Math is Figure-Out-Able with Pam Harris

By Pam Harris

Education

What's Math is Figure-Out-Able with Pam Harris about?

Math teacher educator Pam Harris and her cohost Kim Montague answer the question: If not algorithms, then what?Join them for ~15 minutes every Tuesday as they cast their vision for mathematics education and give actionable items to help teachers teach math that is Figure-Out-Able.

Download our free app to listen on your phone

LAST EPISODE

Ep 47: Fractions as Fair Sh...

05.11.2021

Let's keep talking fractions! In this episode Pam and Kim discuss an extremely effective rich task from Kathy Fosnot to help students reason about fractions within the context of sharing fairly. Listen in to learn about the outcomes teachers should ...

Math is Figure-Out-Able with Pam Harris episodes:

05.11.2021 Ep 47: Fractions as Fair Sharing Let's keep talking fractions! In this episode Pam and Kim discuss an extremely effective rich task from Kathy Fosnot to help students reason about fractions within the context of sharing fairly. Listen in to learn about the outcomes teachers should ...
05.04.2021 Ep 46: Fractions for Young Learners How young is too young to learn fractions? Younger than you think! In this episode Pam and Kim describe simple ways we can help young students develop fractional understanding. Pay attention to how natural it can be for young learners ...
04.27.2021 Ep 45: 5 Interpretations of Rational Numbers Time to get into fractions! There is so much to learn about teaching fractions and in this episode we wanted to lay some important ground work. All too often we limit students to just one or two of the important ...
04.20.2021 Ep 44: Is it about personality? Though some people think Kim and Pam's voices are hard to tell apart, teaching real math has nothing to do with a particular personality type or style. We believe in seeing the humanity in students and empowering them with mathematical ...
04.13.2021 Ep 43: Standardized Tests If there's one things teachers like talking about, it's standardized tests, and Pam and Kim are no exception! In this episode Pam asks Kim about her experience with standardized tests, and how teaching real math helped Kim's students to succeed. ...
04.06.2021 Ep 42: Homework Pt 3 In this final episode in our series on homework, Pam and Kim discuss what types of homework teachers should send out, as well as some important pitfalls to avoid. Talking Points:Pen and paper homeworkGames as homeworkUsing homework as a teaching ...
03.30.2021 Ep 41: Homework Part 2 It's part two of our series on homework! Last time we heard Kim's perspective on when and what kinds of homework to give, but now it's Pam's turn. As a teacher for both high school and university classes, Pam gives ...
03.23.2021 Ep 40: Homework Pt 1 Welcome to our first off the cuff episode! Pam and Kim have no notes this time and are happy to tackle the topic of homework. Turns out, they have enough to say that this will be part one of a ...
03.16.2021 Ep 39: Everybody learns, everybody grows In this episode Pam and Kim discuss the secret to helping every student succeed. It's one of their guiding principles, and they can't believe they're only just now sharing it! Talking PointsThe problem with the traditional approach of teaching to ...
03.09.2021 Ep 38: Multiplication Facts: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly Pt 5 We made it to our final episode in our multiplication facts series! In this episode Pam and Kim share their secret to helping kids narrow in on facts they struggle with. This final episode exemplifies why we believe that through ...
03.02.2021 Ep 37: Multiplication Facts: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly Pt 4 It's time for what you've all been waiting for. GAMES! Sure we don't want kids memorizing songs or rhymes to learn their facts, but in this episode Pam and Kim bring the fun into multiplication. What games are out there ...
02.23.2021 Ep 36: Multiplication Facts: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly Pt 3 Last episode Pam and Kim discussed how not to teach multiplication facts. So how should we teach them? This episode we look at multiplication facts through the lens of mathematizing! Talking PointsThe order that we teach content mattersThe order we ...
02.16.2021 Ep 35: Multiplication Facts: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly Pt 2 What are some great techniques to teach multiplication facts? What are the pitfalls to avoid? In this episode Pam and Kim discuss ways teachers may inadvertently 1) overemphasize speed, 2) introduce shame into their classrooms, and 3) focus on learning ...
02.09.2021 Ep 34: Multiplication Facts: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly Pt 1 In this episode Pam and Kim begin the first of another series: Multiplication Facts! What role can mathematizing and real math play in helping kids master their multiplication facts? Listen in as Pam and Kim outline the differences between 'knowing' ...
02.02.2021 Ep 33: Problem Strings vs Problem Talks In the last two episodes, Pam and Kim did some really cool Problem Strings, but what do they think about Number Talks? Listen in as Pam explains how Number Talks and Problem Strings can go hand in hand for powerful ...
01.26.2021 Ep 32: Another Cool Multiplication Strategy It's time for another Problem String! In this episode Pam and Kim develop one of their favorite multiplication strategies, it's so slick! In doing so they talk more about the importance of letting students discover and develop relationships, as opposed ...
01.19.2021 Ep: 31: A Cool Multiplication Strategy In this episode Pam and Kim want to help you develop a cool multiplication strategy. Which multiplication strategy? We aren't going to tell you until the end of the episode : -). We believe in developing strategies as natural outcomes, ...
01.12.2021 Ep 30: Ten Minute Math Don't you just love taking a break to play with numbers? In this week's episode, Pam and Kim share some of the ways that they engage with kids outside of school to get them mathematizing. Parents, ever wondered what can ...
01.05.2021 Ep 29: Ratio Tables! In this episode Pam and Kim dive deep into their favorite model for multiplication, division and solving proportions: ratio tables! They'll discuss how ratio tables can be a powerful tool to help students develop reasoning from elementary to high school. ...
12.29.2020 Ep 28: Real Mathematics Perspective This week Pam and Kim wrap up their discussion on the Perspectives that Impact Math Pedagogy. Understanding the X, Y, and Z perspectives not only helps us understand one another better, but empowers us to choose to take on the ...
12.22.2020 Ep 27: The Y Perspective We've made it to our last (and maybe favorite) perspective that impacts pedagogy. The Y perspective describes those who struggle with fake math because they deeply desire to know "why". Pam and Kim describe people in their lives who grew ...
12.15.2020 Ep 26: The Z Perspective This episode is all about the Z perspective. Listen in to hear about the perspective that Pam estimates effects the majority of math educators, it was Pam's perspective too! Pam and Kim parse out the characteristics of the Z perspective ...
12.08.2020 Ep 25: The X Perspective Continuing in the Perspectives Impacting Pedagogy Series, Pam and Kim discuss the X perspective. Did you play with numbers as a kid? Did math make natural sense to you, regardless of how your teacher taught it? You might relate to ...
12.01.2020 Ep 24: Perspectives Impacting Pedagogy This episode is part one to a new five part series! Pam and Kim introduce the three main perspectives impacting pedagogy. Understanding these perspectives helps teachers analyze their own teaching have productive conversations regarding math education. Talking Points:The three perspectives ...
11.24.2020 Ep 23: The Commutative Property How can we help students feel comfortable with the commutative property? In this episode Pam and Kim go through some addition and multiplication problems to demonstrate how they think and reason using the the commutative property. Talking PointsThe commutative property ...
11.17.2020 Ep 22: The Swapping Strategy Kim relates a great math experience she had with her son Luke. Luke found a way to mess around with place value in addition that Pam went most of her life not knowing! Listen in as Pam and Kim discuss ...
11.10.2020 Ep 21: Playing with Percents 2 Pam and Kim are back at it with percents. They discuss the 3 types of percent problems and how they solve them using relations, not with algorithms. Are percents truly figure-out-able? You bet! Grab a pen and paper for this ...
11.03.2020 Ep 20: Playing with Percents Pam and Kim are back at it showing that percents too are figure-out-able. In this episode they solve some percentage problems and share their strategies. Listen in as they go through a percentage problem string!
10.27.2020 Ep 19: Fractions, Decimals, Percents Pam and Kim explore what it means to be flexible with fractions, decimals, and percents. They discuss how we can become more flexible as we deal with rational numbers, and how we can be judicious problem solvers. Talking PointsWhy kids ...
10.20.2020 Ep 18: This, not That You might want your magnifying glass for this one, cause this episode we're getting a little nitpicky. Pam and Kim discuss common nomenclature/math-slang that can take the reasoning out of mathematics. They offer useful alternatives and illustrate the importance of ...
10.13.2020 Ep 17: Social vs Logical Knowledge Math is figure-out-able, but surely there are some parts that are only memorizable, right? In this episode Pam and Kim parse out the difference between social knowledge and logical knowledge. They'll analyze how knowing the difference can affect the types ...
10.06.2020 Ep 16: The Language of Counting This week's episode is for all you parents and teachers of young children. Pam and Kim discuss ways to make counting figure-out-able! How can we help kids make sense of our number system and master the meaning behind the words ...
09.29.2020 Ep. 15: Problem Solving with a Twist Have you ever tried teaching your students the steps to approaching word problems, but your students still struggled? Pam and Kim discuss a better way to help kids tackle math problems. They explain why if you want the best for ...
09.22.2020 Ep 14: Guess my Number Pam and Kim have some fun this episode as they read out a submission from Aaron Houston about his mathy dad. They talk about the kinds of things parents can do with their kids to have fun mathematizing! Talking PointsI ...
09.15.2020 Ep 13: The Layers to Mathematics for Teaching There are so many aspects to teaching, and it gets more complex when we want to discuss teaching math. Pam and Kim define the 5 layers for mathematics teaching. What do math teachers, who want to help their students mathematize, ...
09.08.2020 Ep 12: Top 3 Things to Start the Year: Know Your Beliefs As Pam and Kim wrap up their series on how to start the school year right, they encourage staying true to your beliefs as a math teacher. When making decisions in your classroom, there is power in consistency. They discuss ...
09.01.2020 Ep 11: Top 3 Things to Start the Year: Building Culture Remotely Join Pam and Kim in part two of their Top 3 Things to Start the Year series. This week its all about building a classroom culture where students and students' thinking are valued. They'll talk about how to implement tasks ...
08.25.2020 Ep 10: Top 3 Things to Start the Year: Student Names As the world prepares for one of the most interesting beginnings to the school year, Pam and Kim are here to help us get it right. They start off this 3 part series by dialing in on the importance of ...
08.18.2020 Ep 9: Strategies and Models What is the difference between a strategy and a model? Listen as Pam and Kim give clear examples from both elementary and high school content to demonstrate the importance of developing strategy and communicate strategy through models. They provide clear, ...
08.11.2020 Ep 8: More Cool Things Mathy People Do After last weeks discussion on partners of 10, 100, and 100, Pam and Kim thought of three more habits "mathy people" have in common. Listen in as they discuss: 1. What it means for mathematicians to "Notice and Wonder" 2. ...
08.04.2020 Ep 7: One Thing Mathy People Do In this episode Pam and Kim share one of their favorite instructional routines: I Have, You Need. They discuss some of the most common patterns that mathmaticians play with, partners of 10, 100, and 1000. These "partners of ___ " ...
07.28.2020 Ep 6: The Development of Mathematical Reasoning part 2: Functional Reasoning Many people feel that reasoning and numeracy come to an end in highschool. How could we mathematize algebraic concepts? What does it mean, and what does it look like to have functional reasoning? Listen as Pam explains how functional reasoning ...
07.21.2020 Ep 5: The Development of Mathematical Reasoning This episode is so important! Pam and Kim describe the Development of Mathematical Reasoning, and how it transforms our understanding of what it means to learn and teach mathematics. They discuss how freeing it feels to know that everyone can ...
07.14.2020 Ep 4: Top Ten Influencers Who's shaping math education today? Does Pam come up with it all herself? Far from it! In her fourth episode Pam wanted to pay homage to her top 10 influencers as well as share with you all some of her ...
07.07.2020 Ep 3: Mentoring Mathematicians Pam and Kim continue from Episode 2 to discuss what it means to do and teach real mathematics. When we teach reading, students read. When we teach writing, students write. When we teach math, students mathematize, because we need a ...
06.30.2020 Ep 2: Math Does Not Equal Algorithms! What do you think math is, a disconnected set of facts to memorize and rules, procedures to mimic or is it something else entirely? In this episode, Pam and Kim talk about discuss that real math teaching is about listening ...
06.16.2020 Ep 1: Math is Figureoutable In this debut podcast, mathematics teacher educator, Pam Harris talks with her cohost, Kim Montague, about how they met and the work that they do together now. They set the stage that in this podcast they will talk about real ...