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Go Math programs first year in Anchorage School District
ANCHORAGE, Ak-- It's been about year sience the new Go Math program when into effect in the Anchorage School Distrcit for grades K through Sixth. And Seven through Eight. So far, the changes seems to be a positive one.
"When you're studying geometry you're not trying to figure out why your kid is studying multiplication at the same time, and so I really like it because it's easy for the parents to access it as well as the students," Heather Helgeson, 4th grade teacher, Collegegate Elementary.
"I think our students are adapting quite nicely, what we've been hearing from our teachers is they've been really surprised by how well students are doing and how much they have been understanding the material," Bobbie Jo Erb, Executive Director Curriculum and Instruction, ASD.
As any new progra, it did take some getting use to.
"We're all in the process of adapting in the beginning of the year they were like we like
Every Day Math and now they're like I like Go Math, I understand Go Math," Helgeson.
For teachers, adapting lesson plans to the new program makes their classroom into a more hands on environment.
"We're doing a lot more interactive piece, my students are working in interactive math notebookswhere they are taking notes in a notebook that they are taking responsibility for," Helgeson.
And for parents the homework is a lot more of what they learned in the past, but also concepts that can be used in the real world.
"Some times parents get homework that comes home and they're not quite certain how to do the problem, but they've been working with their children's teachers and really putting forth the effort of understanding what's going on," Erb.
The new curriculum provides clearer expectation and a higher standard.
"Because it teaches them the more traditional way of doing a problem, but it also teaches them other strategies and it really solidifies their understanding by teaching them the concept behind it
Go Math is one of the few lessons that's made to go with the common core standards that the Anchorage School District has adopted.