're drinking a beer", since he sort of starts with his hand held high up and then tilts it in the same direction as if he's drinking a beer. So I turned to my "great leader" guy and felt I had to share this with him, and after the teacher showed the move, I softly said, "ah, just like you're drinking a beer." My partner looked at me and whispered, "I'm 16." Awkward. I amended it to "milk" and then had the scary thought, oh! he could be my son ... or student ...

Spring (or Decade) Cleaning

I'm not the best of housekeepers, and that's an understatement. Sure, the dishes are done and laundry done and trash put away, but there is dusting and vacuuming and clutter cleanup that only seems to get done when company is coming over - which is about twice a year or so. Ew, put that way, I'm gross.

Anyway, since my inclination is to sit around all summer and just read (this or this or this) or nap or do puzzles, I thought I'd give the house a once over this once.

Tons of old books will be donated to the library, usable clothes to charity, and our own personal landfill of electronics to Goodwill. We've just gotten in this complacent state of clutter all over the house, and I guess we don't see it any more. But now that I've cleaned 3 rooms (so far) of excess and unnecessary things we don't even use anymore, it looks so peaceful and inviting instead of this underlying current of unease and discontentedness.

Whew! I should have people over to celebrate.

Adding & Sutracting Integers

I talked with a math teacher friend today about how she teaches adding and subtracting integers to her 7th graders. She mentioned the following type of method, and I decided to put it to pictures. I'm going to try it next year with my high school kids who STILL mix things up. Maybe this will do the trick.

What's My Grade??

Probably like most teachers/schools, our grades are weighted for the grading period. Last year it was 45% homework and 55% tests/quizzes. Students always seem in such wide-eyed wonder as to how various pieces affect their grades. I think they're under the total points worth mentality, and this doesn't always translate into good grades.

Also, during the 1st day of school, I always have them do some math activity to get them thinking while I'm doing all my administrative stuff (roll call, seating chart, ...). So, VOILA, I decided next year to combine my 2 tasks into one. I have a draft of the "calculate your grade" assignment that I will hand out to all my students on the 1st day. Any suggestions on additions or revisions? I kind of hate to leave it at 3 pages since then I have a blank back page. Ideas?

Homework...

I've been thinking more lately about how I "do" homework. I'm still in the camp that wants to assign a completion grade only, so that they don't get penalized for making mistakes while they're learning. I see how many problems they attempt, and how many they grade in class as per my instructions, and I give them a grade accordingly. I still like to provide some kind of answer bank, so that they get immediate feedback and are more apt to persevere through a problem if it's wrong. And yet, I still understand that for some kids, this completion grade leads to laziness and lack of an honest effort and potentially to not grasping topics.

I have a thought rumbling around in my head of something I may want to add to the grade. I want there to be an EXTRA question group on EVERY homework that MUST be answered in order to get full credit (any credit?). Here it is:

1. What is a problem you had most trouble with?

2. What specifically is wrong, examples:
* I don't know how to start
* I don't understand some words
* I get stuck at the point ______
* I'm messing up with my calculations somewhere
* I ______

3. Write out which of the following you did:
* I looked through the book and found extra examples
* I went to our online book to see if there was a tutorial on this problem
* I went on Ms. Cookie's website to see if she had links that may help
* I looked through my notes to see if we did something like this in class
* I called/texted/e-mailed a friend and got help
* I did ______ and it helped
* I did nothing and waited until the next day in class to ask questions

4. Describe what progress you made after you did this, examples of what could happen:
* I didn't do anything, so I made no progress
* I solved the problem
* I understood more about what part confused me
* I made progress in the problem but still did not solve it (describe progress)

Maybe I'll print this out on pretty paper and have them tape it in their composition books as a reference. In this way, it'll cause the kids to reflect nightly (or the period before-ly) on their homework. My lists will hopefully also serve the purpose of prompting them to find other sources to persevere before giving up. And giving a grade for this portion will maybe be the incentive to do the reflection.

Which brings me to my next change next year. I'm a recent CONVERT of composition notebooks. Before I just let the kids buy whatever 3-ring binder or spiral notebook or whatever they wanted. At my not-so-new school they had a tradition of requiring composition notebooks for other classes, and the kids would tape pictures to the front that represented whatever class it was for, and the teacher would put packing tape over the cover to preserve it. Now all the notes are in the book and not easily lost and if there were handouts, the kids taped them to the appropriate dated page. I didn't do it this year, but ... Love it! I believe I'll require them to get the graph papered composition notebook. Then POOF! instant graph paper on demand.

Geometry Proofs

As I still have momentum from the previous year, I thought I'd get some ideas down for next year. I believe I'm teaching 2 levels of geometry (in addition to the PLTW IED course). I know how hard it is for kids to get up to speed with the flow proofs we teach, so I thought I'd scaffold it more this year, and potentially start with the following idea:



After a few (2?) of these, I'd try to incorporate a math story; then take away the "skeleton" at the bottom of the page for another story (but keep the statements), so they had to create the flow. Then start taking away more and more and finally bringing it to just a geometry problem statement. I'll have to flesh it out more, but that's the seed of my idea.

I like the flow proof style instead of the 2-column proof because there is a visual connection between what follows from what. I also like teaching proofs because it's a challenge for the kids and stretches their brains. It's also the first time (only time?) they see what it means to actually prove something instead of just give a convincing argument.

How to make a nice graph for tests and such

Someone requested a tutorial for making a usable graph for your worksheets, so here it is. (okay, the person nicely agreed to a tutorial after I was pushy and suggested one). Here's the 3 page download of my instructions.

And here's what it looks like:

A Surprising Finals Question (Apparently)

I gave the following 2 sets of questions on my algebra 1 final (click on it to enlarge):



For 13 & 14, they were given a line and were to draw a parallel line going through (4,1) then give me the equation in point-slope form. For these 2 questions, people generally did fine.

For 15 & 16, I had the same original line drawn, and they were supposed to draw the perpendicular line through (4,1) and then give the equation in point-slope form. This is the set of problems they had problems with.

I thought I was giving them a gentle teacher nudge by having them draw the picture before they wrote the equation. The original slope is -2/3. Holy Moly. So many students thought NOTHING of the fact that the line they drew was NOT perpendicular looking. They INSISTED the slope of the perpendicular line had to be 2/3, and by Golly, that's the line they drew. 90 degrees? eh!

Note to self, when I teach algebra 1 again, I have to do more of this type of problem before we get to finals. I never did do the drawing thing in conjunction with just the "what's the slope/equation/etc of the perpendicular line to ..." type of question. Apparently, I should have.

On a positive note, I'll be teaching them geometry next year, so guess what we'll be "reviewing".

Surveying the Students

We're supposed to survey our students at the end of the year to get feedback on how class went. I've seen in the blogging world that others do this, and I've done it periodically in the past on my own. At school I asked if there was a standard document, and there wasn't so I made up the following and have since passed it out to 3 of my 4 "real" math classes.

Before I let them quietly work on it for about 10 minutes, I had a discussion about how in life it's a useful skill to be able to give constructive feedback. I said that they'd be bosses or employees or students or teachers or whatever, and they wanted to help "improve" or "praise" someone else's work effectively, and we talked about good and bad ways of doing that. Anyway, I liked their comments. Some things that were good for me to know:

* "Don't just always joke around with 1 or 2 students; make sure you joke around with everyone to make them feel special.". This was good for me to hear. Usually, I just engage with kids that engage with me, and then I feel comfortable continuing that "razzing" throughout the year. I can see how it would feel exclusionary to others instead of, ha ha, I'm a part of this if only as an observer.

* "I like that you just take homework for a completion grade. That way I don't feel pressured when I'm trying to learn." Hmmmmm, that was my intent, but it has its flip side for some students and some years when they slack off because they think it doesn't count.

* "I like when you provided answer banks on the homework. That gave me instant feedback." me, too.

* and various other comments that reaffirmed what I thought didn't go well or did.

Here is the download of this sheet: (p.s. thank you to the commenter who taught me about Screen Print. I'm ALL about Screen Print these days :))

Quadratic Formula Dialog Update

Well, the kids are starting to come in to take their "test" of the dialog I mentioned a few posts ago. They're doing that AND multitasking by whining in various ways about why they have to do it. I good-naturedly hold my ground and explain to them why (the dialog has lines that address 3 key sources of mistakes for them; the memorization and repetitive stress of remembering it will allow it to potentially stick in their heads).

I've had about 8 students do the dialogue, so far. I've also given them "inspiration" by putting a temporary "msg" in the electronic grade book. This is "missing" and has the same effect on their grade as a zero. Whew you should have seen the grades plummet.

Anyway, I've also had some kids in one class tell me they're nervous and can they do the whole dialog by themselves or can they do it with another student while I watch (because apparently I'm intimidating ... who knew). So I made up a FAQ and mass e-mailed it to them:

1. When is it due?
Let's say by this Friday, so that if you don't finish it, I have time to nag you next week (2 days only!)

2. I'm nervous and Ms. Cookie is intimidating, can I do the dialog with someone else and we switch roles?
Yes, and you can get full credit if there are no major mistakes.

3. Can I do the WHOLE dialog by myself playing both parts?
Yes, but Ms. Cookie will have to take off some points (can still earn in the high 90's)

4. Ooh, I don't know the whole thing really well, but I know most of it, so I don't want to come do it.
Well, Ms. Cookie can prompt you .... she'll take off some points depending on how well you do, but it'll be a WAY better grade than a zero.

5. EEK! Nervous.
Well, the lowest grade you'll get is a 70% if Ms. Cookie feels you don't know it THAT well (but most of it), or a 0% if you never come in.
Do the math :)

6. Why do we have to do this dialog?
The dialog has some key points on things students mess up on. Also, when you memorize something and have to do it over and over again, it sticks in your head. Thus, using my professional judgment, it's good for you and your quadratic formula use knowledge (like math vitamins) even though it's stressful. AND you'll be proud of yourself for doing something you thought was not possible.

7. Has anyone taken it yet?
As of 1:30pm Monday, 5/24/10, 8 people have taken and passed it (lowest score 80%).

Best Interpretation of the Dialog: J./M. & G.
First Done: D. W.
Person Who Overcame Their Most Stress So Far: C. J.

Final Review For Algebra Finals. Finally.

I can't believe finals start this week for our freshmen. Let's see, so far this semester they've had the LTF tests (Laying the Foundation), the EOC tests (end of course), the TAKS test ("exit" exam test), and now finals! I know they're excited and will be going through test withdrawals this summer. Maybe I can pay home visits and test them on various things.

Anyhow, here's the review I'll give them this week:

All About Me.....

Every year without fail one or 20 students will ask me what kind of music I listen to. I'm always stuck for an answer because I like a ton of different kind of music depending on the mood I'm in ... maybe that's the way for everyone. Also, I don't listen to music much other than the odd time in the car when I'm not listening to my books on CD (Love you Simply Audiobooks), or when I'm cooking dinner and need to rock out to Amy Winehouse. I don't have an iPod. I run early in the morning when it's still dark, so I'm more listening to the sound of deer that may crash into me or the stray car that may or the other runners going in the opposite direction who, like me, aren't wearing reflective gear. But I digress.

Well, must be a slow learner, since I should know this question is coming up every time I meet/teach new kids. Anyway, that leads me to my idea I just implemented that will allow me to send the students away and answer their questions at the same time. And as a bonus, I have a music play list in case my ears are ever hungry for tunes while I'm on the computer.

I have a website for my students where I post the homework using GoogleCalendar and I have a recap of what we learned that week with links to various helpful websites or practice problems or tutoring sites that are related to the topics. In addition, I have a little click/link on my weebly site that sums up my life in a few paragraphs (another question from the kids). So anyway, on this last link, I just created a short list, that I can add to later, of songs/artists I like that are links to YouTube videos. It looks like this, and it was a ton of fun to make.

Time to Review

I'm having fun looking up all these crazy facts to use for my review sheets. It gives the kids maybe a wee bit more motivation to actually review. I'm also trying something new. For each question, I've referred them back to a helpful page in the book. Maybe that will cure the, "I didn't know how to do it" syndrome, and the "oh! I didn't THINK to look in my notes" malady.

Okay, first stop: review of lines and slopes. Also, does ANYONE know how to stop there from being a 2nd page in a word document if you create a table at the bottom of the page. My version seems to want to start a new page, and I can't get rid of it. I remember I fixed it in the past, and I know I can browse and probably find the answer myself, but ....

Ahhhh Finals Time

There's no better way to spend your Sunday than getting finals and final reviews and final review study ideas written at the last minute. Good Times. Of course now that I know you can watch Netflix movies (or seasons of TV shows) on line, maybe I need little breaks in between. You know, to refresh my brain and be more productive.

Anyway, here's what I'm handing my algebra students tomorrow. Hopefully, they'll look at all the topics and be motivated to study (after they want to curl up in a little ball and rock back and forth). Also, hopefully when they do the calculations of their grades on the 2nd page, that will be another incentive to work hard.

Gush Alert...

I am a lucky teacher. There is such a gi-normous difference between my teaching experience last year at my old school and my time this year at my current school. Sure I had a rough 1st semester getting on board with all the new ways of doing things and all the higher expectations and all the students sort of eying you to see what type of person/teacher you are before they decide to like you and play along with learning. Sure I've had many times this year (in the last couple of weeks especially) when I'm asking myself, they want me to do WHAT now in addition to the other 5 bazillion things I'm doing??? Sure I've been tossed into the pool and told to swim and figure things out and then jump back out, dry off, and assess how things went and make notes for the next time we do something new we haven't done before.

But.

I'm loving it. Maybe it's analogous to life experiences in that you ultimately are more satisfied with something you've had to work hard for. Maybe you're more proud of yourself when you've agreed to try new things and not come out any worse for wear. Maybe I just work with phenomenal people that push me every day to be a better teacher/person/employee. In any case. Gush. Gush. Gush. Okay, hope you're through being queasy.

And 3 more off-this-topic observations I've been mulling around in my head.

1. A while ago I blogged about a student cheater. I don't know if I mentioned it, but this student was caught cheating on another test. This was last semester. I never mentioned anything to her, and things settled down, and I'm in general very present during tests and walk around and check up on students. Anyway. Can I just tell you I'm glad I didn't severely damage my relations with this kid by saying something that would stick in both of our minds. She has turned out to be a joy and is one of my favorites now. She makes me laugh constantly, and I'm always happy to see her. Another instance where things are not black and white, and are ever-shifting.

2. A shorter while ago I blogged about a student who had attendance issues and was frustrating me with her lack of math progress. Well, this is a poised kid who excels at other things, and I've had opportunities to see her in action and was impressed and told her so. So I guess this is an instance to remind me that I'm not just teaching math robots who only exist to come to my class and churn out math; they are well-rounded and just like the rest of us are trying to juggle many things and growing up (keep reminding myself that they're only 14-15 years old) and learning how to do things and do them successfully.

3. There are the types of people who feel they have to ask permission for everything (not talking etiquette here), and there are the types of people who just push on ahead and do things with the mindset that no one's the boss of them. Example, some of our teachers went to a meeting the other week where there were people from various schools. This one teacher was asking for help and suggestions on how to set up field trips and transportation and logistics of visiting various colleges. She seemed to be flustered by the whole idea. Our teachers just looked at each other because we had just done that with a set of our kids. Hey! we just contacted people and transportation and figured out the logistics on our own. Just get it done. Most likely your common sense or perseverance will allow you to figure things out. And if not, you'll learn from it and do better next time.

Shifting of Parabola Functions

I don't know how your school year is ending up, but at our school it's CRAZY CRAZY CRAZY. Practically every day the schedule is altered in some way, and we're all just practicing our deep breaths and our focus of just thinking of one wacky day at a time. Because of this I wanted a lesson that discussed shifting of graphs so that the kids could work independently in case I saw different classes for different amounts of time. Now I'm thinking I should do this more often. I really know I should, but other things get in the way.

Anyway, I like how this worked out. I told the kids I wouldn't help them and they had to work in their groups to figure things out while I walked around. I told them they could ONLY work on the 1st page and we'd talk before they went on. I walked around and cleared up misconceptions. We got through about 3 pages in a wacky 75 minute class after doing homework checks and such.

Here's the 1st & 4th pages: (and here is the whole packet of 4 pages)

Adding & Subtracting Radicals

I teach 3 different classes of algebra 1 preAP. My poor 1st class gets all my mistakes and things I test out. My 2nd class gets the refinement, but still not "the best" I'm going to offer this round. By my 3rd class, I've had time to mull over ideas and see what works and doesn't work and anticipate their problems. So... Here's the 1st page of what my 3rd class is going to get on Monday when we learn adding and subtracting radicals. You don't even want to SEE what I subjected my 1st period to. (here's the whole 2 pages).

Circles and Tangents and Horizons

We're on the "tangents to circles" section in geometry, and I'd assigned a standard problem of "the satellite is ____ miles from the earth ... how far is it from the horizon?" Too many kids drew goofy pictures and didn't get the concept, so I started class on Friday with the following task.

1. We had a discussion about how when you're at the (ocean) beach, and you can see the horizon, maybe you wonder how far away it is .... any guesses? And do you think tall people and short people will see the same distance away?

2. Then I had them draw the "circle" earth, and we discussed drawing them standing on the earth (as a math stick figure with a big eyeball dot on top) and made sure they were standing up straight (an extension to the radius of the earth).

3. Then I asked them to just PLACE their ruler as if it was their line of sight to the horizon and walked around to make sure they knew what they were doing and corrected some misconceptions.

4. After they drew the line of sight to the horizon, they had "AH!"s of the right triangle possibility of finding the answer.

5. I asked them what information they knew or could find out, and we looked up the radius of the earth in miles on the Internet, and we recalled the number of feet in a mile.

6. Then before I set them on their way, I asked that if I was 5'4", how many feet tall am I and show me on your calculator as I walk around. I heard good conversations and them correcting each other. Then I got another kid to tell her height, and we did the same thing to make sure everyone got it.

7. Then I set them on their way to find how far each of them individually with THEIR OWN HEIGHT could see to the horizon. As I walked around, I saw too many kids doing everything in feet (because "I don't know HOW TO DO IT in miles")... they converted the radius of the earth (about 3960 miles) to feet!!! We had a discussion about how these are too large of numbers.

8. I stopped the class temporarily and did a mini-lesson. Let's say I have 53", how many feet is that. What about 38 feet, how many yards is that. Okay, let's say I have 5.25 feet, how many miles is that? They caught on. Then we had to have another mini-lesson on using our store button on the calculator instead of rounding early or writing EVERY BLESSES DIGIT out on paper and then retyping it in.

9. THEN when they'd calculated the length from their eyeball to the horizon, we asked the shortest kid what their answer was, and the tallest kid their answer. And we had to fix some kids' work and computation until they did it correctly.

10. Interesting span of possibilities of how far we all could see .... which I won't divulge in case you want to try it.

Graphing Parabolas

I had really good luck with this sheet when we were practicing graphing parabolas today. I apparently haven't been doing enough graphing in class because I still got a handful of questions during class, "how do I find points on the graph". Scary. Anyway, I'm not too worried because with other topics earlier in the year that they couldn't do, now they're great at them (like terms, solving for x, ...). We only got through this front side because of all the other extra administrative stuff we needed to take care of.

What I like about having a preprinted sheet is that I can stop them at each step and have a discussion: why is it called the axis of symmetry? how do you know what x value to plug in for the vertex? what kind of shape is the axis of symmetry (a point or a line or other?), how do you know how to find the y-intercept? why? does every parabola have a y-intercept? (that brought surprising answers when I asked for thumbs up for yes and down for no) ....

Rote Memorization

I was reading this post the other day, and flashed back to my 7th and 8th grade German class where we had to memorize dialogs and play both parts with the teacher for a grade. Now, I'm not saying I'm old, but this was in the late 70's. The thing is, I still remember parts of the conversations in some of these cheesy dialogs.

That got me thinking that maybe I could make up a cheese-ball conversation for my algebra 1 students to memorize and have to perform for me. In this way maybe when they're solving a quadratic equation in the future that's not all prettied up and ready for them, they'll break into a cold sweat and remember this dialog and solve it properly.

Here's what I have (and the version I'll hand out):

Real-Life Problem

Ms. Cookie conscientiously deletes ALL memory from her calculators: RAM, ROM, RIM, ROOM, and all the excellent APPS on the "school bus yellows" for the TAKS test. Ms. Cookie saved one calculator to the side and kept the programs/APPS on there. Ms. Cookie now wants to repopulate the other calculators. Once she does one, then she has 2, then 4, etc. Each repopulation takes 12 minutes (!!!! who knew!!!!). How long will it take her to "fix" all 74 calculators?

Culturally/Gender Biased Test Questions

We were practicing problems for our TAKS test, and 2 funny incidents came up.

First problem: a baseball diamond has 60 feet between the bases. How far is it from home plate to 2nd base?

Some of the girls in my class indicated that they did not know what a baseball diamond looked like. Now we were working on the Pythagorean Theorem, so it had to be a square ... but they didn't know the layout of the bases. We discussed it. Then, being a good teacher (cough), I wanted to link it to something, so I asked if they'd heard about boys getting to 1st base, etc. But I digress; the point is that if we hadn't happened upon this practice problem, and they got it on their exam, they may get it wrong not for not knowing the math, but for not knowing baseball.

Second problem: What information do you need to figure out to know how much material is needed for a basketball? (surface area? volume? ....)

I thought this was obvious (surface area), but then a child asked me why it wasn't volume. I started to explain, and then she said, "oh! there's no stuffing inside?" I'd never thought of that, and explained that it was just air inside. Then I thought about it. There are sports balls that have stuffing inside (baseballs, softballs, ...). We could think of 3 more in addition to those 2 when we brainstormed. Anyway, ARGH sports problems and non-sports people!

TAKS helpful hints

And so starts the crazy TAKS week. I made up a sheet for my 9th graders and printed it on pretty paper and discusses each tip with them. So in addition to doing algebra/TAKS practice MTW, we will talk about calculator skills, and these test taking skills. And we will cross our fingers that everything will be okay.

One student shared with me that someone at church had walked up front and was in tears (a junior) and asked people to pray for her because this week she was taking her math TAKS. Oh my goodness, what have we come to with all this testing stress.

Anyway, here's what I handed out (on a 1/2 sheet front and back):

Movies & Teacher Talk

I went to see "City Island" with my teacher friend today - my teacher friend that still works at my old "crazy" school. Loved the movie, loved spending time with my friend. She said something that resonated with me, "sometimes I just want to go do some volunteer work or something in another country with school children who still actually appreciate their education so that I don't get too far gone and cynical about the state of things."

She's dealing with kids that:
* just come to her class because it's a part of their probation,
* come to class and don't do anything but still expect to pass,
* don't show up on the day of their oral exam for no good reason and then expect to have time to do it again at their convenience.

I wonder if there are summer programs for teachers like this - 1-3 week programs where you can travel and volunteer and do something nice/beneficial for others in this "school" way and not have it be too much of a drain on your wallet. Maybe we should come up with something - the power of teachers.

Also, I'm wondering (and worrying) about Mrs. H and hope she's okay and just taking a blog break.

Perceptions and Circles

I started to "do the math" and it basically seems that barring tests and tests and finals and reviews and other-time-vacuums, I have basically 5 or so block days left of teaching each class. Panic!

In other news I had an interesting conversation with another math teacher in the copy room today. Unlike the other 2 schools I've taught in, at my current school, everyone is expected to go above and beyond, and it's just an ordinary thing and possibly commented on in some way if you don't ... or maybe that's just our new teacher perspective of things. Anyway, we were discussing the results of the math 8th grade TAKS scores .... that were phenomenal .... for any other school, but since they were not 100% passing, there's an undercurrent of "why not?". Yeesh, the pressure.

So our conversation took the turn of her saying, "I can't wait until summer; I'm so exhausted." .... and, "I always walk around, and it seems everyone else has their act together, and I'm scrambling to keep up". I could contribute that I don't think everyone DOES have their act together, they're just putting on a great facade and doing the best they can (based on other conversations I've had). That got me to thinking. We make these judgment calls based on our insecurity of how we're performing by looking at others, and if they look calm or "with it", maybe we think, "ackh ... I need to work harder ... why don't I have things done and planned and thought out yesterday?". Anyway .... maybe a reason to get out and talk to more teachers in depth instead of just surface, "hello, how's it going" conversations.

Finally, we started circles today in geometry. We barely scratched the surface, and again I didn't want them to copy definitions, so I did the matching game again. My twist this time was that I did a search on the internet, and found a cool website that showed me how to make envelopes that don't use glue. So I had the kids make them out of pretty paper, and they could store their cut out matching cards there (also on pretty paper) ... AND they could write the key on the back of the envelope. Nice.

Quadratic Formula

It's that time of the year in algebra, and I'm processing the right sequence that works for me on how to teach this. I have block classes, and even though that seems like, "whoa! 1.5 hours! You can cover HEAPS." It turns out that this is still a multiday process for me. Here's what I've done so far and where I'm going.

Previously on As the Algebra Turns:
Quadratics bla bla bla
Factoring bla bla bla
Finding Zeros of Quadratics by factoring
Linking Zeros of equations to graphs of parabolas.
TEST on some stuff

START of our Program:
Day 1: start the class with reviewing one problem of finding zeros by factoring and link it to the graph. Start them on the 2nd problem of trying to find the zero by factoring, and BOOM, falls apart. Ask them if they think this means it DOESN'T cross the x axis. Show them it does but the numbers aren't "nice". Show them a slow step by step process of how to use the never-fail quadratic formula to solve. Have time for 1 "nice" problem.
HWK: can't involve simplifying of radicals (haven't done that yet). Can't have the equation in a weird form yet ... must be in ax^2+bx+c=0 form.

Day 2: now they have a reason for simplifying of radicals. Spend most of the period on simplifying (just the stuff they need for the quadratic formula). Then have time for one quadratic formula problem where they solve AND simplify. I also threw in a problem to solve that looked like: ax^2 + c = bx to get them used to this.
HWK: mixed radical problems (some with and without denominators) and some quadratic formula problems.

This is where I am so far.

Now I'm thinking, they need practice of both radicals and more quadratic formula. I still want to link it to the graph. I'd like to throw in some word problems. I'm probably forgetting something, but that seems about it. So, sheesh, 4 block days on this. Why am I stressing about that? Better to do it well than just to rush through it. .... I guess I'm stressing because I still have/want to cover: more radicals (adding multiplying...), Pythagorean theorem use of radicals and to refresh their memory, midpoint and distance formulas .... more geometry and radicals. Will I have time for rational expressions?

Stay Tuned for the Next Episode.

Quadratics Review

Woot Woot! Our school participated in a 10K today (which I think of as a 10K+ since we walked to and from our bus to the race place), and I actually ran/walked the whole thing. Oh yea! I think I'm hooked now. It was fun with the bands along the way and the various people cheering us on from the side lines. It was my 1st race, and here were my fears before hand: oh no! I'll get trampled by the faster people at the start of the race, and it'll be a tragedy reported on the news. or... oh no! I'll be so slow that there won't be any other runners in sight, so I won't know the route and I'll veer off the course and get lost. or ... oh no! what about bathroom issues? or ... oh no! my pasty white chubby legs will blind the other runners and there'll be another tragic accident from the glare that will be reported on the news. It turned out that there were runners of all shapes and sizes and ages, and I am now home safe, and if anyone was blinded from the glare, I didn't hear any cries of agony. I think of a phrase I read on another blog (crazyauntpurl? or yarnharlot?) that my "deficiencies" will make others feel better about themselves ... it's just a small service I provide to the world.

Anyway, in algebra we (and by we, you know who I mean) will have a test this week on our beginnings of quadratics, so I've created this self-checking review sheet for the kiddies that I like. Once again, the box.net preview looks wonky, but it should download nicely. Also, the "English" of the sentence is probably cringe-worthy, but I didn't want to keep using the same words over again.

EDITED LATER: no matter HOW many times I checked this sheet, there apparently was still a mistake (which is now fixed on box.net). In the answer bank, the "-4x^6" should be "-4y^6". Thank you to a student with eagle eyes.

Great Intentions, Bad Execution

As with probably most school districts we have a dress code policy (though at the other school I worked at it didn't prevent me from having to see massive cleavage and feel uncomfortable about saying something). But maybe unlike many schools, at my current school, it's mostly enforced. Today I noticed a girl without shoes in my 1st period. I asked her what was up and where were her shoes and "put on your shoes". This was sort of a "drive by" on my part because I didn't expect any grief from her.

I started class, and then noticed a while later she still didn't have on her shoes, so I was more firm with "put on your shoes". "No," she said. Ding, ding, ding, warning bells. The whole class (in my memory) quiets down to see what'll happen. I stared at her wide-eyed in disbelief and asked her to step outside, which she did. I got the class to continue moving on with their work (the thrilling quest of finding zeros of quadratics, ooh, aah), and went in the hall to "discuss".

I asked her what was wrong and why she wasn't putting on her shoes and waited. I got no sensible response. I said that her options were to put on her shoes or to go to the office, and I asked her what her decision was. She opted for the office. This was at the beginning of a 1.5 hour block class. Then I had to simultaneously teach and figure out how to get word to the office without a disruption. I sent e-mail, and thankfully (I LOVE my administration this year!), I got an immediate response that it was being dealt with.

In the last 10 minutes of class, the administrator came back with the girl, and I found out what's what. Apparently, it's "A Day Without Shoes", and this girl was participating. Did she ask me? Did she explain to me? Did she have documentation about this? No. She waited all the way (even with the administrator) until she was facing suspension for insubordination before she explained in tears what she was doing.

Oh my goodness, 14 year old minds and their logic/decision-making-skills, etc.

PSA project idea

In our city once a year about this time, the art of the students from our school district is displayed in a building downtown. Apparently, the people that work in that building say it's something they look forward to every year. All grades from K-12 are showcased. I went to see it last Friday and was inspired by all the creativity. I'm even thinking of taking some art classes this summer.

There were all sorts of techniques, and being an art know-nothing, I don't know (shocking) the names of the styles. But. There were things made with aluminum foil and blackened; there were things painted on cloth. There were pictures and then an overlay of an overhead slide with another component to the drawing. Very fun to browse. One technique intrigued me, so I thought maybe I could incorporate it into a project for my kids.

They could create a PSA (public service announcement) for some things you never want to do in math or always want to do in math. For example, (x + 3)^2 = x^2 + 9 OBVIOUSLY in many of my students' minds. My thinking is that if they spend time making the PSA, and they're hanging up around the room and other students look at them, then maybe the correct thing to do will be triggered in their minds when they need to use/perform the math task.

Anyway, I made a mock up of an example today. I guess I'll think through the specs and see if it's something feasible.

Factoring Trick

I don't know if I mentioned this before last year when I taught algebra 1, but it worked so well this year, that I have factoring geniuses in class - even kids who have trouble elsewhere.

We just finished learning how to factor trinomials of the form axx + bx + c where a is not 1. My retired math teacher friend had taught me this trick (over chips and salsa and margaritas last year), and I tried it out with my class. I had to first prep the period with the following statements:

* I'm going to show you a trick today that's going to be your new BFF in math.
* First I'll predict how the class will go.
* You'll take notes on the process while we slowly go through it with an example and you take notes carefully like you're taking them for your best friend who's absent.
* You'll whine and say, "I'll NEVER like/use this trick. It'll NEVER be my BFF".
* After the 2nd problem you'll say, "okay, it's not so bad. I can be in the same room with this trick."
* After the third problem, you'll quietly wait for the 4th after you finish this current one a little faster.
* After the 4th problem, you'll be ready to marry this trick. Your NEW BFF.

We laughed and got down to business. And yes, I had to make fun of them for each of my predictions coming true. And yes, 2 or 3 classes later, when I came back to this kind of factoring, they almost all of them remembered it.

Miscommunication

Wednesday in algebra 1 we were exploring parabolas on the calculator. We're just getting into our groove with the calculators, and I'm slowly trying to introduce more capabilities of it. The question was, "when does the rocket reach 528 feet", and after we'd graphed the equation, I was showing them how they can put y2=528 and then find the intersection with the original rocket equation.

I tell them to press 2nd TRACE (though I always say, 2nd calculate, ... whatever), and go on to show them the intersect capability. Many kids ooh and aah, and move on to the next question.

One girl calls me over, "it doesn't work", and she's all frustrated and pushing 2nd and TRACE over and over. I walk up behind her and ask her to do what she's doing slowly. Then I couldn't help myself, I laughed. She was pushing down on the "2nd" button with all her might and annoyance and holding her finger there in the down position while simultaneously then pushing the TRACE button.

I'd never come across this before, but now that I think about it, why not? Never have I said, "push 2nd and release and THEN push TRACE". Aaaaaaah, good times.