The reason we need Common Core Math as told by someone who lives it

As an elementary math teacher, I have finally hit my limit of Facebook posts against Common Core Math.  I just can't read one more complaint and let it slide. Look, in a way, I understand the frustration level some parents face with this seemingly new math system.  But there is so much more to the Common Core that most of these people are overlooking.  It just seems to be that Common Core math has become a scapegoat.  In fact, I have yet to see one complaint about Common Core ELA, Science, or History.  Did you even realize those existed? See, here's the thing about Common Core.  At it's core (yea, I did), all it is, is a way for every student in the United States to learn the same basic concepts at the same general time.  That means if you up and move from Oklahoma to New York, your student can easily transition into the new classroom without you, the parent, worrying that s/he never covered certain topics or covered those topics in an earlier grade.  Wouldn't you rather have your student be able to understand the curriculum no matter where you move, than to have to play catch up or slow down student learning? If you don't, by all means, continue waging your war against Common Core math.  And ELA, Science, and History too.  But, in the off chance that you're still interested, hear me out on my old friend CC math.
The way I see it, there are two problems here. One, is that the parents don't understand exactly what's happening in their student's math homework, so they fall into defensive mode.  No one wants to look like they know less than their child.  Two, the many varying ways that students are able to learn math now don't make sense to the parent, and so it can't possibly make sense to the student. I can't tell you how many parents I have seen putting their personal bias about math onto the student.  As a teacher, that drives me crazy. If something doesn't make sense to you, fine, but there's no reason you should be putting that on your student.  You're turning them against something that could possibly make sense in their head, and now they are afraid to admit, because you've spent the past few weeks talking about how it couldn't possibly be right, or make sense.
Alright, I know this isn't the most eloquently flowing piece, but I'm a little fired up, so I apologize if it seems a bit disjointed.  For now though, follow me back to my days in elementary school.  I was a student of the 90s.  I started Kindergarten in 1989, so I mean that in the fullest extent, I was a student of the 90s. And do you know what I could tell you about math in elementary school?  Absolutely nothing.  I couldn't tell you what a place value block was, let alone what place value was or meant.  I had no idea why I was borrowing numbers in subtraction, just that I had to do it.  Fractions made no sense to me, decimals weren't even on my radar, and anything that involved shapes was an art project or nothing at all.  In fact, I dare any one of you to be able to say definitively that yes, you not only knew how to do math in elementary school, but you knew WHY the rules of math were the way they were.  Sure, some of you were probably fantastic at math, you could solve a problem in seconds flat, and you were probably top of the class.  In fact, I distinctly remember a boy in my third grade class who was a math whiz.  He was always the first one done with his timed tests and was always ready to do the problems on the board while I was still working on the first step.  That didn't change either.  In fifth grade, I spent most of my mornings writing all the problems I got wrong on my homework, three times each, on the blackboard. And do you know what I learned from that?  Nothing.  Not one thing.  I still had no idea why my math was wrong, and I still couldn't fix it when the same problem came up again.  So it went up through high school, and even college.  Do you know what changed my life?  The ever so hated Common Core Math.
You see, before Common Core was being taught in the classrooms, I didn't know there were other ways to do math.  I didn't realize that math had a reason.  Because I, like many of you, was taught that math is what it is, and there's no reason to question that.  You learn your facts, you do your math, and you move on.  But no one ever told me why.  No one told me that place value had a meaning, or that you could use visual models to understand problems.  I had no idea it was easier to subtract nines if I knew how to subtract 10s.  Or that fractions could go on forever between numbers.  Or that multiplying multi-digit numbers is a lot easier if you can break your numbers into expanded form and multiply by place values.  But now? Now I do know.  I know that there are many different ways to solve problems.  I know that if you understand WHY you're doing something, it makes more sense when you're trying to do it.  I know why you need to regroup a set of tens when you're adding or subtracting. I know how to use base-10 blocks to solve all types of problems.  I can break down numbers into sets that make 10 and then add on, or subtract from, if necessary.  But above all that, I know why your students NEED common core math.
They NEED to know that there is more than one way to solve a problem.  They NEED to know that just because one method doesn't make sense, it doesn't mean that s/he is stupid and will never be good at math.  They NEED to know that asking why helps you to understand how.  They NEED to know that, just because it doesn't make sense to an adult, doesn't mean that it's wrong.
Go ahead. Argue with me, tell me I'm wrong, tell me I don't understand, say maybe if I was that bad at math, I should never have become a math teacher.  I've heard it all. But before you do, think about your student.  For once, instead of projecting your bias onto him/her, ask about his/her thoughts on the method being used to solve the problem.  Ask your student to help you.  Be brave enough to ask the teacher to explain the concept being taught before telling your student it doesn't make sense.  Look up a video that explains how to use the break apart method or the area model for multiplication.  Make an effort to learn the way your student is learning. Because in the end, it's not the Common Core math that's making the work hard for the student, it's the negative way that the student constantly hears it being talked about.  Relearning something is hard, and maybe Common Core will never make sense to you, but I promise that constantly shutting it down as a viable option for problem solving is only going to hurt your child in the long run, especially if the concept does make sense to him/her.

Teach them well and let them lead the way

In a huge jump, I wanted to take a minute to write down something I've been thinking about for a few months now.  Generally I like to keep all my good ideas to myself, but every now and again I throw one out there for the rest of the world to contemplate.  This has absolutely nothing to do with running or working out, and everything to do with the children/young adults that I work with during the school year.  As you may already be aware, there is no summer school in the city this year, due to funding issues.  Unfortunately, many of the students in my school could have used the extra help, even if it was a just for 3 - 5 weeks over the summer.  But on top of that, many of these students could have used the food that comes along with the program and had a safe place to go for a few hours a week.
After looking through the programs that I've heard about in various PD courses, I found that Lynn is seriously lacking in the community youth area.  Sure, they have the Community health program, the library, and Centerboard, as well as places like the Y, the Boys and Girls Club, and Head start.  But, what the city doesn't have, is a community youth center.  Here's my proposition, should I ever get the chance to make this a reality.  What I want, in short, is a safe, clean space, where the youth of Lynn can go and spend a few hours a day. In short, a Community Youth Center.  Bear with me here, because what I'm thinking of is very specific.  If I had the means, I would have a space available that was partitioned into 3 basic areas.  1) A quiet library/study/homework room. 2) A place to hang out with friends, talk, or play board/card games (not video games, not iPads, not cell phones, straight up board games).  3) An indoor sports area, for lack of a better term, basically a gym.  In addition, an outdoor area would be nice for Fall, Spring, and Summer, to garden, hang out, and play outdoor sports.  But, the outdoor space I'd be willing to pass on if needed.
Now, you may be thinking that the Y and Boys and Girls club already exist for this, so what's the point.  Here's where it varies.  As far as I know, all those businesses require some form of payment, whether it be money or a voucher.  Not to mention, transportation is often required after school. This community youth center would be free.  Yes, free.  Student's could come after school for a few hours, maybe get a snack, do some homework, hang out, and then head home. All the person would have to do to enter would be to fill out an entry form once, with important information (name, address, phone, emergency contact, etc) and then sign in/out every time s/he came after that first visit. It would be open on the weekends and during vacations so that everyone had a place to go.
You see, I noticed a trend last year in what my students did after school.  Get out of school, go home to a house with an older sibling or cousin, hang out until a parent got home, maybe do homework, watch tv, eat dinner, go to bed.  A lot of my students had no real place to read a book, do their homework, play basketball, practice baseball, etc.  Many of their parents weren't home until 5 p.m. or later, or didn't drive, or couldn't afford a house big enough for a child to have a space to do homework.
How could it possibly be free though? A space like that costs money, snacks cost money, basic operations cost money.  I am well aware of that, and therein lies the problem.  If I was Bill Gates rich, I'd just straight up open the place, run it for free for the city, and pay a highly qualified staff to keep it running.  But I'm not Bill Gates rich.  I'm not even regular person rich.  All I have is an idea.  So far, my way around paying staff would be to recruit the high school students that would be coming anyways, to become tutors/mentors to the elementary and middle school children.  Along with that, I would recruit college students from the many schools in the area, and offer them a college credit internship for spending X amount of hours working.  Ideally, college students who are studying to become teachers, counselors, or social workers, would come and volunteer their time in exchange for college credit.  There could even be classes offered for those interested, basic basketball skills, crafting, drawing, whatever the attendees have an interest in really.  As for snacks, I think I'd have to take the hit and shop Costco or look for companies to donate food in exchange for advertisement in the local newspapers.  I don't even know if that's something they would do, but it's the best idea I've got.  Other than that, all I can think of is to offer cooking classes and use the finished products as snacks! I suppose if we had an outdoor area, we could greenhouse it and grow our own fruit/veggies, and maybe that would work?
I don't know, it seems like such a good idea in my head, and even written down, it doesn't seem like it's unreachable.  The problem is, for me to do it alone, it is.  I couldn't even afford to rent a space for a week, let alone keep it open for a trial year. What I really need, for the first time in my life, is a business person to take this on and actually find an investor.  But how do you convince someone to invest in a program that offers no ROI?  At least, not in the monetary sense.  Could I just hope that someone is feeling philanthropic and wants to give back to the city? Sure, I could, but I still don't know anyone from Lynn that's willing to jump on board.
At the end of the day, all I really want is for the youth of the city to have a safe place to go in order to stay off the streets.