2013 + New additions to Creative Math

Well hello everyone!  Happy (belated) 2013!

I meant to have something about this up earlier, but as you can clearly see, our blog has been updated!  We've gotten a bit of a facelift from Lindsay over at Sour Apple Design-- didn't she do a great job?  We've also started using a different platform-- blogger.com-- so now you'll be able to follow us and get real-time updates to this blog.

Speaking of, we have a new way we're going to do things around here!  One of our New Years' resolutions-- post to the blog more frequently!  (Clearly, we're off to a great start.)  We'll have new posts every week-- about what's new at Creative Math, where Kim's at, math news and stories and things we're excited to share with you.  We also hope you'll take the time to add comments if you have questions or if there are things you want to know more about!

You might have already noticed this, but we are now available on Teachers Pay Teachers.  We don't have too many products loaded up yet, but we'll be adding more all the time.  In honor of our San Francisco 49ers, we'll be running a SUPER Sunday sale tomorrow here, with 15% off select merchandise-- but the sale ends on Monday!  (Maybe earlier if the other Harbaugh wins-- just kidding, Ravens fans!)

One product we just added to Teachers Pay Teachers is Kim's Valentine's Choices activity.  This product has been available for some time on our website, but we gave it a bit of a makeover-- added some new color graphics and touched up a few of the worksheets.  It's a great seasonal math center, to be used daily to help with mathematically motivating children.  I cringe when I hear adults say that they never liked math growing up-- everyone has the capacity to love math, and Kim's centers help make it easier!  Who wouldn't enjoy math with conversation hearts?  This unit covers fractions, algebraic functions and patterns, among other things.  Check it out!  Here's the cover image below.

I hope you're having a wonderful weekend-- enjoy the Super Bowl tomorrow, if you're watching, or the Puppy Bowl if that's your cup of tea.  Kim will be visiting beautiful British Columbia next week-- if you'd like more information on these workshops, or any upcoming Creative Math workshops and presenters, please visit our page here.

Go Niners!

Lots of Blessings to Count

Sitting in an airport on this Saturday morning waiting for a flight out of Newark.  Just finished the NCTM Regional in Hartford.  Flight canceled last night so it seems the relaxing weekend is not to be….. ah well.  Just posted on my website the list of computational strategies from my 10 Block Schedule for Math Fact Fluency.  Hope this helps those of you looking for ways to achieve math fact fluency.

There were so many sessions on Fact Fluency at the conference it was amazing.  My daughter is assisting with the weekly Facebook contests.  Don’t forget to go and answer the weekly question!  You may win!  I believe that we have six winners from the first two weeks!  Awesome!  Just loved the funny answers to the Halloween questions!  Still laughing!

We have a fun offer for those of you attending the CMC Palm Springs Math Conference next weekend.  Check it out!

You simply must see the amazing photos from Deborah Fisher’s classroom!  So inspiring!  I am so proud of my first group of KSAs and their powerful workshops!  Check them out in your area—Darlene, Julie and Kathy in Texas!  Patti in Arizona!  Deborah in Idaho!  Terry in California!  Kim in Omaha!  Cheryl who is all over the place!  They are amazing!

Ellen also sent some amazing photos about digital root…… her class deserves a “shout out!” and a big prize!  Both are coming!

Go SF Giants!  Beat Detroit!

Finally a sweet “shout out” to our wonderful daughter who is running in her first half marathon this morning in Northern California!  We are so proud of her quest for fitness….what an inspiration!  You go girl!  Enjoy this great achievement!

Mathematically yours!

Go Giants! Beat Detroit!

Sometimes the impossible happens!  The SF Giants are up 4-0 for game 1 of the World Series…… can’t ever count this team out!  How inspiring is this?  I have been a fan since I was a little girl.  I am really digging this.  It is only a game but these moments in life are amazing!  You can’t but help feeling the magic.  It is only the bottom of the 4th inning but……

I love orange for Halloween and the Giants!

Ornaments or Tools?

Ornaments or tools?  It hit me hard recently that our classrooms are exciting reflections of learning opportunities.  But if something like my number line is on the wall it should be more than an ornament.  Everyday use of this tool will change the learning environment for mathematics.  Every area of content that we teach mathematically can be reinforced with daily questioning on the number line.  As we count to the 100th day of school the number line can be a part of each exciting number along the journey.  The questions we ask students are so much more meaningful than the worksheets we run off.  Just some thoughts at 4 am………. check out the free section of my website for daily questions to ask students.  Those will be posted later today…..

Welcome Back!

Here we go, one more time and everybody’s feeling fine!  New year, new students new challenges!  Here’s hoping that summer gave you rest and relaxation to recharge your battery.  My summer workshops are drawing to a close but it has been a great summer.  I have enjoyed the challenges that summer brings for me…… lots of different kinds of presentations and great teachers who make it all worthwhile.

So happy to welcome my first group of Kim Sutton Associates!  Wonderful folks who will bring their own special magic to my presentations in places that I can’t get to.  Had the realization that time is passing quickly and there are so many places to go and we can’t get there without help!  They came to California for a week of training in June and it was amazing.  Last year we started with two special folks, Patti Launi and Cheryl Henjum.  What powerful presenters they are!  If you have been lucky enough to have heard them, you know what I mean.

Are you starting the year with the class number line?  I certainly hope so.  Check out the research about number lines under the Free PDFs and Conference Files.  The last three years have brought so many powerful experiences in classroom using this tool and then going into empty number lines for elapsed time, making change, rounding readiness, multiples, fractions and decimals.

Mathematically yours!

YIKES! What a mess! We can fix it!

YIKES!  What a disaster!  Just did the CAMT Conference in Houston and announced loudly that the handouts are posted on my website….. now we are having a huge problem.  Please email me for the handouts and I will zip them to you!  If this problem does not get resolved, we will be hiring a new web company and having to redo all of it.  Not our choice but this problem does not seem to get resolved.

Be patient and just email me and you will receive all of them!

Hot Summer!

Happy Father’s Day!  Been on the road for three weeks with one to go before heading home to the cool Redwood Forest.  Had wonderful trips that started right before Memorial Day.

Wonderful Math Camp for Barb, Paul and I in Apache Junction, Arizona.  The district was so great in hosting.  So many great teachers.

Then traveled on to Garden City, Kansas for two days.  Really enjoyed our first visit there and can’t wait to return.  We traveled from there to Nashville for two wonderful days doing one of my favorite classes.  Got to see our dear friends, John and Debbie and enjoy Fan Fest there.  Our daughter flew in and we had such a great weekend enjoying the best music.  Also visited the Jack Daniels Distillery.

Worked last week in Texas.  Love Texas!  Wonderful teachers who know so much about teaching mathematics that I am humbled.

We then flew to San Francisco to walk the US Open Golf Tournament with our daughter.  Wow!  That was truly amazing.  I am so sunburned.  Did not even think about sunscreen which is unusual for me….. way too excited about being there!