Slide-A-Round Math Manipulatives

I received an excellent opportunity to help low vision and blind students in Maryland. Josh Irzyk, Statewide Vision/ Low Incidence Specialist with the Maryland Department of Education and Maryland School for the Blind, offered to share information about my manipulatives and teaching strategies on his state’s wiki site. Teachers in public schools and at the school for the blind will have access to complimentary handouts to address their students’ math standards and upcoming state and national presentations.

I had a great conversation with Mary Keeney, Arizona Department of Education’s Exceptional Student Services, about demonstrating my manipulatives to her and her colleagues during the first week in October. Ms. Keeney informed me that she will provide an exact time, location, and date after she plans the demonstration with her colleagues. In addition to our discussion about Slide-A-Round Math Manipulatives, she suggested the websites Rewordify.com and Bookshare.org as possible resources to help my students.

Please check my “Latest News” tab for the specific details at a later time.

I received confirmation from Dr. Nicky Ice that my proposal to present at the 2014 Georgia Council of Teachers of Mathematics Conference on Thursday, October 16th has been accepted. My presentation will stress how my manipulatives can be used to address the Common Core. The timing of the conference is perfect because teachers and students are going to need all possible means to help ALL students achieve mastery of their rigorous math standards.

Jane Gay, Director of the Iowa Program for Assistive Technology, offered to provide information about my math manipulatives to the Area Agencies on Education AT Liaisons and the itinerant teachers who work with most if not all of the K-12 blind students in Iowa. Due to the distance from Georgia and with the 2014-15 school year upon us, I sincerely appreciate her help. Because of the increasing rigor of math standards, I hope to provide teaching strategies to teachers that will make a difference for many students’ education in Iowa!

I shared the link for my recent article that was published in Education World to Lynda Richards, Director of Northwest Georgia Learning Resources System (GLRS). I sincerely appreciate her positive feedback regarding the recent article about my differentiation strategies with the number line I invented. Ms. Richards also mentioned that she was going to share the article with her colleagues at Northwest Georgia RESA’s August meeting.

At the 2014 MEGA Conference, Mary Ann Danford, Secondary Curriculum Coordinator at Conecuh County Schools, Alabama, observed a short demonstration of my differentiation of instruction strategies with my number line to 10,000,000 and Fraction 16ths manipulatives. Based on the need to meet the needs for all of her students, Ms. Danford has invited me to demonstrate my teaching strategies to her colleagues on July 25th.

I would like to express appreciation to Pat Satterfield, Center 4 AT Excellence, a Georgia Tools for Life Network Partner, for offering to share my math manipulatives with teachers who visit her facility at Georgia Tech as well as with teachers and administrators at her presentations around the state. Ms. Satterfield has also invited me to present at the 2014 GATE Conference in December. Please check my website or Center 4 AT Excellence’s website at a later time for the exact date and time of my presentation when it becomes available.

I am going to demonstrate my manipulatives to Brooke Sibley, Director of Special Education and RTI, Newton County Schools, Mississippi on July 23 at 2:00. This will be a great opportunity to share my teaching strategies, especially with the 2014-15 school year just around the corner! We both agreed that if our time discussing my math manipulatives helps at least one of her students it will definitely be worth it.

I received confirmation from Dr. Celine Provini, Editor of Education World, that an article will be published regarding differentiation strategies for using my number line to 10,000,000. This article will provide instructional strategies for teachers to help their students achieve mastery of their math standards during the 2014-15 school year. Please continue to visit Education World or my website to read the article after it is published.

I received confirmation from Jodi Burr, Assistive Technology Strategist, that I am going to conduct a math manipulatives training for the colleagues in her region on July 24th at 9:00-11:00 in Bossier City, Louisiana. I am excited about the opportunity, especially since the 2014-15 school year will begin in less than two months for many school districts.