ICTM Newsletter for August 2025

Don't miss the opportunity to Build Thinking Classrooms with Chase Orton! Register today.

Building Thinking Classrooms Workshops

Join Chase Orton, a member of Peter Liljedahl's Building Thinking Classrooms team, for an interactive overview of some of the research-based teaching practices that will transform your mathematics classroom and get your students engaged, talking, thinking, and taking responsibility for their own learning.

Introduction to Building Thinking Classrooms
August 6

We will dive deep into BTC practices 1-6 and also experience a lesson framework you can use to teach your curriculum standards.

How We Extend the Collective Experience to Individual Understanding in a Thinking Classroom
August 7

You've built a culture of thinking in your classroom by using vertical surfaces, random groupings, and non-curricular tasks. Now it's time to learn about practice 7-11 and how to move students from collective knowing and doing to individual knowing and doing.

Registration

ICTM is Building Connected Relationships with Math!

Join us at our fall pre-conference workshops and conference October 20-21.

Conference Keynote Speaker

Vanessa Vakharia
Reframing Failure: Help Students Actually Connect with Math
Math Therapy 101: Understanding Math Trauma & How to Overcome It!

Featured Speakers

Dan Meyer
Three Gifts That Technology Can Give To (Or Take Away From) Your Math Class
Math Is Power, Not Punishment
John SanGiovanni
Better Problem Solving: From Number Pluckers to Thinkers and Doers
Number Sense and Numeracy
Dr. Raj Shah
Exploding Dots - A Visual Model that Illuminates K-12 Mathematics
Every Child is Brilliant (and So are You)

Dr. Marian Small
Do They Really Understand?
Reaching All Students

Pre-Conference Workshop Facilitators

Dr. Marian Small
Uncomplicating Fractions (elementary focus)

Dr. Raj Shah
Making Math Irresistible (secondary focus)

Conference & Workshop Info and Registration

Know a future teacher who will be teaching math for the first time this fall?

Tell them about our First-Year Teacher Grants of $500 (teaching math full-time) and $300 (teaching math part-time). Applications are now being accepted until August 20.

Description & Application

The ICTM grants committee is pleased to announce Bettendorf High School has been selected to receive the ICTM Teaching and Learning Grant in the amount of $750. They will use the grant to purchase online licenses for a financial algebra course. Congratulations to Kellie Pryor on behalf of the Bettendorf math team!

Teaching and Learning Grant applications are accepted year round, and reviewed at the end of each quarter. Grant applications submitted now through June 30 will be reviewed in July.

Grants to help fund travel to the ICTM and NCTM conferences this fall are also available!

More Information & Application

Apply for an ICTM Grant to Support Conference Travel & More!

ICTM has several grants to help support your professional development:

NCTM Conference Grant (pays for early-bird conference registration fee and other expenses of up to $1200); due June 30
ICTM Conference Grant (up to $400); due August 31
ICTM Teaching & Learning Grant (up to $750)

Descriptions & Application

Join Iowa State University faculty and professional actuaries on the Iowa State University campus for a fun and informative look at actuarial science and statistics majors and the rewarding career options awaiting your students after graduation.

Email Rahul Parsa (raparsa@iastate.edu) to express your interest in participating and to determine if your class is eligible for a travel grant for the event.

More Information

Registration for the U.S. Conference on Teaching Statistics (USCOTS), to be held at Iowa State University in July of 2025, is now open. The conference runs from Thurs July 17 - Sat July 19, with pre-conference activities (including workshops) beginning on Tues July 15.

www.causeweb.org/cause/uscots/uscots25/registration

Have an Impact on Mathematics Education in Iowa

Are you interested in sharpening your leadership skills? ICTM would love to have you volunteer to join an ICTM committee (Conference, Professional Learning, Grants) and help with the ongoing work of our organization. Committees are being formed for 2025 now, so sign up today!

Join the Iowa Council of Teachers of Mathematics (ICTM)

Become part of a dynamic community dedicated to supporting educators, sharing resources, and improving math teaching and learning across Iowa!

Exclusive PD opportunities
Networking with fellow educators
Access to valuable teaching resources
Advocacy for strong math education

Join today and be part of shaping the future of math education in Iowa!

Join ICTM

We Want to Hear from You!

Do you have ideas for future emails, professional development activities, or website and social media posts? We'd love to hear from you; contact us at one of our email addresses.