2025 November Productive Math Struggle Book Study

Join us for November's 2025 MSTA "Beyond the Book" Club Book Study, featuring Productive Math Struggle: A 6-Point Action Plan for Fostering Perseverance by John J. SanGiovanni, Kevin J. Dykema, and Susie Katt.

Participants are responsible for obtaining their own copy of this month's text before the beginning of the book study to order; click here.

Struggle is hard. Productive struggle is power. 
This easy-to-read book delves into the power of productive struggle in the classroom, how to support students in their learning, and how to create meaningful tasks that promote critical thinking. The book has fantastic, easy-to-implement strategies and activities that can be used in the classroom tomorrow! While the book is geared toward a math classroom (elementary through high school), the ideas can be applied to any subject area. This book shares actionable steps and tools for implementation to create a classroom community of thinkers. 

Throughout our book study, we will read an action step and look at practical ways to incorporate the value into our classrooms. This book has a little theory and a whole lot of useful tools to put into practice today! 

Alison Corl has taught Junior High Math in Neosho for the past fourteen years. She dreamed of being a teacher when she was in Kindergarten and came home every day excited to teach her little brother that day's lesson. Alison's passion for reaching all students, especially reluctant learners, is evident in her teaching style and belief in a strong classroom community. Alison Corl is determined to develop students' problem-solving skills and get kids talking about math. 

Besides teaching, Alison's other great passion is family. She lives with her two daughters, ages 10 and 3, and husband in Joplin, Missouri. They love to play games, read, and go on adventures out in nature. 

📘 MSTA's Online Learning Platform

MSTA uses Teachable to host its online professional learning activities, including discussions, group work, and course materials.

What You’ll Find in the Course:

• Discussion Boards: Share insights and reflect with peers.
• Guiding Questions & Tasks: Apply key ideas from readings.
• Asynchronous Format: Participate anytime, anywhere.

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🧭 Getting Started with Teachable

First-Time Participant?

Check your email for a message from Teachable (sent to the address you used when registering). Follow the link to confirm your email and set your password. Your course will appear under "My Products."

Returning Participant?

Log in using your email and password from a previous course to access your dashboard.

 

​💬 Course Expectations

• Attend Zoom networking sessions to connect and collaborate.
• Complete assignments that link course concepts to your classroom practice.
• Access to course resources continues after the course ends.

 

🎓 PD Certification

At the end of the book study, participants who complete all course requirements and attend the Zoom meetings will receive 8 hours of PD. Certificates are found in your Teachable account. 

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