Who is Mr. Gariss?
Hello! My name is Mr. Gariss and I am new to Slater Middle School sort of . . . I am new to teaching here but I was a student at Slater from 1992-1994. Yes, for three years! But don't worry, I wasn't held back. Slater used to be a Junior High and had a 7th, 8th and 9th grade. In fact, I was part of the very last 9th grade class to attend Slater in 1994. I went on to graduate from Montgomery High School in 1997, where I was the Goal Keeper for the Soccer team and also one of the Stage Technicians for the Drama Class.
After High school I spent 2 years at Santa Rosa Junior College before moving to South Lake Tahoe for 2 years to Snowboard. After Tahoe I went back to school where I earned my degree in History from California State University, Chico. After Chico I moved to Santa Rosa to get my teaching credential. It was during that time that I started dating my soon to be wife Jessica Longoria. We were Married in 2007. In that same year I started my first teaching job in Woodland CA, my Wife and I bought our first house, and my son Greyson was born in July 2008. |
|
|
After 2 years of teaching History, I decided to try something new, and through testing I got certified to teach Math in the Summer of 2008. I started teaching Math in Middle school that next year in Fairfield and then moved on to teach in West Sacramento until January 2015. In 2012 my daughter Kensey Rose Gariss was born (I use her full name because if you ask her, that is the only way she will respond).
After 2 years of teaching History, I decided to try something new, and through testing I got certified to teach Math in the Summer of 2008. I started teaching Math in Middle school that next year in Fairfield and then moved on to teach in West Sacramento until January 2015. In 2012 my daughter Kensey Rose Gariss was born (I use her full name because if you ask her, that is the only way she will respond). In January of 2015 my wife landed her dream job as a Counselor at Santa Rosa Junior College. This allowed us both to return home with our young family. We are both so excited to be back in Santa Rosa where our extended family and friends are. This is also what brings me back "full circle" so to speak to Slater Middle School. |
Things you will learn about me. I am a huge Giants Fan. Have been all my life. If there is a game on I am probably watching it. If it is during the school day I am probably recording it. I have also played soccer for 26 years and still play today when I can. I even played 8 years of competitive soccer with Santa Rosa United when I was young. I love to snowboard, play golf, read and cook. I am pretty good in the kitchen and profess to be able to cook anything under the sun, though I tend to specialize in pizza, BBQ and most Asian foods, including Sushi.
Who is Mr. Gariss as a Teacher?
I started as a history teacher and turned to math in 2008. In all honesty, I originally started teaching math because my prospects for getting and retaining employment were much higher. I found over the years that I truly enjoy teaching and learning about mathematics. Every year I come to some new understanding about what I am teaching and I enjoy sharing it with my students.
One of the most important parts of my teaching philosophy come from the research of Carol Dweck on the Growth Mindset. In this research individuals are described as having a perception of intelligence that falls in or between two opposing beliefs;
Dweck and others have shown that learners who hold a fixed mindset perform worse than those that have a growth mindset. This should not surprise us, but the impact of mindset on learners at high levels are the most surprising. For students who believe they are naturally good at math (that they inherited a math ability) they will perform at a high level on work that they can easily understand, but when faced with work that challenges them they will quit or give up at much higher rates than students with a growth mindset. For students with a fixed mindset, effort is stigmatized. "I am good at math so I don't need to work hard." This essentially puts a ceiling on their abilities.
Furthermore, the research has shown that students of all levels who have or are reinforced with a growth mindset (praised on effort not ability) will seek out and enjoy more challenging work. They will work harder and longer on a challenge and in turn gain more enjoyment out of it. The important part of all of this for helping our students here is simple. We have to be aware about how we talk to our students about math - or any subject for that matter. If we praise effort, persistence, and hard work we develop a growth mind set or a student who is resilient and will work hard to meet any challenge. If we praise intelligence or aptitude we encourage a fixed mind set and we essentially reinforce the notion that there is a limit to ones ability and having to work hard on a task is a sign of being intelligent.
What follows is a list of do's and don't in the way we talk to our students about math but for more information please read the following 2 articles:
One of the most important parts of my teaching philosophy come from the research of Carol Dweck on the Growth Mindset. In this research individuals are described as having a perception of intelligence that falls in or between two opposing beliefs;
- Fixed Mindset - The belief that intelligence and abilities are innate or something that we are born with
- Growth Mindset - The belief that intelligence is built or grown through experience and learning
Dweck and others have shown that learners who hold a fixed mindset perform worse than those that have a growth mindset. This should not surprise us, but the impact of mindset on learners at high levels are the most surprising. For students who believe they are naturally good at math (that they inherited a math ability) they will perform at a high level on work that they can easily understand, but when faced with work that challenges them they will quit or give up at much higher rates than students with a growth mindset. For students with a fixed mindset, effort is stigmatized. "I am good at math so I don't need to work hard." This essentially puts a ceiling on their abilities.
Furthermore, the research has shown that students of all levels who have or are reinforced with a growth mindset (praised on effort not ability) will seek out and enjoy more challenging work. They will work harder and longer on a challenge and in turn gain more enjoyment out of it. The important part of all of this for helping our students here is simple. We have to be aware about how we talk to our students about math - or any subject for that matter. If we praise effort, persistence, and hard work we develop a growth mind set or a student who is resilient and will work hard to meet any challenge. If we praise intelligence or aptitude we encourage a fixed mind set and we essentially reinforce the notion that there is a limit to ones ability and having to work hard on a task is a sign of being intelligent.
What follows is a list of do's and don't in the way we talk to our students about math but for more information please read the following 2 articles:
"How Not to Talk to Your Kids: The Inverse Power of Praise"
|
"How to talk to your kids about math" by Oscar Fernandez
Huffington Post Posted: 03/24/2015 1:41 pm EDT |
Do's and Don't of Talking to Our Kids about Math
Do'
Praise Effort "Wow! You worked really hard to finish that problem" "I can really see your mind working to complete that homework On ourselves "I had to work really hard in math" On helping with work "What can you tell about what you have done so far?" "Do you have notes on this topic or have you done other problems that are similar?" "Here maybe we can look up something together on how to do that. Does Mr. Gariss have a website?" |
Don'ts
Praise Ability You're so smart You are good at math You are a math person "I am not a math person" " I only got to Algebra - I can't help you" "Wait for your Dad/Brother/Sister, I can't help you with math" |