S4/E2: Routines for Reasoning - English Learners and Math with Grace Kelemanik and Amy Lucenta (Part 1 of 2)

How can building routines for reasoning help reduce cognitive load and anxiety for English learners in math classes? How can strategies like Ask-Yourself Questions, Annotation, Sentence Frames and Starters, and The Four Rs help provide equitable access to mathematical thinking? What are some effective ways of teaching students the academic vocabulary necessary to have a seat at the math table? We discuss these questions and more in part 1 of our 2 part series with Grace Kelemanik and Amy Lucenta, authors of the book “Routines for Reasoning: Fostering the Mathematical Practices in All Students”. Most recently, Amy Lucenta served as a secondary mathematics Clinical Teacher Educator for the Boston Teacher Residency Program. Her experience spans K-12, teaching both middle and high school, then extending into elementary as a math coach. Her passion for helping struggling learners focus on developing the standards for mathematical practice is evident in the book and in our conversation, where she continues to explore how to develop mathematical thinkers through establishing routines that lead to success. Grace Kelemanik has more than 30 years of mathematics education experience. As a frequent presenter at national conferences, she meets and continues to support countless math educators on their journey as thinking facilitators. She has served as an urban high school math teacher, Education Development Center Project Director, and extensively supports new and pre-service teachers through the Boston Teacher Residency program. In an interview posted on their website, Grace addresses a familiar setting in our classrooms: “English Learners come into our classrooms expected to learn mathematics, which is new to them, in a language that is new to them, in a culture that is new to them.” In this episode, we discuss routines that support these learners. These routines will provide a structure for all of your students to get down to the business of discussing, defending, communicating, connecting and reflecting on the learning of mathematics. You can stay connected with us by joining our ELL Community. There you can leave comments about this episode and others. You can also engage with great content like our short video series, blog posts, and articles. Finally, please consider leaving us a review on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts. This will help us continue bringing you the best topics and guests on Highest Aspirations.