February 5, 2010 8:30 - 3:00 CST The Ensworth School 7401 Highway 100 Nashville, TN 37221
Led by Robert Berkman:
Robert M. Berkman has been teaching mathematics for over 20
years in both private and public schools in New York City. His work has
appeared in Teaching Children Mathematics and Mathematics in the Middle
School, both published by the National Council of Teachers of
Mathematics (NCTM.) He has given presentations at conferences sponsored
by the NCTM and the Association for Supervision and Curriculum
Development (ASCD), in addition to teaching graduate school courses at
the Bank Street College of Education and New York University's
Steinhardt School of Education. He is currently the K - 4 math
specialist at Claremont Preparatory School. He has led NYSAIS workshops
on concept development in mathematics and differentiated instruction.
Advances
in brain imaging over the past 25 years have provided us with new insights into
how people learn and use mathematics. This workshop will focus on the latest
neurological research and how it has uncovered critical information about the
nature of mathematical thinking. This includes the following discoveries:
*
Babies as young as 2 - 3 days old are "hardwired" with a capacity to
carry out mathematical operations.
*
There is no single area of the brain responsible for mathematical thinking; the
brain distributes mathematics to different parts of the brain depending on its
content.
*
While neuroscientists agree that there is not a single "math gene,"
there are certain traits that make some people better equipped to master
mathematics.
This
workshop will focus on both the theory and application of a neuroscientific
approach to teaching mathematics. Participants will learn
*
Why some children find it more challenging than others in learning certain
concepts and skills in mathematics,
*
How to develop and implement mathematical activities that are consistent with
our understanding of how the brain processes information.
The
workshop will be balanced between a summary of the scientific research that
describes how our brain processes mathematics, and how we can evaluate and
build upon the inherent capabilities of our students. We will examine software
that can be used to detect and treat dyscalculia, as well as learn how to
design activities that take advantage of our neurological systems. Participants
will receive a comprehensive bibliography of relevant books, articles and
software, as well as sample activities for them to try out in their classrooms.
