The Math Gap

Math is sequential and cumulative. Early instruction and achievement are crucial to prepare students for a rigorous high school curriculum and the path to post-secondary success. Students that don’t achieve early proficiency fall into the Math Gap – limiting their future before it can begin.

The Math Gap can be graphically visualized (right) by viewing Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) scores in math through the middle school years. The percent of students proficient or greater in third grade in math is only 38% in Boston in 2012. This proficiency declines by eighth grade to 35%.

During this same time, these students increase proficiency in English Language Arts from 35% to 63%. Students are capable of significant improvements in performance but are missing key building blocks for their mathematics foundation. These students are not equipped for high school math and most can never catch up.

Our teacher coaching programs have increased abilities to identify and close gaps in students’ learning for 90% of participants and a corresponding improvement in math MCAS scores at a rate five times the Boston Public Schools average.

Puzzle of the Week

I am thinking of one of these five cards:

Which one am I thinking of? Here are some clues:

The value of my card is a prime number.
The values of adjacent cards add up to a multiple of 3.
My card is next to a card which is next to the 2 of hearts.

Click here for the answer »

Here is how to follow the clues:

The value of my card is a prime number, so it could have been 7 of clubs, 7 of diamonds, or 2 of hearts.
The values of my two neighbours add up to a multiple of 3, so it could have been 7 of diamonds or 2 of hearts.
My card is next to a card which is next to the 2 of hearts, so it could only be the 2 of hearts.

Puzzle credit: Mathsisfun.com

Would you like to register for Math Games?

Are you looking to engage students in learning and fun through a variety of
skill-based math games?

At any one of our Math Games workshops, you will learn how to play the games,
when to use them, and for which particular students.
We offer grade band workshops: Early education/child care,
Elementary K-5, Middle School 6-8.

Click Here to Register Today!