lotoyalpt

Preparing For the New School Year Post COVID-19

“Every day the clock resets. Your wins don’t matter. Your failures don’t matter. Don’t stress on what was, fight for what could be.“ -Sean Higgins What will learning look like in the new school year? How will social distancing be practiced effectively? Can you teach effectively from the front of the classroom? Will I beContinue reading “Preparing For the New School Year Post COVID-19”

Promoting Better Understanding of Ratio and Proportion

‘By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.’ –Confucius Since the 1970s, which is as far back as my research took me, maths educators have all been asking the same questions about the same issues onContinue reading “Promoting Better Understanding of Ratio and Proportion”

Should Children Learn The Basic Times Table By Memorisation?

“To attain knowledge, add things everyday. To attain wisdom, remove things every day.” ― Lao Tse. I know, if you just completed your teacher qualification or if you are fairly new to the profession (less than 2 years) your answer would likely be a very strong “NO! Students should be taught the concept of multiplicationContinue reading “Should Children Learn The Basic Times Table By Memorisation?”

Interleaving in mathematics for better results

“If You Always Do What You‘ve Always Done, You‘ll Always Get What You‘ve Always Got.” ~ Henry Ford. My fellow educators, I first want to ask, how are you? Really? It is nice to be writing this month’s blog, but I must admit that, I had to change the order of my topics (shift the next few topics down)Continue reading “Interleaving in mathematics for better results”

How To Foster Critical Thinking Skills In Children

“Five percent of the people think;ten percent of the people think they think;and the other eighty-five percent would rather die than think.”― Thomas A. Edison In a recent training I delivered, I emphasized my researched and experienced belief that critical thinking is a skill like driving (which can be very difficult to learn for some ofContinue reading “How To Foster Critical Thinking Skills In Children”

Effective Lesson Starters

‘If the hook is weak, there may be trouble ahead.’ LOtoya Patrick-Taylor Planning a lesson is very similar to planning a speech or a presentation; there are three main parts – the introduction, the body and the conclusion. Similarly, in our lessons, we have the starter task, the main explanation or activation of the mainContinue reading “Effective Lesson Starters”

A Bit About Me & My Intentions

Passionate, driven and called to be a teacher. My name is Lotoya Patrick-Taylor, a sister, a wife, a mom, a friend and a teacher. I was trained to be a teacher in Jamaica, where I received my Teaching Diploma in Mathematics at Church Teachers’ College and my BA in Mathematics from Southern New Hampshire UniversityContinue reading “A Bit About Me & My Intentions”

The Impact of Peer Observation on my teaching and student progress

Be yourself; Everyone else is already taken. — Oscar Wilde. It is often said that experience teaches wisdom and mistakes make you stronger. However, the art of teaching is one which, in my opinion, is a life long journey of learning; you can always better your best. Indeed, even though I believe in these sayings,Continue reading “The Impact of Peer Observation on my teaching and student progress”