Meet Kim Newton, 2024 PAEMST State Finalist
Kim Newton teaches third grade at Grant Elementary School in Spokane Public Schools
What has been your personal journey on the way to excellence in teaching math/science?
As a student, math was my weakest subject. However, I was able to pass through calculus in high school only because I had an amazing teacher cheering me on. When I became a teacher, math was once again my weakest area, and I wanted better for my students. I pursued as many trainings as I could to improve my math pedagogy. I was lucky enough to be in a district that has an amazing support structure for elementary math, which allowed me to both grow as a teacher and to help other teachers grow as well.
What is one concept that excites your students and why?
In second grade, always students would come in excited to learn multiplication and division. It became my job to break it to them gently that we would be focusing on addition and subtraction first. Coming to third grade this year, it’s been exciting for both me and my students (who moved up with me) to actually see all the hard work we put into second grade content pay off in third grade. All that work on place value, grouping and chunking numbers, and strategizing set the stage for working with numbers as composites rather than as piles of ones. They have felt success accessing multiplication and division, which is a gateway to so many applications of mathematics. It’s been a delight to watch them achieve the goals they set in second grade and to see them really start to see themselves as doers of math.
How do your lesson planning and teaching practices engage and support all students?
My school is one of the most diverse in our district in many measures. I love planning math lessons because I can find access points for my learners. Math exists in the physical world, and regardless of language or background, we can all experience math through physical materials and visual media in the classroom. I work to set up common experiences for students to observe things mathematically, then create collaborative structures that help them share and strengthen their understanding and build mathematical language.
How do the math and science concepts and skills you are teaching students help to prepare them for later learning, careers, and life?
In elementary, we’re really building foundational knowledge as well as foundational habits that will serve students for the rest of their lives. My kids are learning how to calculate with numbers, but more than that they’re learning how to reason with challenges, explain their thinking, collaborate, and revise their ideas. I know that whether they go on to advanced mathematics or not, the skills we’ve developed through math will serve them throughout their lives.
What can math and science teachers do to make those disciplines more culturally sustaining for students with diverse identities and experiences?
In our culture, math is sometimes seen as this subject that is high up on a pedestal, reserved for the select few. In reality, math is everywhere and in everything we do. It’s vital to our lives. As a teacher, my job is to bridge that gap by working with my students to see the math in their lives. They need chances to ask mathematical questions that interest them and the time and resources to answer those questions. That’s when math comes alive, and when students see themselves as competent,
capable, and important mathematicians. That’s where the joy is in math, and joyful practices are sustained across cultures and experiences.
What advice would you give to parents, families, or caregivers who want to support their students’ math and science learning?
Sit with your student in the math. It’s okay to not know. For example, even as a math teacher who has come a long way, I am honest with my students that I sometimes still have to pause and think when multiplying by 7s. I was never able to memorize all my facts, but I was (and still am) able to work my way through problems by using familiar strategies and learning new ones. You don’t have to be a “math expert”. They will gain so much by watching you reason through problems and ideas, doing it with you, or even teaching you what they know. And when they tell you what they know, LISTEN, even if they’re wrong. Mistakes can tell us so much about how kids think.
If your child is stuck on a certain skill and you’re not sure how to “sit” in the math with them, reach out. Reach out to your teachers, other students, your community and support system. Education is a group effort. As a teacher, I’m eager and ready to share some games to play at home, ones that older siblings or friends in the neighborhood may already know how to play. A child closer in age to your student may be better able to explain a concept in a way they will understand, or a grandparent might know some strategies that resonate with them. Like I said before, YOU don’t have to be an expert. The expertise is within our community, and we can build our kids up for success together.
