The dictionary definition of persevere is: (verb) to persist in anything undertaken; maintain a purpose in spite of difficulty, obstacles, or discouragement; continue steadfastly.
Last month I was one of ten Ignite speakers at the California Mathematics Council North Conference in Pacific Grove. Here is the link to my IGNITE. I definitely had to maintain a purpose (mindset about math) and continue steadfastly while working on those twenty slides. Overall, I was happy with how the slides and speech turned out. One of the things I learned about myself through the IGNITE experience is that perseverance pays off. I also liked the challenge of speaking while the slides automatically advance every fifteen seconds. I would definitely do another IGNITE.
In having lunch with students today, I was talking to them about my blog post and the idea behind the #oneword2016 hashtag. I was explaining to them that I wanted to pick a word that would be meaningful for my work. I was talking about how I always ask students to persevere in math and their studies, as well as life in general, and how it would be unfair if I didn't ask the same of myself. One student replied, "That's why I wanted to learn Spanish! It's a beautiful language."
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