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 Jennifer Cook has rated the lesson plan Capturing Conic Sections with Digital Cameras Feb 24, 2012
 Jennifer Cook has added the lesson plan Air Dispersion Modeling Feb 24, 2012

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Mrs. Jennifer Cook
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Kennedale High School
Class Information:
Room Number: 107
Position:
Math Department Chair
My Philosophy:
I believe my role as the teacher is to be an advocate for my students’ learning, and not just for what they learn, but also for how they learn. As cliché as it is, I want them to not only learn my material, I want them to learn to love learning – to truly become lifelong learners. As a math teacher, I would say the number one obstacle I have to overcome with my students is the belief that many of them have that they are “just not good at math”. This belief has often been reinforced by adults in their lives who have blamed it on genetics or told them “I always hated math in school, too”. My goal from their first day in my classroom is to get them to realize that learning math is a struggle for everyone, even their teacher sometimes! I teach them to embrace the struggle and try and learn from it. It is in the struggle that true learning and understanding occurs. My motto in my classroom is “It’s okay to not know. It’s not okay to not try.” I believe in collaborative learning and use it daily - my students sit in groups because, as Robert Heinlein said, “When one teaches, two learn.” My students do more than just sit and take notes and work problems – we do a variety of activities to reinforce their learning and keep them engaged. I want to give my students every opportunity to help themselves master the material while at the same time reaching them “where they’re at”, so I utilize technology as much as I possibly can. From graphing calculators and a class website where students can find copies of the notes and homework (as well as answer keys and even videos of the lessons) to a Facebook page and a YouTube channel, I definitely try to incorporate technology that appeals to this generation of students. I assign a project each six weeks to challenge my students to think beyond the mundane, but also to allow them to showcase their creativity and individuality. They are often surprised to realize that getting creative in math class can actually reinforce their learning! I do all of this for the reward of seeing my students leave my classroom to find success in the “real world”. Come September each year, I am inevitably visited by former students just dropping by to thank me for not just teaching them math, but for teaching them to be responsible for their learning. Sometimes the thank you is more of an “I wish I had…” than an “I’m glad I did…” when they were in my class, but the message is the same – they took something with them when they left me – an understanding of and appreciation for what it takes for them to be successful.
Personal Information:
About Me:
My husband and I are both high school teachers. I teach Pre-AP Pre-Calculus, AP Calculus AB, and TAKS Math. My husband coaches football and baseball andteaches Pre-AP Physics and Biology. We have two sons, Cooper and Chase. Cooper has high-functioning autism.
College and Degrees:
B.S. in Mathematics from West Texas A&M University
Favorite Books:
Making Peace With Autism, The Journal of Best Practices: A Memoir of Marriage, Asperger Syndrome and One Man's Quest to Be a Better Husband
Favorite Quotes:
It's okay to not know, it's not okay to not try!
Interests:
Photography, Sewing
Employment History:
In my 13th year as a high school math teacher.
Number of students I teach:: 132 students