Cultivating a Math Coaching Practice
A Guide for K-8 Math Educators

Edited by:

Amy Morse

Foreword by Deborah Schifter

Other Titles in:
Coaching | Mathematics & Numeracy

June 2009 | 216 pages | Corwin

Given the current demands of a math teaching practice, this case-based resource helps math coaches, prospective coaches, and administrators develop their knowledge of math content, hone their coaching skills, and enhance their ability to provide professional development for teachers in Grades K–8.

Field-tested in a number of school districts nationwide, this concise guide presents authentic accounts of coaching practice, dilemmas, and insights. The cases, written by practicing math coaches, emphasize developing a deep understanding of mathematics, analyzing students' ideas and teachers' beliefs about learning, and cultivating teacher learning and growth. Amy Morse provides:

Math activities that strengthen a coach's math content knowledge

Planning activities to support thoughtful coach-teacher interactions

A detailed facilitator's guide for staff developers leading professional development opportunities for math coaches, providing a detailed agenda, specific examples of participants' questions, and facilitator responses

Cultivating a Math Coaching Practice gives math leaders the tools to help teachers create quality math programs and bolster student achievement.

Foreword by Deborah Schifter

Acknowledgments

About the Author

Introduction

1. Observing, Studying, Analyzing, Planning: Preparing to Coach

Case: Moving Between Models

Math Activity: Models, Fractions, and Percents

Focus Questions Activity

2. Discerning and Responding: Coaching in Real Time

Case: Analyzing Multiplication

Math Activity: How Do You Know?

Focus Questions Activity

3. Strategic Coaching: Goal-Centered Modeling in the Classroom

Case: "It's 30 Less and 90 More": A Case About Listening to Children's Ideas

Math Activity: Angles and Angle Measurement

Focus Questions Activity

4. Reaching a New Teacher: Math as the Conduit

Case: A Case of Coaching: Multiplication and Division Journal Entries

Math Activity: Looking Beneath the Surface

Focus Questions Activity

5. Preparing for Thoughtful Dialogue

Transcript 1

Transcript 2

Transcript 3

6. Purposeful Planning and Facilitation

Case: Coaching in a Group: Moving From 1:1 to 1:?

Focus Questions Activity

Planning Activity: Facilitating Group Learning

7. Refining and Reimagining One's Coaching Practice

Case: Learning About Counting, Learning About Coaching

Focus Questions Activity

Planning Activity: Cultivating Collaborative Study

8. Cultivating Relationships With Administrators and Other Leadership Colleagues

Case: Crafting an Invitation: Shifting From Isolation to Inclusion

Focus Questions Activity

Planning Activity: Considering Collaboration and Communication

9. Taking the Lead as a Teacher of Teachers

Case: Encountering Venus

Math Activity: Exploring Story Problems

Focus Questions Activity

10. Maintaining a Focus on Mathematics

Case: Struggling to Keep Math at the Center

Focus Questions Activity

11. Framing the Connection Between Coach and Teacher Goals

Case: Unsatisfied in the Seminar

Focus Questions Activity

Planning Activity: Meeting the Challenge

12. Examining the Role of Authority in Coaching

Case: Claiming Authority

Focus Questions Activity

Planning Activity: Two Posters Activity

Facilitation Guide

Chapter 1 Facilitation Notes

Chapter 2 Facilitation Notes

Chapter 3 Facilitation Notes

Chapter 4 Facilitation Notes

Chapter 5 Facilitation Notes

Chapter 6 Facilitation Notes

Chapter 7 Facilitation Notes

Chapter 8 Facilitation Notes

Chapter 9 Facilitation Notes

Chapter 10 Facilitation Notes

Chapter 11 Facilitation Notes

Chapter 12 Facilitation Notes

“Written case studies of math coaching are essential tools to facilitate the professional development of our mathematics coaches who work hand-in-hand with over 200 schools in our district. We are pleased to have this book developed by Amy Morse and a cadre of math coaches to support our math leadership efforts.”

Lance Menster, Manager of Elementary Mathematics

Houston Independent School District, TX

"This new resource draws on cases of coaching practice to provide grounded opportunities for communities of math coaches to strengthen their practice. It is an exciting and important resource for anyone responsible for the professional development of math coaches."

Linda Ruiz Davenport, Senior Program Director of Elementary Mathematics

Boston Public Schools, MA