Farouq's AISI 11 Reflections

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Farouq is Peace Wapiti School Division's Science Division 4 Curriculm Coordinator.  After attending the AISI 2011 conference last week he shared the following reflections and lessons learned.


1) Why not consider having Math Fairs? Make them non-competitive and have students create their own unique puzzle. Very often, students who hate Math, and who do not excel with numbers, will show talent in creating and even solving puzzles. You can then demonstrate that Math is simply a language for explaining answers to life’s puzzles. Students can showcase their puzzles to the rest of the school or even parents. The solutions should not be found on the Internet (forcing students to create novel puzzles).




2) Parents should be an integral part of educating students. Consider inviting parents to teach certain lessons or concepts in the classroom. Make an effort to contact parents (by phone or email) and tell them something positive about their children.


3) We need to teach students that what we’re used to measuring – income, accumulation of material goods, IQ and even grades – are a small portion of the happiness pie. What of strong relationships, playing, dancing, singing, environmental sustainability, mental/physical/emotional health?