I won't lie... Quarter 3 completely got away from me. My last post was almost 4 months ago and Quarter 4 starts tomorrow! But better late than never, right? Tomorrow I will begin factoring out the Greatest Common Factor (GCF) with my ESOL Algebra Part 1 kids. (You're probably thinking... what?! Is she crazy?!) So … Continue reading Factoring Part 1: GCF
Author: eatpraysolveforx
Calculating Slope From 2 Points *with tables*
Finding the slope seems to trip students up every year, even though we work step-by-step through the different variations. Students seem to master each individual piece (*EXCEPT maybe the slope formula... hence, this blog post! We'll get there...). We always have great conversations about types of slopes, making connections between all the different representations: special … Continue reading Calculating Slope From 2 Points *with tables*
Literal Equations! *river style*
How many of you gagged a little bit when you saw "Literal Equations" in the title? Oops, there you go again. I know, it's not your fault. Anyone who has taught Algebra 1 has been slightly traumatized by the process. Not by the process of solving them yourself, but by the process of helping students … Continue reading Literal Equations! *river style*
Simplifying Radicals *with factor ladders*
Are the rest of you feeling the end of the semester like I am? It's so close! All this grading has given me a chance to think about my next topic... and I could write about a million different things... But I think I want to continue with simplifying radicals, the natural segue from my … Continue reading Simplifying Radicals *with factor ladders*
Prime Factors *with cakes and ladders*
Prime factorization with factor trees (actually, using factor trees in general), in my opinion and experience, is the WORST! Organized kids can usually keep track of what they need to, but many struggling students lose "branches" of their trees and forget that they still need to factor composite numbers like 6. If a kid learned … Continue reading Prime Factors *with cakes and ladders*
Solving Equations *the river method*
In keeping with my namesake, "Eat, Pray, Solve for X," it only makes sense for me to make my first *real* post about solving for x! My thoughts on Combining Like Terms were just a stepping stone in the process... In the good ol' days, I used to solve equations traditionally just like my teachers … Continue reading Solving Equations *the river method*
Combining Like Terms *with boxes*
Combining like terms (CLT) is fundamental to solving equations. Even if I include the distributive property during this lesson, I always give students at least 1 full period to process and practice before we move on to equations. Let's be honest, it usually takes a few days of warm-ups before they start to fully get … Continue reading Combining Like Terms *with boxes*
My First Blog Post
What better way to use tomorrow's delayed opening than to begin a blog that contains all of my best teaching ideas?! While I had the best of intentions to begin this process over winter break, these projects often occur more organically for me. As in, I HAVE TO FINISH EVERYTHING TONIGHT! Not really, but I … Continue reading My First Blog Post
Eat, Pray, Solve for X 