Park Tudor Blogs

“I have a wonderful problem and I’m wondering if you might have any suggestions.” 

It was the only way I could think to start my email to Mallory Jurkash, our Lower School Technology Integrator. I was midway through a unit on spreadsheets with my seventh-grade students and they were flying through my content. They had mastered formatting, using formulas, sorting data, and creating charts. They were working on an open-ended project. I needed help to find meaningful ways for them to extend their skills. One option grew into a chance to connect with Lower School students, content, and teachers.

One of Mallory’s ideas was pixel art on spreadsheets. First, someone creates a document with, in our case, math problems. As someone else types the correct answers, different cells light up with color and a picture appears. An incorrect answer will leave blank spaces. My students will use a file their classmate Penn* created to review for exams. Correct integer calculations will reveal the imposter from the popular Among Us game. Several students latched on to the idea of creating files for the Lower School students.

In my home, multiplication is often a topic of conversation. My fourth grader is working to reach automaticity with his facts. Lower School students develop their number sense and computation skills over several years. “Our goal is automaticity and understanding; without both, our children will never build the foundational skills needed to do more complex math” (O’Connell & San Giovanni, 2015, pg. 2). 

Keeping learners engaged in the practice is key. These pixel art files were one small way to review that we could offer to Lower School students and teachers.

Without realizing it, we had created an opportunity for community-engaged learning (CEL). Luana Nissan described CEL as “…creat[ing] opportunities for our students to know themselves, build their skills, and understand the needs and assets of their community” (Park Tudor website). My students researched the best ways to create pixel art files. I heard them sharing formulas and advice for how to format the math problems. They debated how much variety to put in the numbers. Without noticing they built math understanding and connections with each other. 

The project evolved as our connections extended to another building. Templeton* was my son’s book buddy when they were both much younger. 

“Tell your son, I’ve got him. I’ll make one for him.” 

Jana* worked to make one that would help her younger brother practice math. Word spread among seventh graders about a horse cartoon because Riley* excitedly shared the link to her project. More students joined in. They heard that the files took a few hours to create, but they did not mind the work. They remembered learning important concepts in Lower School, and they realized that pixel art would be a great way to encourage students to practice. 

Suddenly seventh graders became interested in the math sequence. “My neighbor is in third grade, what math can he do?”. A Lower School teacher heard about our project and requested subtraction examples, so Annemarie* created one.

The role of emotion is vital in learning. Tracey Tokuhama-Espinosa, in her 2011 book on Mind Brain Education, wrote “...there is no decision without emotions…[they] impact learning and influence life choices inside and outside of school.” (p. 14). My students and I stumbled into a situation where they created an emotional connection to spreadsheet skills. Beyond that, their work may create positive emotions for the younger students. The rainbows or Halloween cats that appear in the pixel art, create fun and engagement. “Research on memory, then, strongly suggests that students are much more likely to remember curriculum content in which they have made an emotional investment” (Sousa, 2017, p. 94) This extension option may help form math memories in several groups.

The email to Mallory sparked a network of connections. Her ideas helped me and my students. My students excitedly pursued spreadsheets to share with the Lower School. In his book on motivation, Daniel Pink wrote of the importance of meaning. “People at work are thirsting for context, yearning to know that what they do contributes to a larger whole” (2009, p. 138). Who would have guessed that spreadsheets and multiplication facts would be an example of this?

*All students chose a pseudonym.

References

O’Connell, S. and SanGiovani, J. (2015). Mastering the basic facts in addition and subtraction. Heinemann.

Pink, D. H. (2009). Drive: The surprising truth about what motivates us. Riverhead Books.

Sousa, D. A. (2017). How the brain learns (5th ed.). Corwin.

Tokuhama-Espinosa, T. (2011). Mind, brain, and education science. W. W. Norton & Company.

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Dr. Heather Carmody, Middle School Math Teacher