Supporting Schools in the Covid-19 Era

We know that teachers learn best when they learn together.

For this reason, over the last dozen years, we’ve primarily offered onsite, in-person training.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, delivering instruction live in schools is currently difficult and it is unclear when we will be able to resume “normal” training.

Given this uncertainty, we have developed creative ways to provide educators with the high-quality training that you have come to expect from Math Champions. We are fully prepared to support you and your teachers with the best training possible in these unusual circumstances.

Here is an overview of training options currently available to schools:

Live Onsite Training Visits

We are fully prepared to visit your school for in-person sessions if it is feasible to learn in a safe environment and follow recommended state and CDC guidelines. Our teacher voices project beyond 6 feet, our manipulatives are sanitized after each use, and our hands are washed.

Live, Remote Training via Video Conference

While we know we cannot replicate the energy and discourse of an onsite training, we can cover most of the content required to get teachers up and running through online sessions.

Delivering instruction in this format is different than in person, and we know that teachers may be “Zoom”ed out. For that reasons, we have planned these with more frequent, shorter breaks to keep teachers fresh and attentive.

Recorded Training Modules

We have created a series of recorded modules that serve as an Introduction to Singapore Math. The series consists of five videos, each approximately one hour in length. If teachers complete the included activities, the program equates to approximately nine hours of professional development.

These videos cover the basics of Singapore Math, including:

  • What is Singapore Math? What are the foundations and pedagogy of the curriculum?
  • Addition and subtraction basics and mental math
  • Multiplication facts and mental math strategies for multiplication and division
  • Using place value discs to teach the four operations
  • An introduction to bar modeling for solving words problems

Recorded Modules cover the bulk of the mathematical content we typically address during onsite Introductory training. To ensure that questions are answered, and teachers are fully prepared to teach, we suggest that live, remote training sessions be included to supplement recorded modules. We can help devise a structure for your school in a variety of ways to maximize learning.

Support for Success

We are committed to giving schools resources and support to ensure success throughout the school year, including:

  • Resource Handbook: The amount of material and content covered in a training can seem overwhelming. Because of this, we provide each teacher with a handbook that serves as a future reference guide
  • Support: We offer email and telephone access as needed for questions from teachers and administration to allow your schools to seek help or advice quickly.
  • Parent Night Presentations: We love to host Parent education events, which can be informational sessions or a variety of hands-on, bootcamp style learning experiences. We have already done introductory parent nights via Zoom!
  • Parent-teachers: If fall finds your school needing parents to teach a good amount at home, we can extend our offer of email support or even online office hours for your parents.

Please reach out if you have questions or want to share information about your school’s situation.

Be well and stay safe.

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Singapore Math Online Resources – Free! (For now…)

Since so many teachers and parents are schooling from home, I thought I’d update some of the resources that companies are offering for free, at least through the end of the academic year.

Dimensions Math and Primary Math

For students:  free instructional lesson videos  Grades 1–4.
These are designed for students to use with textbooks and workbooks to complete their school work. Many of these lessons may be used for students using Primary Mathematics as well; PM students should look here to find the corresponding Dimensions Math chapters.

For teachers: free access to ebooks. Fill out the request form here: https://www.singaporemath.com/at-home-learning

Primary Math and Math in Focus

Marshall Cavendish is providing free access through the end of May to Math Buddies, an online learning tool.

Some of my favorite sites and apps

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Word Problem Wednesday – Printer and Laptops

Our new problem is from the soon-to-be-published Dimensions Math 5A textbook. The word problem is from Chapter 1 after lessons on mental math.

You’ll want to draw a bar model, but then see if you can complete the computations mentally!

A library bought a printer and 5 laptops that cost $6,000 altogether. Each laptop cost $420 more than each printer. How much does the printer cost?


Our previous Word Problem Wednesday problem came from an article in the Daily Express, a UK newspaper: This is the maths puzzle that is baffling everyone.

Here’s one solution:

One parent who homeschools had her 7-year-old son take on the challenge. Enjoy the two-part video. I think the best part is in Pt. 2 when the son says to his mom: “Processing, please do not interrupt.”

Part 1
Part 2
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These are challenging times… How can we help?

The Coronavirus pandemic is impacting society across the globe. Efforts to reduce the spread of the virus are forcing unprecedented disruptions, including widespread lockdowns that have closed many of our schools.

Despite the COVID-19 threat, life goes on. Teachers, who thrive on personal interaction with students in their classrooms, are being asked to deliver instruction remotely. And students are being asked to learn independently.

In these challenging times, we want to help.

Free Dimensions Math Lesson Videos

For students, Singapore Math Inc. is currently offering free instructional lesson videos created for Dimensions Math Grades 1–4. These are designed for students to use with textbooks and workbooks to complete their school work. Many of these lessons may be used for students using Primary Mathematics as well; PM students should look here to find the corresponding Dimensions Math chapters.

Live Online Q & A Sessions

With the COVID crisis keeping me at home, I really miss spending time with teachers. Fortunately, tech tools like Zoom offer an alternative. So, beginning next week, I plan to host live, online meetings to address your questions about teaching math using a Singapore approach.

Are you stuck at home and need to teach your students remotely? Just curious about Singapore Math or Model Drawing? 

This is your opportunity to Ask Me Anything about teaching math the Singapore way. Please register here for the Tuesday, March 31 session. This Q & A will begin at 1:00 PM  Mountain Time (US). Attendance is limited, so sign up today! Canceled due to personal emergency. We’ll try again in 2 weeks!

I’d love your input on times or topics for future sessions; share your suggestions here.

Summer Jumpstart Your Singapore Math Workshop Update

The Coronavirus pandemic has escalated significantly since we announced these workshops three weeks ago. We hope the crisis will soon pass and life will return to something more normal.

We know when that happens, teachers will want training for the next school year. It is too early to know whether it will be safe or proper to hold summer training. We will continue to evaluate the situation and provide updates here.  We will also notify those registered of any changes and offer a flexible refund policy.

Please stay safe in these uncertain times.

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The Impact of Singapore Math at MPA

[Note: I’ve enjoyed working with Mounds Park Academy (MPA) in Saint Paul, Minnesota, since 2014. For the last three years, MPA has generously hosted our annual Jumpstart Your Singapore Math Instruction workshops.]

Renee Wright

I was thrilled to read a January 9, 2020, blog post, “The Impact of Singapore Math at MPA,” written by Lower School Director Renee Wright. It is a brief, but thorough, overview that anyone considering a Singapore program should read.

Renee recounts some of the many reasons the school chose to adopt
a Singapore program in kindergarten through fifth grade six years ago,
including:

Singapore Math meets the needs of all learners, provides
extra practice and support for students when necessary, and is inherently
challenging for the advanced math student.

To illustrate her point, Renee invites readers to consider a word
problem assigned to fourth graders:

Mrs.
Wright, Dr. Hudson, and Ms. Tesdahl all wrapped lots of presents over
the holidays.
Mrs. Wright wrapped four times as many as Dr. Hudson (remember,
she has grandchildren!), and Ms. Tesdahl wrapped 3 more than half as many
as Mrs. Wright. Together they wrapped 31 presents. How many presents did
Dr. Hudson wrap?

She notes that this is a challenging problem for Lower School students and maybe even readers. But:

Believe it or not, fourth-graders at Mounds Park Academy approached this problem with confidence and were successful in finding the solution.

Renee includes data to document student success:

We can carefully examine the longitudinal data and impact of
Singapore Math. One way is to review ACT Aspire assessment data collected over
the past several years to determine if our students’ scores have shown
improvement. Our student data has been compared to national percentiles and
independent school benchmarks and it shows that our students have made steady
gains in math concepts and usage.

She also includes anecdotal evidence from several teachers, including: Renette Stinson and Shelley Steingraeber (third grade); Deedee Stacy and Yamini Kimmerle (fourth grade); and Chris Peterson (fifth grade). Deedee and Yamini said:

Singapore Math is designed to give students an extremely well
developed mathematical foundation, and to challenge them daily to apply
mathematical concepts in new situations. Our students at MPA love to learn, and
Singapore Math makes that happen!

And what did students say?

…third graders [said] that Singapore Math is challenging, but
fun! One student identified the mental math emphasis as something that helps
him use math every single day. Another student said she used to hate math but
now she loves it because Singapore Math makes sense.

Finally, Renee offers her reflections:

Today, as an administrator looking at the data, hearing from
the teachers, and feeling the enthusiasm for math from our students, I know
that adopting Singapore Math was the right decision. It has served our students
well and is aligned with the college preparatory nature and foundational
mission of our school. I am so proud of the time, attention, and effort our
teachers have put into teaching the Singapore curriculum. I acknowledge and
celebrate the math success our students have had daily in the classroom due to
the Singapore Math curriculum and feel confident they are ready for their
future journey of higher level math.

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