My grade group often talks about how overwhelming it can be to attempt to cover all of the material in math especially this year with students having heightened anxiety levels and gaps in their mathematical background. As a grade group we are in the process of determining which topics are most important. We have also created a chart for tracking which competencies and topics we have covered, I have attached the chart to this post, we typically print it on 11×17 paper and I check off or colour in the box for the content and the competency. As a newer teacher I have only taught the current curriculum so have limited frame of reference to compare it to the old curriculum as a teacher.
Strengths
- Strategy based
- Core competencies connect across all strategies
- Big ideas spiral from year to year and build on each other
- Is deigned to build on the concepts from previous grades
- Lots of flexibility for teachers
- Easy to personalize for the needs of a group or class
- Encourages higher order thinking
- Has financial literacy at all levels k-12
Weaknesses
- There is a lot to cover
- Teachers want to do First People’s content but may lack authentic resources or training on applying them to math
- All competencies and big ideas are given equal weight, it is up to the teacher to prioritize essential understandings
- Performance standards are out of date and not connected to the current curriculum.
- Limited assessment guidance
- Students need more time to build fact fluency and
Benefits for teachers
- Flexibility in how we approach the curriculum
- Open to interpretation
- Able to choose resources that best fit our communities
- Room for creativity
- Open for cross curricular activites
Benefits for students
- Adaptable
- Flexible learning environments
- Students are part of the assessment process
- Student centered
- Encourages hands on activities and the use of manipulatives
- Play is encouraged in the competencies
- Focuses on mathematical thinking skills
- Spirals build confidence
Challenges for teachers
- Unclear what is most important in terms of big ideas and competencies
- Balancing the core competencies with the curricular competencies
- Parents want to see rote memorization
- Broad topics
- Resources don’t always match the curriculum
Challenges for students and students
- The overlap can get repetitive
- Some work better with a less is more approach
- Our current textbooks don’t match the curriculum
- My district uses Math Focus from 2010
- Parents have limited strategies and struggle to use alternative strategies
- Parents are frustrated with lack of rote memorization of facts
- Students need more time for fact fluency
