Author Archives: Cathy Yenca

JUST KIDDING! That catchy title doesn’t begin to give justice to the hard-working colleagues I have the pleasure of planning with… the ones in my PLCs locally, AND the global ones who have been sharing about their experiences to help … Continue reading →

Years ago when I had the pleasure of serving as a “math coach” in the Bethlehem Area School District in Pennsylvania, I learned a clever way to expose students to independent events. A colleague of mine provided his students with … Continue reading →

Search for the terms “Four Corners Classroom” online and you’ll find variation after variation of this cooperative learning strategy. The way we do “Four Corners” in my little corner of the world has evolved over the years. It’s one of … Continue reading →

Okay, so my attempt at a clever title is lacking here, but the idea in my brain still stands and seems sort of valid. Last Friday, my Math 7 crew needed support transitioning back to the curriculum after several days … Continue reading →

Last week my Math 7 students spent several days exploring ratios and unit rates (including scenarios with complex fractions in the mix). We haven’t used the word “proportion” yet… we’ve just been “playing” with numbers, really. Encouraging students to think … Continue reading →

My students and I had a unique opportunity recently to host guests from our local PBS station here in Austin, Texas. On the brink of iPad’s 10th anniversary, folks at KLRU came to visit our district, Eanes ISD, to chat … Continue reading →

Roughly 7,300-ish days ago, I began my teaching career in eastern Pennsylvania. I remember my very FIRST first-day-of-school morning… very vividly. I was a newlywed, new to the east side of PA (growing up north of Pittsburgh) and I remember … Continue reading →

School’s Out For Summer! Leaving my classroom after the halls have cleared is a bittersweet moment. I always take a photo of it – and looking at social media the past few days, I can see I’m not the only … Continue reading →

Several weeks back, our middle school teachers had the opportunity to #BeLikeFred (Rogers) in our #EanesNeighborhood – to either “Lead Like Fred” or “Learn Like Fred” during one of our early release (PD) days. I chose to “Lead Like Fred” … Continue reading →

My Math 8 students took their state STAAR test this past week (SIDE NOTE: This testing season marks lap#5 of my students using the Desmos Test Mode app on iPads as well as a TI graphing calculator while taking the … Continue reading →