Math In Action Conference Program

Welcome message and information about SCECHs, session evaluations, and wifi

Welcome to Math in Action!

Dear Colleagues,
Welcome to Math in Action! There are six hour-long sessions with something for every grade level to be found in each. This year we are again excited to offer sessions in multiple modalities. Presentations labeled “hybrid” have an in-person speaker, and online participants can view these presentations via Zoom. Presentations labeled "in-person" have an in-person speaker and are only available to in-person participants.

We are especially excited to welcome our keynote speakers, David and Kathryn Coffey, who will give three presentations during Sessions C, E, and F.

You should find a meal ticket behind your nametag badge. You may choose to enjoy brunch during Session C, or lunch during Sessions D or E. If you have any questions, please find us at the registration table.

Please fill out evaluations for each presenter using the link at the top of the page.

Sincerely,

The Math in Action Steering Committee

SCECHs

We will be logging SCECHs electronically this year. After each presentation, the MIA volunteer in that room will have a QR code for you to scan (or a link) for you to log your attendance. You will need to do this for each presentation you attend. Please remember that you can earn up to 5 SCECHs for attending Math in Action (you must attend Brunch or one of the Lunch times - you cannot skip to get more SCECH credit). Please make sure you have your PIC number handy the day of the conference.

Session Evaluations

Please evaluate each session that you attend! Go to

https://www.gvsu.edu/mathinaction/eval

to complete all session evaluations.

Wifi and Presenter files

Wifi login: Join “GV-Visitor” and accept the terms. No password is needed.

Presenter files will be available at this link: 2024 conference files.

Maps, parking, and meals

The maps below show parking, the conference location, and the meal location. You can also find these on the Allendale campus map.

Parking: Parking is open at GVSU on weekends. No permit is needed. We suggest that you park in Lot C1 to be as close as possible to the conference. In case of full parking, lots D, E, F, and G are also available.
Conference location: The conference is held in Mackinac Hall's D wing. The closest entrance to the parking area is marked by a tall yellow sculpture. Mackinac Hall is located at J7 on the Allendale campus map.
Keynote location: Keynote sessions are held in Manitou hall, which is directly connected to Mackinac Hall. Signs will be posted to help you navigate!
Brunch / Lunch: Meals will be in The Dish in Kleiner Commons, located at K4 on the Allendale campus map.

Schedule of Presentations

Session A 8:40-9:40

Session	Room	Modality	Grade	Session Description
A1	D-1-209		PreK-2
A2	D-1-215	In-person	3-5	Using & Creating Desmos Activities Julie Clark, Jenison Public Schools and Tara Maynard, Zeeland Creekside Middle School Come learn about how Desmos activities can be created and edited to increase student engagement and understanding of mathematics. Transform your teaching with powerful tools to support formative assessment, student collaboration, and more! Participants will need laptops.
A3	D-1-221	In-person	6-8	Recyclable Mathematics - Using Geometry, Statistics, and Measurement to Solve Challenges Donna Stallings, Boys and Girls Club of Jefferson City and Alicia Johnson, Program in Mathematics Education This session uses the design and build engineering model to guide students through a recyclable material building challenge. Students will use geometry, measurement, and statistical analyses to ensure their structures achieve a task without human assistance.
A4	D-1-227	Hybrid	9-12	Dissecting Factoring Trinomials - One Method to Work Every Time Magdalin Swanson, Florida Gulf Coast University Factoring trinomials is often a nightmare to teach as students struggle with foundational skills. Let me guide you through a different approach that recognizes the most common mistakes and hurdles - and provides a method to overcome them! Participants should bring phones or tablets.
A5	D-1-117	In-person	9-12	Redefining Math in the 9-12 Classroom Marcus Deja, Sammi TenHave, and Kelli VanSetters, Kent ISD Dive into videos, readings, and collaborative math tasks to challenge current practices and explore new ways to engage students, making math more relevant, impactful, and connected to their future success
A6	D-1-233	In-person	6-12	Power Up Your Desmos Game: From Daily Warm-Ups to Standardized Tests Zach Cresswell, Mt. Pleasant Public Schools Transform your students into Desmos power users through strategic daily integration and advanced techniques! Learn essential tools for classroom warm-ups and standardized test success, plus advanced Activity Builder features. Leave with ready-to-implement strategies for building students' mathematics confidence across grades 6-12.

Session B 9:50-10:50

Session	Room	Modality	Grade	Session Description
B1	D-1-209	In-person	PreK-2	Math Play Activities Grades 3-5 Brittany Lehman and Tina Volk, Portland Public Schools We would like an opportunity to show teachers how they can incorporate fun into their math lessons, free choices, etc. We will highlight various hands-on activities, websites, and manipulatives that will benefit student learning.
B2	D-1-215	Hybrid	3-5	Supporting Productive Struggle Through Manipulatives Kevin Dykema, Mattawan Consolidated Schools Supporting productive struggle involves utilizing rich tasks that engage students in solving and discussing. Manipulatives can be utilized as a representation to help students with such tasks by providing entry points. Additional strategies to support productive struggle will be shared.
B3	D-1-221	In-person	6-8	Planning with Purpose: Promoting Rich Discussions in Secondary Mathematics Classrooms Scott Block, Macomb Intermediate School This session will explore how intentional planning with rich tasks, purposeful questioning, learning goals, and anticipating student responses can foster meaningful discussions in middle and high school mathematics classes, equipping teachers to provide students with engaging learning opportunities.
B4	D-1-227	Hybrid	9-12	How does Gen AI actually work? Sawyer Altman, Goblins When you text ChatGPT, an ensemble of technologies galvanize to predict the response you'll be happy with. We'll dive into some of them, and they'll reveal to us how our classrooms will likely change in the coming years. Participants should bring phones or tablets.
B5	D-1-117	In-person	9-12	Hands on Mathematics Timothy Pennings, Calvin University Attenders learn: i) the definition of pi, ii) how to calculate pi by randomly tossing needles, iii) numerical patterns in Pascals Triangle, iv) the Four Color Map Problem, vii) as an object grows, the volume grows faster than surface area.
B6	D-1-233	In-person	9-12	Games as Teaching Tools James Young, Mt Pleasant Public Schools We will demo and discuss two games - "Outbreak!" and "Home Stretch" - that I've developed for my Math Through Gaming course to teach students how math can inform their decision making in games and life beyond the classroom.

Session C 11:00-12:00 Brunch

Session	Room	Modality	Grade	Session Description
C0	MAN 102	Hybrid	Elementary Keynote	From Math Zoo to Learning Safari: Unlocking Creativity in Mathematics Education David and Kathryn Coffey Imagine mathematics education transformed from a zoo of rigid problems and prescribed paths to a safari of deep discovery and open exploration. In this keynote, we challenge educators to break free from the confines of traditional math teaching and venture out into an expansive learning landscape. Drawing from Designing Math Adventures, we'll guide participants in using a design thinking tool— the Innovators' Compass —that can help teachers to navigate student-centered mathematical expeditions. Through creativity and radical collaboration, we will learn how to make meaningful math adventures.
C1	D-1-209	In-person	9-12	A Horse and Rider: Math Modeling in the Secondary Classroom Jason Gauthier, Allegan Area ESA Explore a mathematical modeling task and consider how math modeling benefits students by helping them authentically engage with the Standards for Mathematical Practice. We will also briefly explore math modeling resources that you can use in your classroom.
C-2	D-1-215	Hybrid	9-12	Personal Finance for All Christopher Conrad, Allegan Public Schools Learn how to use Time Value of Money calculators, explore how to use real world information to make the class meaningful, and leave with a culminating project that helps students leave high school with a budget plan for their future.
C3	D-1-221	In person	6-8	Math Scope & Sequencing to get through ALL curriculum! Katarina Fenn de Hernandez, New Branches Charter Academy Learn how to plan out your year to ensure you can get through all of the curriculum and strengthen your math instruction. They will then be given time to plan out their school year with my support. Participants will need laptops
C4	D-1-227	Hybrid	9-12	SAT Prep Carolynn Cone, Creative Technologies Academy Resources and suggestions on how to teach a full SAT Prep class or how to integrate SAT Prep into your regular classroom. Participants should bring phones or tablets.
C5	D-1-117	In-person	6-8	Redefining Math in the 6-8 Classroom Marcus Deja, Sammi TenHave, and Kelli VanSetters, Kent ISD Dive into videos, readings, and collaborative math tasks to challenge current practices and explore new ways to engage students, making math more relevant, impactful, and connected to their future success.
C6	D-1-233	In-person	9-12	Spice It Up! Engaging Activities to Revitalize Your Classroom from Algebra I to Calculus Karen Sleno, Flushing High School Do your classes need a little spicing up? In this session, we will explore activity strategies that will engage your students and get them talking (and enjoying) the math they are learning! Be ready to experience the fun! Algebra/Geometry/Precalculus/Calculus

Session D 12:10-1:10 Lunch

Session	Room	Modality	Grade	Session Description
D1	D-1-209	In-person	PreK-2	Using Quick Look Images to Develop Multiplication Strategies with Young Students Gina Kling, Aubree Folkert, Megan Hayduk, and Kathryn Kemp, Hope College This session will explore how Quick Look Images of equal grouping dot patterns were used to encourage second graders to develop intuitive multiplication strategies like doubling and adding or subtracting groups. Classroom video and activities will be shared.
D2	D-1-215	In-person	3-5
D3	D-1-221	In-person	6-8	A Graphic Novel for Math John Golden, Grand Valley State University and Xavier Golden, Grand Haven High School A math educator and an art teacher set out to write a graphic novel about doing math in an interdimensional adventure. We'll share process, pages, activities and how to get the book for name your own price.
D4	D-1-227	Hybrid	9-12	A Framework for Equitable, Discipline Rich Project Based Learning Sheila Orr, Carlee Madis, and Sarah DiMaria, ProgressED Pathways Project-based learning is a powerful opportunity to bring students' cultural experiences and backgrounds to the classroom. In this interactive session, we will share a framework designed to support discipline-rich mathematics projects that also provide authentic and relevant opportunities.
D5	D-1-117	In-person	9-12	How to Activate Learning in the Mathematics Classroom Jenny Griffin, Calvin University This session focuses on getting students cognitively engaged in the mathematics classroom. Areas of focus include how the learning environment affects engagement, how scaffolding can be used to promote genuine understanding, the use of metacognition to better understand our learning, and the power of verbalization in the classroom.
D6	D-1-233	In-person	9-12	Secondary Mathematics: Teaching with Limited Resources Alicia Matthews-Johnson, Program in Mathematics Education The session offers suggestions for classrooms lacking materials necessary for ideal teaching. 1) addressing the challenges faced when students arrive with math deficits, 2) building logical reasoning through proofs, 3) 3-dimensional objects using student teaching and participation.

Session E 1:20-2:20 Lunch

Session	Room	Modality	Grade	Session Description
E0	MAN 102	Hybrid	Secondary Keynote	From Math Zoo to Learning Safari: Unlocking Creativity in Mathematics Education David and Kathryn Coffey Imagine mathematics education transformed from a zoo of rigid problems and prescribed paths to a safari of deep discovery and open exploration. In this keynote, we challenge educators to break free from the confines of traditional math teaching and venture out into an expansive learning landscape. Drawing from Designing Math Adventures, we'll guide participants in using a design thinking tool— the Innovators' Compass —that can help teachers to navigate student-centered mathematical expeditions. Through creativity and radical collaboration, we will learn how to make meaningful math adventures.
E1	D-1-209	In-person	K-5	Math Scope & Sequencing to get through ALL curriculum! Katarina Fenn de Hernandez, New Branches Charter Academy Learn how to plan out your year to ensure you can get through all of the curriculum and strengthen your math instruction. They will then be given time to plan out their school year with my support. Participants will need laptops
E2	D-1-215	In-Person	3-5	Deepening K-5 Fact Fluency Through Math Progressions Marcus Deja, Sammi TenHave, and Kelli VanSetters, Kent ISD Engage in math tasks to explore how addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division build across K-5, strengthening student understanding and fluency through developmental progressions.
E3
E4
E5
E6

Session F 2:30-3:30

Session	Room	Modality	Grade	Session Description
F0	MAN 102	In-person		Continuing the conversation David and Kathryn Coffey Join our keynote speakers for an informal discussion that continues the themes of the keynote. Bring questions!
F1	D-1-209	In-person	PreK-2
F2	D-1-215	In-person	3-5	Beyond Mad Minutes: How Can We Assess Basic Fact Fluency in Meaningful and Reliable Ways? Gina Kling, Hope College We will unpack the meaning of fluency and explore highly-effective, teacher-tested alternatives to timed testing that assess all components of fluency in low-stress, informative ways. Assessment situations will be simulated through analysis of videos and written student work.
F3	D-1-221	Hybrid	6-8	Supporting Productive Struggle through manipulatives Kevin Dykema, Mattawan Consolidated Schools Supporting productive struggle involves utilizing rich tasks that engage students in solving and discussing. Manipulatives can be utilized as a representation to help students with such tasks by providing entry points. Additional strategies to support productive struggle will be shared.
F4	D-1-227	In-person	9-12	Personal Finance Made Easy Stephanie Butman, Oakland FlexTech High School Explore the FREE resources created by NGPF, an organization devoted to universal financial education. NGPF utilizes Google Doc activities that are easily accessible/changeable for teachers. NGPF also provides activities aligned to math standards. Help prepare students for successful financial futures!
F5	D-1--117	In-person	9-12	Meme-ingful Mathematics: A Culturally Relevant practice (that could be sustaining) Gregory Beaudine, Univeristy of Iowa and Greg Benoit and Xiner (Melody) Xu, Boston University In this session we will discuss popular culture, memes, culturally responsive practices, and how we can fold it all together in the pursuit of classroom engagement and productive mathematical discourse. We'll also learn how to create our own meme-ingful images.
F6	D-1-233	In-person	K-12	Math in the Least Restrictive Environment: Considerations for Teaching All Learners Carlos Sosa, Alt+Shift Participants will engage with math activities that connect conceptual understanding and procedural fluency, understand Least Restrictive Environment and implications for math instruction, and through shared dialogue, identify considerations for curriculum modifications and supports for all learners, including those with IEPs.

Thank you!

Presenters: We appreciate your preparation, expertise, time, and consideration. Thank you for your high level of engagement in mathematics education and for sharing that expertise in enlightening us!
Participants: Thank you for your curiosity, dedication, and interest in your own learning and that of your students. Your participation today says a lot about you and is most appreciated.
Ana Vanbragt (GVSU Department of Mathematics): Thank you for jumping in and helping with all the details, no matter how big or small; the facilities, registration, arrangements for refreshments, meals, tables, Math in Action swag, and a million others. Without you behind the scenes, there would be no conference!
Steering Committee: Your work in determining the experts to address major issues and mathematical concepts, contacting speakers, organizing the program, advertising, and volunteering during the day of the conference provide an enriching experience for all of us. Thank you for your many hours of thoughtful dedication.
Volunteers: Making certain that everything goes smoothly on the day of the conferences in every session, helping speakers carry and distribute materials, orienting participants to the environment, and all the other things you do to support the conference is greatly appreciated!

Sincerely,

Taylor Short and Joy Oslund

Math in Action GVSU Co-Chairs