Kristen Smith
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kristensmith.substack.com
Kristen Smith
@kristensmith.substack.com
Seattle HS Math Teacher and Instructional Coach
2018 PAEMST award winner
Author of the upcoming (!!) book: Cultivating Math Confidence: Teaching Strategies to Boost Proficiency in Grades 6-12
I have come to understand that being a math teacher is also being a language teacher. #iteachmath #mtbos
open.substack.com/pub/kristens...
September 2, 2025 at 2:03 PM
We did a model problem of a roof truss where they calculated the total lengths of wood. We discussed how the shape needs to be symmetrical and each triangle needs to have measurements that are mathematically sound. Other than that, the design was up to them. Here’s the model problem:
April 1, 2025 at 2:41 AM
I started doing this end of unit extension project for trigonometry and similarity where students can design their own roof truss. There were some pretty cool design this year! #mtbos #iteachmath
March 31, 2025 at 7:58 PM
This problem was so much fun! It was really exciting to see how many different solution paths students could come up with to find the perimeter of the square. Beautifully knits together properties of trigonometry and Pythagorean theorem. #iteachmath #mtbos @illustratemath.bsky.social
March 13, 2025 at 3:35 AM
This problem was great! A student said: “Wait but I just realized it also works if you switch them! Sin(41) still equals cos(49) even though it’s a totally different value!” And then another student said: “Wait, does it also work for 30 and 60?” And the whole class was like YES! 🤯 #iteachmath #mtbos
March 4, 2025 at 4:25 AM
We launched trigonometry today in Math II. I’ve been using this resource for years and it’s still my favorite way for students to investigate the ratios. Students walk away understanding where the values in the calculator “come from”. #iteachmath #mtbos www.projectmaths.ie/documents/T&...
February 27, 2025 at 3:17 AM
Who would have thought that I would by chance put a “someone who is wearing a red shirt…” protocol in a presentation in Kansas City on Red Friday before the Super Bowl 😂 #NCTMKC25 #mtbos
February 7, 2025 at 6:20 PM
Really enjoyed hearing from Gail Burrill about ways to integrate AI with math teaching to empower students as learners #NCTMKC25 #mtbos #iteachmath
February 6, 2025 at 4:48 PM
Excited to be presenting at #NCTMKC25 next week. My session “Student Response Protocols in the Math Classroom” is Friday at 11:30 AM. Let me know if you will also be there — I’d love to connect with other #mtbos #iteachmath folks!
February 1, 2025 at 8:06 PM
This problem always challenges students because they have trouble turning the triangles in their mind — see how they found two different scale factors? This year I finally realized I could turn this into manipulatives that they could actually turn and it was game-changing! #mtbos #iteachmath ♾️
January 16, 2025 at 1:44 AM
Some favorites from the end of semester AP Stats projects. Students chose their own statistical questions to collect data and analyze. And nothing better than a positive review from a student 😁 #mtbos #iteachmath #statschat
December 20, 2024 at 9:54 PM
My favorite way to close out a topic — send a problem! This one was arithmetic or geometric sequences and they could write the explicit or recursive function for their partner’s sequence. A fun way to head off to break #mtbos #iteachmath ♾️
December 20, 2024 at 1:02 AM
Exploring how sample size impacts variability of samples using our class data on number of siblings. I’m always still nervous that the data won’t reveal what I need it to but every time it works out! Students came super close to even deriving CLT 🤓 #mtbos #iteachmath
November 15, 2024 at 7:17 PM