| Yes, all you high school math teachers out there. The | | | | we will have achieved something few teachers ever |
| time has come for another year of teaching that | | | | really do: a commanding respect from most if not all |
| dreaded of all dreaded subjects: math. No matter you | | | | of their students. |
| teach basic math, algebra, or pre-calculus, the | | | | You see, kids--especially young adolescents--hate |
| reaction of the students on that first day is always | | | | hypocrisy. Don't expect your kids to do their |
| the same: fear. And because of the pain, you the | | | | homework if you don't do yours. But show your |
| math teacher, are going to inflict all year round on | | | | students that you are constantly keeping up with |
| the students, with all those nasty tests, dreaded | | | | your field by reading and studying in it. Carry around |
| homework assignments, projects, and | | | | interesting books in your field and share excerpts |
| what-have-you's, those thirty or so pairs of eyes in | | | | from them in your daily lessons. Relate something in |
| that first class are going to drill you so deep on that | | | | your lesson plan to a book that you are reading. |
| first day that you are going to want to shout, "Don't | | | | Rather than have your students be dis-connected, |
| shoot me, I'm just the math teacher." | | | | re-connect them to the subject and their worlds. Fire |
| But hey. It doesn't have to be this way. Okay. You | | | | those students up by showing passion and a genuine |
| might have to deal with those nasty looks the first | | | | enthusiasm for the field you teach. Once you do this, |
| few days or weeks, but you can quickly establish | | | | you will command high respect from your students |
| yourself as a different kind of math teacher, one not | | | | as well as your peers. |
| hell-bent on destroying all the high school kids on the | | | | Teaching math doesn't have to be a ho-hum routine |
| planet. You see, once kids learn how much you truly | | | | of lesson giving, test taking, and paper marking. Fuel |
| care about them through the teaching of your | | | | your lessons with life--with passion for a subject that |
| subject then they care little else about whether you | | | | intricately explains just about everything around us. |
| are the best teacher in the world, or even the most | | | | Teach your students that math teaches them to |
| knowledgeable about your subject area. True, we | | | | problem solve, and this rare trait is responsible for all |
| should know our field well, and we should walk the | | | | the progress in the world. This objective having been |
| talk with our students by living what we teach: that | | | | met, you will soon find yourself among that rare |
| we too are students and constantly striving to learn | | | | breed of teachers who not only move mountains but |
| more about our fields every day. Once we do this, | | | | explain the physical process involved. |