Mathematics definitely did not have an "appearance" in my classroom throughout the primary and elementary grades. Math consisted of a text book, worksheets, and numbers, all of which were safely stored within my desk until needed. Taking this into consideration, I feel as though specific math memories easily evaded my long-term storage. The only memories that I do have, come from elementary, and don't quite fit into the "best" and "worst" memory categories. A memory that I would recall as being good, would be using tangible blocks to explore certain math problems; worst, would definitely be my hatred of waiting around for my classmates to finish assigned work as I seemed to always be the one to finish worksheets and tests first. These memories make me want to become the teacher who makes math a memorable subject for students. I hope to instill a "liking", at the very least, for math in children, which will hopefully flourish throughout their schooling.
I think I was "good" at math. I recall doing very well on assignments and tests, which were reflected on my report cards. I do however, remember being not so "good" at particular kinds of problem solving which must have persisted into my university career, as I was have always been challenged when proving abstract theory. The teachers who assigned my marks, I believe generally lacked an interest in math. There is not a single person who comes to mind who had an aptitude for math or even teaching it. Their role was simply to work through the text, assign the exercises after each lesson, correct them upon completion, and to develop a formal test. Assessment always came in the form of a test, which consisted of a sampling of exercises from the text, in addition to the occasional bonus question to challenge students of greater ability.
Math in high school was without a doubt my favorite subject. I had a fabulous teacher, who was genuinely excited to teach mathematics. I felt appropriately challenged in my courses, and admired how she incorporated math related "everything" into our learning. My love of math was nurtured in university but eventually faded out. I had thought about completing a math degree and thus completed Math 1000, 1001, as well as Math 2050 (Linear Algebra) as an elective. I registered for Math 2000 a couple of times, and had dropped the course each time due to instructor complications.
I still enjoy mathematics and love to engage children at my workplace as well as those of my friends and family with their homework. I take pride in sharing my mathematical knowledge and am still intrigued by it's complexity. Sadly, I do not engage with mathematics in my own life in major ways but hope to in my future. I actually look forward to manipulating the curriculum and discovering techniques which will engage my students!
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