Students in grades K-5 receive math instruction through the workshop model. As with reading and writing, students learn by doing and the workshop model provides this opportunity during the application section. The structure of the math workshop includes the following components: opening, mini-lesson, application time, and reflection/share time. During the application time, students are involved in individual, small group, and partner activities including problem solving, guided math groups, computer work, math games, math fact practice, skills practice, and communicating about math. This part of the math workshop gives students the opportunity to be actively engaged in a variety of activities where they can see math come alive.

In the School District of Waukesha, mathematics instruction is centered around the following strands: counting, place value, operations (addition, subtraction, multiplication, division), computational fluency, algebra (solving problems, multiplicative comparison, patterns), fractions, geometry, data, time, money, and measurement. Students in grades K-2 focus on a deep understanding of whole numbers: relationships, place value, and addition and subtraction, as well as working with shapes and measurement. Students in grades 3-5 develop an in-depth understanding of fractions and how to add and subtract fractions, as well as developing an understanding and fluency with multiplication and division.

Computational fluency means that students will need to know their basic math facts. Learning the basic math facts will always be important for students – just as it was for you when you were in school. Students need to know their facts if they are to compute accurately. The key difference in the way students are learning facts in school today is through the use of strategies rather than rote memorization. For example, students will learn the strategies of counting on, doubling, making ten, etc. for addition of basic facts, and then will be able to apply the strategies to larger numbers.

Help your child by finding time each night to practice math. Experts in the field of mathematics recommend that practice sessions should be short, about 5 to 10 minutes at a time. There are several ways to incorporate math into your nightly routine. It could be by playing a variety of games, discussing strategies, or even using flashcards at times. To find ideas to help your child learn math and their basic facts, check out the section on Learning Facts at Home in the Parent Help Site.

In addition to the strands mentioned above, the students in the School District of Waukesha are involved with the math practices that are embedded into daily math experiences. The math practices involve students:

1. Making sense of problems and persevere in solving them

2. Reasoning through problems

3. Constructing viable arguments and critiquing the reasoning of others

4. Modeling with mathematics

5. Using appropriate tools strategically

6. Attending to precision

7. Looking for and making use of structure

8. Looking for and expressing regularity in repeated reasoning

If you have specific questions related to mathematics, please contact your child’s teacher or the Instructional Coach in your building. You can also visit our Math Family Help Site (https://bit.ly/SDWmathhelp). Unit Letters will be sent home by teachers for the upcoming unit and can also be found on the SDW Parent Math Help Site.