Get Outta Here!

PICK THE LOCKS: After spending a couple of days almost entirely homebound due to a largish DIY project (installing around 115 square feet of a slate flooring in our entryway), I was itching to get out of the house this morning.

So, we (including Christian, who usually has Mondays off but since yesterday was MLK day, he had today off, too) got out the strollers and headed north, toward the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks, more commonly called "Ballard Locks".

It's a 2-plus mile run each way (and all uphill on the way back, ugh). But we needed the air and exercise. CJ and Annabelle enjoyed a stroller ride most of the time, but they got some leg work in, too - certainly well over a mile for each of them.

Though there weren't any fish to be seen, as it turned out, it was a great morning to visit. The temperature was in the mid-50s, and being a Tuesday morning in January, it was pretty much just us and the occasional jogger or parks or construction worker. (In summertime, the place is packed to the point where you have to turn sideways to squeeze by people.)

With so few people around, we could actually see the signs and stop and read them without blocking traffic so that was a bonus.

We walked across both of the bridges/gangways that open when ships or boats are coming through - and wound up getting stuck for awhile on the north side of the park while a barge passed through. It was interesting to watch though, and fun for the kids, because they got to talk to the man aboard the barge.

We pointed out that a single tug boat was pushing all the weight of that massive barge. "It's little and powerful, like me!" Annabelle declared. That caused a whole crew of nearby construction workers to chuckle.

In all, our on-foot field trip lasted nearly two hours. Needless to say, Kirby was hosed by the time we got home.

MORE ON MARTIN: Today we returned to the BookFlix Web site to complete a couple of the activities they had associated with the book and video the site features about Martin Luther King Jr.

One was a vocabulary exercise, the other was about putting events in MLK Jr.'s life in chronological order (needless to say, by referencing the handy-dandy timeline they made yesterday, the kids aced it).

SOUTHBOUND: Tuesday afternoon means yoga in Columbia City. The long drive gave us an opportunity to review the lasted Kindermusik CD. The kids' homework was to listen to it and then this Friday they are supposed to report to teacher Nancy which track they like best.

About halfway into the first song Annabelle asked, "Is this Mexican music or Hawaiian music?" The answer was neither. The first nine songs on the CD are of Native American origin. Song 10 is the fantastic "Fanfare for the Common Man" by Aaron Copland, performed only using brass and percussion instruments.

CHECK MY MATH: Recently, I sent a link to this blog to a friend of mine who is a longtime elementary school teacher. Post haste she sent me a long, thoughtful email outlining a few of the things I've been doing wrong with the kids. ; )

For instance, she was kind (and I mean that!) in pointing out, " You fall into the same math trap that most people do, CJ didn't carry a 1, he carried one group of 10." Doh! She's so right!

She also reminded me that it's good to get kids counting correctly. "When they count do they say, 'one hundred and one' or 'one hundred one'? My first graders always thought they were so smart because they knew not to say the "and," and means a decimal, (such as) two dollars and fifty cents." Again, she's so right- and I really appreciate the feedback. :)

MATH WARS: Here in Seattle a storm has been brewing. For months, I've been following stories in the media and Internet postings about the math curriculum used in the Seattle School district. On Jan. 26, there will be a legal showdow at the King County Courthouse. A group that includes a retired HS teacher, a HS parent and UW math professor and meteorologist Cliff Mass is suing the district, contending that the recently adopted "Discovery Math" high school curriculum will contribute to a widening achievement gap between middle-class and underprivileged students. (Frankly, from what I've read, the curriculum sounds like it's a disservice to ALL students, but I'm getting ahead of myself. ...)

Cliff Mass' objection, especially, carries major weight in my book. He is one sharp dude. A recent cover story Seattle Weekly did on him is worth checking out. Here's an excerpt:

A passionate "math activist" who would like to return to the days of
calculator-free "explicit instruction" in elementary, middle, and secondary
schools, Mass and a pair of co-plaintiffs currently have a lawsuit pending
against Seattle Public Schools, in which they claim the District's shift to a
"Discovery Math" curriculum has widened the achievement gap between Caucasian
and minority students. (A January court date has been set.)
"Instead of getting the answer right, it's far more important to write an essay about your thought process," says Mass of an instructional movement he claims has led to a severe deterioration of math skills among his collegiate students. "I've had
students in my office crying because they've had to give up their dream of
becoming meteorologists. They couldn't pass the math. The most demanding aspects
of my field are being dominated by people overseas."

So back to the Math Wars at hand. ... Last May, the Seattle School Board approved implementing a district-wide high-school math curriculum called "Discovering Math" as part of a five-year strategic plan that Superintendent Dr. Maria Goodloe-Johnson created.Seems like the group might have a legitimate beef, for last winter, the State Board of Education was asked by the state superintendent of public instruction's office to evaluate the Discovering Math series. The board hired consultants. Strategic Teaching, a contractor for the American Institute of Researchers, reviewed the math curriculum. Completed last March, the evaluation showed the Discovery Math books to be "unsound" in all mathematical categories. From their report:

So how does SPS respond? Full steam ahead - Discovery Math here we go!

This is one I'll be watching.