Eric Westendorf

Co-founder of LearnZillion, former teacher and principal, husband, father of 3

[Eric Westendorf @ericwestendorf]

https://t.co/DNKUdqvoSo I am a proud board member of Kindred. Check us out. We'd love your support as we promote racial equity and dialogue in schools.

[Preet Bharara @PreetBharara]

Shout out to everyone who showed up, stood up & spoke up for American values and institutions these past four years. You made the difference. 🙏👏👊

[Michelle Obama @MichelleObama]

Van, thank you for expressing the sorrow and relief that we all feel. My hope is that those who hoped for a different outcome will take a moment to empathize with the pain so many of us have felt over the past four years.

[Eric Westendorf @ericwestendorf]

I’m attending Texas Democratic Party - Organizing’s event, “TEXT OUT THE VOTE IN TEXAS WITH TEAM JOE” – sign up now to join me! https://t.co/fNDPOuxNHM

[Eric Westendorf @ericwestendorf]

I’m attending Florida Democratic Party’s event, “Text Florida Democrats Their Personalized Voting Guides” – sign up now to join me! https://t.co/ESq06k5Rfw

[Eric Westendorf @ericwestendorf]

It's time to exercise our right to vote!

[Eric Westendorf @ericwestendorf]

Check out @EBFreitag on the future of public school education. 3 big threats: (1) declines in enrollment, (2) huge financial constraints, and (3) polarization about curriculum (1619 Project vs. 1776 Commission). Yet Freitag also sees reason for hope.
https://t.co/biQrH0URIn

[Joanne Weiss @JoanneSWeiss]

Stinging indictment of public education: Black parents surveyed "appreciated the way virtual learning allowed them to shield their children from anti-Black bias and protect them from the school-to-prison pipeline." Change. Is. Required. https://t.co/kWt8LPLyLD

[LearnZillion (now Imagine Learning) @LearnZillion]

EdReports gave our edition of Illustrative Mathematics the highest rating for a middle school math curriculum! Check out the details: https://t.co/EbNQEKBTzE

[Eric Westendorf @ericwestendorf]

#IMLZChat Bye folks. I enjoyed the discussion :)

[Anna Polsgrove @Miss_Polsgrove]

@LearnZillion A4. Some ways I support student math discussions are having number talks as the warm-up and providing various opportunities for think-pair-share activities. The IM lessons that have data cards with information gaps are great to scaffold and promote student discussion! #IMLZChat

[Eric Westendorf @ericwestendorf]

A5. #IMLZChat I've seen teachers use small white boards effectively. It's easy for students to hold up their white boards and immediately use them as visuals for explaining their thinking. I've also seen students pass their whiteboards around a circle (quick museum walk).

[Eric Westendorf @ericwestendorf]

@wgmccallum @LearnZillion #IMLZChat This is a big challenge - making the curriculum and guidance accessibly for teachers - giving just-in-time support.

[Eric Westendorf @ericwestendorf]

A4. #IMLZChat To clarify....hopefully your curriculum is like IMs in that it does support tasks and discussion.

[Eric Westendorf @ericwestendorf]

A4. #IMLZChat Once you've got the basics down (visuals, handouts, etc), I think the fun part is anticipating. What's your hypothesis for learning? What will the task spark? What will you do when it does? It's an act of imagination (hopefully a curriculum like IMs supports that).

[Eric Westendorf @ericwestendorf]

#IMLZChat Yes, the anticipation is challenging. You can either learn what to anticipate from experience, or you can get some guidance from curriculum writers who have seen the patterns in student thinking. I'm a big fan of standing on the shoulders of others. https://t.co/bJMLNqWRTT

[Sarah Cutkomp @MissCutkomp]

@danmcguirempls @LearnZillion #IMLZChat Yes, I agree with this. Sometimes it is difficult to anticipate what students might say when they are explaining their thinking. I think this would be a helpful support for teachers to elicit meaningful discussions in the classroom.

[Eric Westendorf @ericwestendorf]

@wgmccallum #IMLZChat Maybe you could tell us how Illustrative Mathematic's curriculum supports student discussion. That's one of the reasons we're such big fans :) How did you think about promoting throughout?

[Eric Westendorf @ericwestendorf]

A3. #IMLZChat In addition to using tasks that promote student discussion, a curriculum can also provide teachers with some guidance. For example, what are some anticipated responses? What are some follow up prompts or ways to encourage students to connect different approaches?

[Eric Westendorf @ericwestendorf]

@DanielleCross71 @LearnZillion A2. #IMLZChat Yes, it's scary to expose your thinking in public, especially if you're shy and uncertain about how to put your thinking into words that others could understand.

[Eric Westendorf @ericwestendorf]

A3. #IMLZChat I think the curriculum plays a big role. Often, our hope is that PD on a great book like "the 5 Practices" will change practices. But the curriculum sets the defaults. If your curriculum is focused on tasks, then teachers are much more likely to promote student talk