Welcome!
My name is Marisol Cisneros and I will be your math teacher for the 2017-2018 school year. Whether you are in the Math 1, Math 3, Math 3 Honors, or AP Calculus class, it will be a year full of fun while we learn math. YAY!!
A little about me... I have the BA in Math from CSU Fresno and my Master of Arts in Teaching from Brandman University. Currently I am applying for various Doctorate of Education Leadership Programs. I have been teaching math since December of 2010 and have loved every fun. crazy, chaotic moment. I have two crazy love birds, Paquita and Pancho, and a dog named Jazzy. My other dog, Scooby, left me to be with my parents after my family and I rescued a dog that loved to hang out near my car. I miss him but I know he is happy with his new buddy. I am the oldest of three children; i have a younger brother and sister. I was the first in my family to graduate from a university and the first to earn a masters.
The San Francisco 49ers are my favorite football team. I enjoy watching various sports throughout the year; UFC, soccer, baseball, basketball, and just recently hockey.
I invite you to come to class everyday prepared and ready to learn. Yes there will be days that are not as fun as others but I promise that if you put your best foot forward and give math a chance, you will see hoe beautiful math really is....
So remember, keep your hands and feet in the ride at all times. Then sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride: MATH!
Ms. Marisol Cisneros
mcisneros@smcjuhsd.org
225 El Camino Real, Greenfield, CA 93927
Developing a Professional Educator
When I began the Induction program, I felt there were many areas that needed improvement. One of these areas was developing me as a professional. I would always collaborate with my team on the pacing guide and the topics that needed to be covered in each class. I have learned over the past year the collaboration is crucial when ensuring student success. Although teachers teaching the same subject cover the same material, no two teachers are alike in their style of teaching and successful execution of each lesson. By collaborating with my team, I was able to pick up ideas when I was unsure of a lesson.
Another area for improvement has been accessing student learning. Quizzes and other assessments are great ways to access learning but I was unsure how of to access before these. I used to just use homework to see where my students are at. I quickly realized this is too hard and if students practice their mistake, it will stick. I needed to find a way to clarify students misunderstandings and ensure they were ready to move to the next step. After collaborating with my group, I found that using exit tickets did not work so well for me. Instead I use white boards to check fro understanding. I go check at each step and am able to see where the misconceptions are occurring and the areas that have been mastered. This also gives me an idea which students needed more one on one help in order to successfully complete the tasks.
During this year I have been trying to find one thing outside the classroom that I can do to help my students. As the cheer coach, I have found students respond better to me when they see my support outside the class. They like to see you at the games cheering them on. I just need to be careful when I am there to watch every play because they always come and ask if you saw their catch, basket, or even tackle. This has also been helpful since I travel to other schools and meet other teachers and we are able to talk about our students. As teachers we always think it's our students and many times its just the times or the generation of students. Its nice to hear what others do to keep them engaged and especially how to keep sane during chaotic times.
Although I love being a teacher, it's a very stressful career. There are times that everything seems to fall into place while other times, it seems like to world is crumbling around you. Along with my coach, my math team have also mentioned I need to take time for me; me time where I do not plan or do anything for school but simply for me. They advise me to enjoy my time and not feel guilty; "You do take time for yourself but you always feels guilty about it. The students will be fine. Just like you need a break, it's okay to give them one". It's been tough to understand that life does not revolve around simply my career. I need time for me in order to be sane enough to teach my classes and be successful. My coach has mentioned a few times that I need to go in and observe my fellow team teach in order to give myself ideas for my teaching strategies and the way I execute day to day things in the class; for example, transitioning between activities. This is something I plan on doing more within the next few years. It's never too late to change our styles of teaching and running our classes. Sometimes we simply needed to take a step back and really look at ourselves.
If there could only be one thing I could tell a new teacher about teaching, it would be: "do not eat everything from the lounge because the freshman 15 from college transfers to teaching too." Just kidding. But I would tell them that eventually. I honestly would tell them not to give up on themselves. Teaching is not easy but very rewarding. Students are really ready to learn and work hard, you just need to show them respect. Respect really goes a long way. When a students feels respected they are more willing to try new things rather than simply throwing in the towel at the first sign of trouble.
Resources
As a teacher, I have seen so many resources out there that are suppose to be helpful to teachers and in reality, they are just not for me. But I have found the following very helpful.
1 - Edmodo
I created my own Edmodo page for my class and it has been a HUGE success. Students are able to contact me after school hours, collaborate with each other, and even take polls to check for understanding.
2 - Kuta
Whenever you need a worksheet for extra practice, Kuta is the way to go. The worksheets are easily accessible and they include the answers; we love worksheets that come with answers.
3 - Math Vision Project
Math Vision Project is the current curriculum used at my site. It's free. It has a teacher resource portion and if students lose their materials, they are able to print them out. Some of the activities are great for engaging students and accessing prior knowledge. The activities also put a real life example where and how the math they are working on is applied.