5 Tools Every Math Teacher Needs
Teaching is one of the most rewarding professions out there, but it's far from easy even under the best of circumstances. Add in a pandemic, and this already challenging profession can seem to be all but impossible. Despite the continued challenges of COVID-19, teachers are rising to the challenge and doing the very best they can for their students. Of course, it helps if you have the right tools. These five tools are essential for math teachers during hybrid and remote learning.
Canvas
Canvas is a learning management system (LMS) that can be incredibly useful for teaching math online. It allows teachers to post assignments, information, and grades online. Students can communicate with teachers and one another through chat rooms and discussion boards. If students need to contact their teacher directly, they can use the centralized email to reach you. You can even upload quizzes and tests for your students. Teaching math with Canvas means you effectively have the tools to create your own virtual classroom. Learn more at www.instructure.com/canvas
Derivita
Your students need a way to do their math homework. Derivita can help with that. A math technology platform that supports more complex math questions, Derivita can work with any publisher's textbook or open educational resources and contains a library of 30,000+ questions from Algebra to Calculus. Derivita is a math editor and assessment platform that integrates seamlessly with Canvas, Google Classroom, and other learning management systems (LMS). Your students can complete their homework assignments, quizzes, and exams without having to leave the LMS. Teaching math online or over Zoom becomes much more engaging with the addition of Derivita’s SpotCheck for online class participation. Students can even upload their handwritten work with the new Show Work feature. Derivita also gives you insight into where your students are struggling and helps you provide them with more targeted help if needed.
Desmos
Desmos is a free online graphing tool, calculator, and activity builder. Desmos works in a web browser or in a mobile app. If you sign up for a free Desmos account, you can save and share the graphs and activities you create. With Desmos, you can graph points, lines, curves, parabolas, inequalities, trig functions, and almost anything else you might need for a high school or college math course. You can even add images and print your graphs! Learn more at www.desmos.com
Flipgrid
Flipgrid is a student discussion platform for distance teaching and learning. Rather than real-time video streaming like you’d get on Zoom or Google Meet, Flipgrid facilitates topic-based discussions where students can submit short video responses to instructor questions. If Zoom is like a video phone call, you might think of Flipgrid as a video walkie-talkie. This cuts down on audio feedback, students and instructors talking over each other, and a host of other technical headaches that we’ve all experienced on real-time video conferencing applications. Flipgrid is also set up to easily handle group or team discussions and projects. Learn more at www.flipgrid.com
Google Classroom
Google Classroom is a free resource courtesy of Google meant to streamline file sharing between students and teachers. It can make the process of creating, distributing, and grading the assignments you give your students more manageable. By combining Google Drive, Google Docs, Google Calendar, Gmail, Google Slides, Google Sheets, Google Sites, and Google Forms, using Google Classroom as a tool for teaching math online can make the process much easier. You can use it to help with assignments, grading, communication, checking for plagiarism, and managing your classes. Learn more at https://edu.google.com/products/classroom/
Teaching math online is challenging, but it isn't impossible. While not an exhaustive list of tools, Canvas, Desmos, FlipGrid, Google Classroom, and Derivita are just a few of the tools that math teachers will find particularly valuable. It's tough to teach large class sizes while also balancing the needs of the class with the needs of individual students. Make your job a little easier by taking advantage of the tools available to you.
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