So, we held our little costume contest. There were 31 entries(!) and all 2012 participants are pictured below. Based on discussion at the #globalmath costume party, I learned we’ve been doing this since 2009. History: 2011, 2010, 2009

First Place

@jreulbach  as @mgolding .

Julie receives a hanging organizer from the Container Store. These babies were all the rage at Twitter Math Camp this summer. I love mine because I hang it near the door and fill it with handouts. “Did I miss anything?” is a question I refuse to answer. I just point at the organizer.

Second Place

Tie!

@j_lanier  as @natbanting 

and

@mrpicc112  as @approx_normal

Justin and Timon will have to fight it out over graph paper composition books and Command Strip adhesive poster strips.

Several math teachers swear by the graph paper comp books for their Interactive Notebooks, saying it helps kids organize their problem solving (not to mention, it provides a handy Cartesian plane all the time).

The poster hangers are about the only method I know to hang posters in a room with cinderblock construction. Colleagues of mine swear by the glue gun but regret it in May when taking things down. These suckers work.

Honorable Mentions

@chrishunter36  as @mrpicc112

@mythagon  as @fawnpnguyen

@approx_normal  as @chrishunter36

@wahedahbug  as @lustomatical

The Participants

@k8nowak as @mr_stadel

@marybourassa  as @approx_normal

@dandersod as @Mythagon

@algebrainiac1 as @wahedahbug

@absvalteaching as @approx_normal

@mr_stadel as @mr_vaudrey

@maxmathforum   as @MrHonner

@calcdave as @bowmanimal

@cheesemonkeysf   as  @mpershan

@mgolding as @mrpicc112

@druinok  as @samjshah

@jacehan  as @park_star

@hfxmark  as @ddmeyer

@fourkatie as @cheesemonkeysf

@samjshah  as @druinok

@fouss as @druinok

@lmhenry9 as @mathbratt

@rdkpickle as @j_lanier

@pamjwilson   as @mgolding

@mathbratt as @mathtastrophe

@chris_harrow   as @roughlynormal

@btwnthenumbers as @woutgeo

@park_star as @crstn85

@zidaya as @MrHonner

UPDATE:

Voting runs 8am to midnight today. Visit the GDoc with all #globalmath #twittereen contestants listed. Please vote only one time.

Next Tuesday (Oct 30) at the #globalmath meeting we will be celebrating #twittereen. This tradition goes way back to 2011 when a bunch of us dropped our regular Twitter avatars in favor of “dressing up” as a Twitter friend/celebrity/enemy. Check out Lisa’s summary of 2011 hijinks.

How do we want to run the #globalmath meeting on Oct 23? Leave your ideas in the comments. When we have consensus (or when Thursday at 11pm hits), this post will be updated to reflect our final plans. That gives you the weekend to come up with a great costume. I just wonder if I can get my sista to dress as my twin:

Twittereen Flow

• Dress up as your favorite Twitter avatar and take a picture.
• Set it as YOUR avatar on Oct 30 just before #globalmath.
• Join us on BigMarker for the Costume Contest!
• Continue with open-ended discussion, meme sharing, and general laughs.
• Leave your avatar up for Halloween, reap the laughs as people make connections all day long.

Costume Contest

Make us guess who you are dressed as. We heap praise on you for amazing creativity. We vote on the best costume. #globalmath attendees can win fame! fortune! and prizes! Only the last one is actually true.

1. First place: a Container Store fabric magazine organizer
2. Second place: 2 graph paper composition books
3. Third place: 12 Command Adhesive poster strips (will even stick to your cinderblock walls!) 

Global Math Department is helping folks all over the place*. After Remi Smith (who blogs at The Math Smith) presented a favorite review game called “I Have, Who Has…” in September, she got the following feedback from another colleague:

Need some more warm fuzzies? Read other feedback the Global Math Department members have been leaving for each other on the “wall” of our Big Marker community. We all know that we can go months without this kind of amazing feedback in our own buildings. How awesome is it that every single week sounds like this?

Whenever a possible guest speaker contacts me (which isn’t often enough, just so you know and volunteer to speak!), I stress to them that we like practical topics most. All the better if we can use it Wednesday in class.

What #GlobalMath stands for

With help from Timon (@MrPicc112), I’ve been crafting the #GlobalMath description and mission statement. Help us out?

This is our community description which everyone sees at the top of our Big Marker community page:

We are math teachers who share what we’ve learned, cause we don’t want our classes to suck the energy from students. Professional development among friends, not just colleagues. Fun! Immediately useful! Interesting!

A second statement appears when users click to learn more:

We want to be better teachers. We share freely. We are always supportive.

What would you say about #GlobalMath?

Quantifying the impact

I know that #GlobalMath is useful. I know people like the meetings (I doubt that @approx_normal is the only reason 30+ people show up each week). How in the world can we measure it?

How do school districts measure this stuff? (Do they?)

*at our Oct 2 meeting, I was floored to hear of one colleague in Hawaii and another in Sydney.

The My Favorite format has proven very popular with the math teacher crowd. So popular that I have people lining up and asking to present their favorites (where were you folks last week when I was begging for presenters? sheesh! joking, I love y’all!).

Presenting…

My Favorite First Tuesdays

The first Tuesday of every month is My Favorite night. Sign up to present a 5-10 minute topic. Only one rule: it’s gotta be something you LOVE. Favorites include classroom management (Two nice things! from @misscalcul8), games (Trasketball stolen from @k8nowak by @approx_normal), or tech (TI NSpire quick tips by @mathteacher24)…you name it!

I can hear you asking, “How do I participate?” No really, you gotta stop reading out loud.

Just complete this form and I’ll be in touch via email to plan details.

Next My Favorite is Nov 6. Be thinking of ideas!