Fine, I’ll admit it. I am not
a fan of mathematics.
I work for a school, so I should probably not be saying
things like that. I love WORDS more than
I can sufficiently express, so I’m hoping my word-love somehow makes up for my longstanding
aversion to complicated mathematical equations.
My distaste for math isn’t the numbers
so much as it is the deciphering of problems which contain numbers. I like
numbers when I’m counting down to something really fun (just ask my coworkers…they
can barely tolerate it when I announce to them how many school days are left on
the calendar). Some of my best friends
are know-it-all mathematicians! I don’t
hold that against them. Sudoku holds my
interest sometimes (like when there is nothing else in the world
to do….). I enjoy sharing what I have, so I’m good at division in terms of
the other half of my Popsicle. The same cannot be said for a bowl of popcorn…I
do not enjoy dividing that with other people AT ALL. As in, I love you but MAKE YOUR
OWN. And you’ll be thankful to hear,
I know enough algebra to figure out medication doses with my eyes closed.
Maybe things would have been different if my math teacher had been Kathy Kennel. She actually gets EXCITED about math (the same inconceivable fact is true of former math teacher Tara Holman. Instead of teaching, she now lends her mathematical brain to her position as Office Manager, keeping hundreds of details in line to make things run smoothly in Penn View’s Main Office).
Their brains are just wired in fabulously mind-boggling ways. It is pretty awesome how God makes us all different, many parts which make up the wonderful whole that is our community.
I visited Kathy Kennel’s math class early last week. This was the day we started school late and
ended it early because snowflakes were flying
around outside in anticipation of the well-advertised Nor’easter which was
heading our way. Twelve different districts have historically bused students to Penn View. Nine districts bus into
Penn View Christian School this school year and only two were in session the day of my
visit to math class. Here, watch me do
math! This means that many of the students from SEVEN of our districts were at home all cozy with hot chocolate and fuzzy slippers while the rest of us trudged through the snow to school. (Impressive math skills, no?!)
Later in the day, Mrs. Kennel was going to teach a division concept
while using licorice (seriously! licorice in math class!); but during the class period I visited, the seventh graders
were playing a math game called GREED.
This is a game of dice which can involve addition, multiplication, and
probability.
Mrs. Kennel was rolling the dice, laughing, and trash-talking while threatening to win the game.
“What’s the probability you’re going to get a zero?” she
asked her students with not a small
measure of glee.
To say the students were fully engaged would be an understatement. Yelling and singing were part of the palpable
excitement in the room. On several
occasions, the animation included jumping up and down.
It was fascinating for the observer to note which students were willing to “gamble” and which were conservative.
Makenna and Eli are serious risk-takers!
Olivia was the winner during the round I was observing. As if they weren't enthusiastic enough, a bag of prizes awaited the winner of each round.
As I departed they were trying to squeeze in one extra speed round before the bell rang.
Thanks to the infectious singing in that classroom, I spent
the rest of the day with Kenny Roger’s “Know When to Hold ‘Em” song trapped resolutely
in my head.
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