[MOSAIC] suzanne & everyday math

[Ljackson]

I have some thoughts, my crochety friend.  We are seeing similar issues with implementing Math Investigations, which spirals through concepts and builds upon previous experience.  Our teachers are struggling to trust  sprialed curriculum, insistent upon immediate mastery and supplementing with drill, drill, drill.  The results, our kids aren't doing well and very few classrooms made it through more than three investigations.  How can we be sure if it truly MI that is failing our kids, as many teachers who would like to go back to rote memorization and worksheets in long supply, or is a comibnation of a failure to implement the curriculum in combination with a lack of deep mathematical understandings as a teacher?



Lori Jackson
District Literacy Coach and Mentor
Todd County School District
Box 87
Mission SD 5755

----- Original message -----
From: Renee <phoenixone at sbcglobal.net>
To: Mosaic: A Reading Comprehension Strategies Email Group <mosaic at literacyworkshop.org>
Date: 2008, 03, Saturday Of May 08:38
Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] suzanne & everyday math

> I have to make a comment here. If a teacher thinks a program "moves too 
> quickly" then why is that teacher not slowing down and supplementing 
> where supplementing is due? In my mind, this is a ridiculous criticism 
> of a program..... any program. Programs do not teach students. Teachers 
> teach students. Do people not learn any more how to actually teach?
> 
> Renee.... who is feeling crotchety this morning.
> 
> On May 3, 2008, at 3:39 AM, Plongshell at aol.com wrote:
> 
> > Suzanne- just a quick note on Everyday Math-you can email me off  list 
> > if you
> > want for more. Our district started using this program about 6 years  
> > ago-
> > I've been here 3 years- and one thing I've noticed as an intervention  
> > teacher
> > is this is the first district where we have more kids in intervention  
> > math
> > classes than reading! The teachers complain the program moves too 
> > quickly  and is
> > too heavily based on reading skills. It does try to use real life  
> > problems,
> > but the computation aspect of it just flies by and the slower kids  
> > never seem
> > to catch up.  I haven't heard any of our 2-5 teachers say they  like 
> > the
> > program...hope this helps in some way.
> > Michelle 2-5 reading ais ny
> 
> 
> "Holding a grudge is like eating rat poison and then
> waiting for the rat to die." ~ Anne Lamott
> 
> 
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