How we pulled our Math scores out of the basement to be the top-scoring school out of 28 elementary schools in our diocese in 5 years 1

Diocese of Charleston Catholic Schools Averages 2005 POPCS National Percentile Class Averages 2005 Test3 rd Grade4 th Grade3 rd Grade4 th Grade Math  74  2

DioceseOur School GradeMath       3

US Dept. of Education Blue Ribbon Standard: Top 15% Nationally POPCS National Percentile Class Averages GradeMath       4

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 How did we raise math scores and raise enrollment?  Can we account for it?  If so, you can market your strategy and “sell” your expertise. “Yes we can raise your child’s math scores because we know what we’re doing!” 6

 There are two kinds of math kids:  Some get math: they’ll be in Algebra I by 8 th grade and grow up to be engineers & scientists.  Some don’t get math: they’ll grow up to be all kinds of things... But they’ll say to their family and friends as adults“I’m not a math person.” 7 If this is your vision for your students: GIVE UP RIGHT NOW!

 There are two people involved in the learning process:  The Teacher  The Learner 8 Training the teacher is up to you!

 The Learner (in mathematics) needs to do TWO things to be successful.  Thing One: PRACTICE ALOT 9

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 What are we practicing? We are reinforcing the BASICS  Place Value  Operations (+ / - / x / ÷)  Algorithms (rules which if done properly get you the right answer) 11

12 08/2008: Pilot Simple Solutions in 3 rd Grade Test again... 3 years UP on the Grade Equivalency Scale in just one year! Focused Effort in school year

 But reinforcing the basics, place value, operations, and algorithms are only the beginning.  Besides, the problem with algorithms are that children forget what they’re doing...  Let’s look at an example 13

How do you know this equation is correct? 2 ÷ ½ = 1

Oops, it’s Wrong! 2 ÷ ½ = The Algorithm: Invert & Multiply: BUT WHY?

Okay, so are you now sure you know this is correct? 2 ÷ ½ = 4

How many halves are in 2? 2 ÷ ½ =

 The Learner (in mathematics) needs to do TWO things to be successful.  Thing One: PRACTICE A LOT  Thing Two: TEACH THEM TO THINK THE WAY TOP MATH STUDENTS THINK 18

John brought his camera on a 4-day rafting trip. Each day, he took 6 more pictures than the day before. He took 15 pictures on the third day. How many pictures did John take during the trip? [Samantha 4 th Grade] 19

John brought his camera on a 4-day rafting trip. Each day, he took 6 more pictures than the day before. He took 15 pictures on the third day. How many pictures did John take during the trip? ? Day 2 Day 3 Day = – 12 = 3 John took 3 pictures on the 1 st day John took 48 pictures during the trip ? ? 6 6 Day (3+6)+(15)+(15+6) =

John brought his camera on a 4-day rafting trip. Each day, he took 6 more pictures than the day before. He took 15 pictures on the third day. How many pictures did John take during the trip? [Samantha 4 th Grade] 21

 Teaching MATH Thinking:  Reading Comprehension  Mapping out the problem with diagrams and models  Writing the mathematical equation (number sentence)  Returning to the original question and answering it  Have the students do it COLLABORATIVELY. 22

Trends International Mathematics & Science Study Every 4 years 50 countries 4 th & 8 th Grade Each country is required to draw a random, nationally representative sample of students and schools. In the U.S. fourth grade, 500 schools and 9,829 students participated.

Grade fourGrade eight CountryAverage scoreCountry Average score TIMSS scale average500TIMSS scale average500 Hong Kong SAR607Chinese Taipei598 Singapore599Korea, Rep. of597 Chinese Taipei576Singapore593 Japan568Hong Kong SAR572 Kazakhstan549Japan570 Russian Federation544Hungary517 England541England513 Latvia537Russian Federation512 Netherlands535United States508 Lithuania530Lithuania506 United States529Czech Republic504 Germany525Slovenia501 Denmark523Armenia499 Australia516Australia 2007 TIMSS RESULTS Average math scores fourth and eighth grade students

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28 From the Framework: July 2011