It is hard to believe that I am coming up to the first year anniversary of my official retirement from full-time teaching. It has been a wonderful year despite my husband having an accident in April resulting in a broken ankle and torn rotator-cuff. It could have been much worse and I am happy to say that he is on the mend. Opportunities like this confirm that I was not cut out for a career in medicine.
As I reflect on the past year, I am pleased with my accomplishments because I was able to continue focusing on my passion in a different way. As many people know, I am passionate about the teaching and learning of elementary mathematics. I am intrigued by how students learn and what it takes to make them feel successful thus impacting their achievement. I am appreciative of the many years of full-time work and learning I experienced with ALCDSB educators and students.
I am proud that I:
- started my website/blog www.mathmotivator.com
- shared my math experiences and thoughts through my website, Twitter, Math Motivator Facebook page and Pinterest
- presented at a school in our board on the first PA day sharing the work we had done the previous year on spatial reasoning
- volunteered weekly in a Grade 5-6 classroom as a co-learner and co-teacher during math class
- worked one on one with a few primary students in math
- administered and marked the PRIME assessment in several classrooms
- supported another board’s math journey for a total of 14 days
- developed and presented a workshop called: Proportional Reasoning – A Focus on Multiplicative Thinking
- developed and co-presented with a friend and colleague at a Queen’s University Education class ( Assessment For Learning – Precision is Key)
- was a member of the EOSDN panel at the CAfLN conference at Queen’s University sharing our board’s learning
- scribed for both primary and junior students during EQAO
With each and everyone of these opportunities I continued to learn and deepen my own understanding! Retirement did not mean the end for me, but the beginning of new possibilities.
In between times I had the opportunity to travel at “off’ times, meet friends from near and farther away for lunch or dinner during the week, pursue my writing and reading, interact more with my wonderful grandchildren, and spend more time with my husband, daughters and their families.
Yes, it has been a great year despite the glitch I mentioned. I look forward to what next year brings!