Hi all!
My name is Mary Sikkes. I live in Smithers, B.C., a relatively small town in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. I was born and raised in Smithers and moved back fourteen years ago when I began teaching. Two of my three siblings have moved back to Smithers as well, and both my parents and in-laws live within twenty minutes of my house, so lots of family around! After TTOCing for a couple of years, I taught at the secondary school I attended as a teenager for the first eight years of my full-time teaching career (learner support and English), before moving to elementary where I now teach in a grade 4/5 classroom in the same elementary school I attended as a child.
I have two stepsons (ages 18 and 20) and a niece (2 years) and nephew (14 months) who I suppose would be my “past-times” at this point. My sons have both just headed back out after being home with us for the holidays. My younger son plays hockey in Golden, B.C. (he’ll be moving back home in February when the season finishes) and my older son is studying Environmental Management at UNBC in Prince George (about four hours away from Smithers). My sister and her family (which includes my niece and nephew mentioned above) live just fifteen minutes away, so I see them whenever I have a spare moment.
I am currently enrolled in my 7th and 8th MET courses (ETEC 533 and 510) and have taken core courses: ETEC 500, 511, 512, and electives: 521 (Indigeneity, Technology and Education), 532 (Technology in the Arts and Humanities Classroom), and 540 (Text Technologies – The Changing Spaces of Reading and Writing).
From this course, I am hoping to learn how to integrate digital technology more effectively into my math and science lessons. My students love engaging with technology, but I am hesitant to use too much digital technology at this point because I do not want to use technology simply because the students love it; I want to use it because I have a clear understanding of how it is benefitting learning. At this point, I have difficulty, especially in relation to math, with how to incorporate technology beyond fluency-building games such as Reflex Math. My hope is to have a better understanding of the philosophies behind the integration of technology in math and science, as well as some tools to use within my classroom.
I look forward to working with you all!
Mary
Hi Mary,
Nice to see you again! It is funny how fast the time seems to go at times. We seem to be at opposite ends of the spectrum as I mentioned in my introduction I am totally an empty nester, for the next four months anyways.
You must have so much fun with your niece and nephew. We are in the in between moments, all nieces and nephews grown up, but not greats on the way yet.
I look forward to your perspective as we navigate another course.
Good luck,
Catherine
Hi Catherine,
It’s great to see you again as well! I look forward to learning with you and from you again this term!
Mary
Good morning Mary and Welcome to ETEC 533. We have a few math educators in class this term and it will be exciting to learn about the tools they have tried to support a deep understanding of concepts in math. Looking forward to the learning, Samia
I look forward to working with you again and I hope you had a great holiday! I think it is great that you want to make sure your uses for technology are purposeful. I think that component is important to students developing a good relationship with technology.
Hi Mary,
You live in a beautiful part of the world. I lived in Prince George attending UNBC many years ago and frequently visited Smithers. I share your concerns with technology in the math classroom. I have a class of grade 6/7 students have replaced the textbook with Khan Academy. I’ve decided to give it an honest go but I’m not sure yet. I can say the students are more engaged, motivated and independent but do online math practice programs follow sound pedagogy?
Looking forward to learning together.
Bryn