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As I sat here choosing resources about real world math, I thought about "the" question students ask every year: "When will I ever use this math in my life?" As a student, I’m sure I wondered the same thing, but when I think about it now, I have a hard time thinking of a part of life that is not touched by one form of math or another. Math has a funny way of sneaking into every corner and crevice of life, and good math teachers make sure their students can recognize the math in the world around them.

"I’m not good at math."

"I hate math."

"When in life will I ever use this stuff?"

Sound familiar? Teachers in other subjects sometimes hear the same litany from students, but none so frequently as the much-maligned math teacher. The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics once mused that "One of the curious aspects of our society is that it is socially acceptable to take pride in not being good in mathematics." While I don’t think that most students take pride in being less than proficient in math, the NCTM statement still rings true for many adults that I know. Could it be time for a cultural shift in attitude?

What wonderful model of diffusion can send your students into gales of laughter, can be released from anywhere in the classroom, and can be supplied by each student around 15 times a day? If you haven’t guessed yet, contemplate these two literary greats: The Gas We Pass by Shinta Cho and Walter the Farting Dog by William Kotzwinkle and Glenn Murray. Flatulence is hardly a topic you think about when planning what to teach. It’s a topic that can come up…er…unexpectedly, and this week’s featured resources will help prepare you to take full advantage of this and other gross topics that may come up unexpectedly in your classroom.

Curiosity is natural to the soul of man, and interesting objects have a powerful influence on our affections.
– Daniel Boone

Ever since the beginning of time, humans have been trying to make sense of the world around us. Curiosity prompts us to question why things are the way they are, and how things work. It’s the eternal quest of human beings to want to really know, to understand how to unlock the secrets of the universe. As the above quote by Daniel Boone illustrates, objects and ideas that fire our imaginations can become potent interests, or even passions.

You and your students will go through the ups and downs of many different life experiences during each school year. Navigating these ever-changing challenges can be difficult. If you can deal with new experiences in your classroom in a positive way by using them as teachable moments for your entire class, you will help your students develop empathy towards others. As a member of a military family and a teacher, I have experienced the effects of military deployment both personally and in the classroom.

In college and graduate school, fledgling teachers learn about classroom management, different types of instructional methods, and lots of other pedagogical tools to help prepare them for life in their own classrooms. There are various situations that can crop up in the classroom, however, for which teachers have little or no preparation. School violence, drug and alcohol abuse by students (or parents), and divorce are a few issues that some teachers may have to address at some point in their careers.

I read a sign in a Kindergarten class the other day that said, "The best way to become a better reader: READ, READ, READ, READ, READ!" and the Kindergarteners do! Teachers and parents read out loud to them. Kids practice reading in fun learning centers. They lounge in comfy reading corners and read stacks of colorful books in the classroom. Teachers understand that learning to read is paramount, so reading and listening to stories is an integral part of the early primary classroom. Stories are full of bright pictures, and reading time is often mixed with art time, allowing students to display their imaginations. Most importantly, the reading that goes on in the Kindergarten is fun. It's magical.

Every year the media latches on to some "new" statistic that either highlights American students' academic successes or reiterates their failure against European and Asian counterparts on standardized test scores. It’s a fairly predictable event, and the pendulum swings both ways – up one minute, and down the next. One troubling trend, however, seems to have some teeth. Reading scores for U.S. students have shown little improvement in recent years, despite national efforts to boost children’s basic reading skills.

Reading Joann’s column this week about the Iditarod was intriguing. Racing across frozen lands on a sled pulled by a team of dogs sounds like such an amazing adventure, yet I have not thought much about the history of the sport and the controversy surrounding the treatment of the animals involved. One of the best parts of my job writing this column is my weekly chance to learn about and explore new topics. I have a week to dig into a topic and research ways for teachers to bring that topic to life for their students.

On March 3, scores of mushers and their dog teams will kick off the 39th Iditarod dog sled race in Alaska. The mushers come from all walks of life – farmers, veterinarians, lawyers, biologists, etc. The race is not for the faint of heart, covering 1,049 miles of inhospitable terrain in often hazardous weather conditions. Portions of the race course follow centuries-old Native American trails, which were later used by fur traders and speculators in the Alaska gold rush in the 19th century. Dog sleds were originally used on the trails out of necessity, to deliver supplies between settlements and trading posts as Alaskan seaports became icebound in winter.