Math that works for every student, with Fawn Nguyen
Meet Our Guest(s):
Fawn Nguyen
Fawn Nguyen is Director of STEM Initiatives at Amplify. Before joining our team, she was a math coach in a K–8 school district for three years, and a middle school math teacher for 30 years. She has received many accolades, including being named the 2014 Ventura County Teacher of the Year, Raytheon’s 2009 Math Teacher Hero, and the 2005 Sarah D. Barder Fellow at the Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth. She has also been a keynote speaker and workshop facilitator at math conferences nationwide. In 2012, she co-founded the Math Teacher’s Circle in Thousand Oaks, California. From 2015–18, Fawn served as a member of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) Professional Development Services Committee.
Meet our host, Ana Torres.
Ana has been an educator for 30 years, working in both the K–8 and higher education sectors. She served as an administrator and instructor at various public and private colleges and universities and as a bilingual and dual language teacher, dual language math and reading interventionist, dual language instructional coach, assistant principal, and principal in K–8 schools. Ana is currently the Senior Biliteracy and Multilingual Product Specialist at Amplify, and delivers literacy and biliteracy presentations across the nation. Ana’s passion and advocacy for biliteracy and support for all students from all walks of life has led her to educate leaders, teachers, and parents about the positive impact of bilingualism and biliteracy in our world.
Meet our Classroom Insider, Eric Cross.
Eric Cross is a middle school science teacher who hopes to someday be a lifelong educator, like the guests on Beyond My Years! In each episode, Eric connects with host Ana Torres to discuss her guests’ best insights, gleaned from their long and rewarding careers in the classroom. Then, Eric talks about bringing some of their wisdom into his current classroom and busy life.
Transcripts and additional resources:
Quotes
“We can all be mathematicians—not just the fast ones.”
“When you immerse children in critical thinking and problem-solving daily, they show up to problems they've never seen before and they're already in their problem-solving mode.”
“Who wants to teach anything if you know the kids are going to dread it?”
“Teach in a way that makes you look forward to going back the next day.”
“When success is widened, more students are gonna be able to walk through it.”
“We make time for what's important. And if it's valuable, we will create those five minutes.”