One of my earliest memories of math is an older boy from my neighbourhood that I used to catch the bus with. He was known as "The Human Calculator" because even from a very young age he was exceptionally good at mental math. Questions that I may struggle with even now, he was able to compute in his head immediately. So it came as a shock to me when in grade three I was identified as gifted, and found myself sitting next to The Human Calculator. I had always loved math, but despite the claims in my IEP that I was exceptional, I knew I was nowhere near as good at math as The Human Calculator.
I didn't understand it at the time, but I eventually came to realize that we all think and learn differently, and that being exceptional at mental math may not necessarily translate to being exceptional at problem solving also.
My high school's self-paced program allowed me to fast-track every math class offered by the department before applying to McMaster to study math. I however had a last minute change of heart and enrolled in the sciences instead, graduating with a degree in chemistry. My math skills have since become a little rusty, but here I am, hoping to learn how to teach math effectively. I am particularly excited to explore different methods of problem solving and seeing what others come up with and which strategies and tools they find most helpful. And while math was always a strength of mine, I am excited to have my eyes opened to subtle intricacies and ways of working course materials that I had never considered before!
