The Math Learning Center Blog

Now more than ever, families are looking for ways to support their students’ mathematics education. They may not know where to start—the Bridges in Mathematics approach might appear a bit different from the way they were taught math. How can Bridges educators offer families a chance to see what a Bridges classroom looks like? How can they offer ideas and options for fostering their students’ math...

The start of a new school year is the perfect time for teachers to get to know their students as mathematicians. Exploring students' math identities means paying attention to their beliefs about what it means to be “good at math” and their perceptions of their own ability to do mathematics. We want to share some of the possibilities within the Bridges curriculum that will help teachers know their...

In this series of blog posts, we highlight educators in the field who are using remote learning resources intentionally to build classroom community, collaboration, and student sense-making. With the shift in 2020–21 to hybrid and remote environments, collecting authentic formative and summative assessment data presents a challenge. NCTM describes the role assessments play for student learning in...

In this series of blog posts, we highlight educators in the field who are using remote learning resources intentionally to build classroom community, collaboration, and student sense-making. This year, Bridges educators are adapting instruction to unique situations and varied circumstances. While some Bridges educators are teaching in person (with safety protocols in place) or 100% remotely, many...

In a remote environment, how can Bridges educators provide appropriate scaffolds and be responsive to student thinking? Sharing MLC apps with students can be a powerful approach, particularly when working with students in an asynchronous setting. What does it mean to share with an MLC app? Put simply, Bridges educators can build a “saved state” task that they share with their students by way of an...

Bridges students learn more than one way to solve multi-digit multiplication expressions. This enables them to select the strategy that is most efficient for any given problem. In addition to the standard algorithm that many of us were taught, fifth graders also investigate: Area model & four partial products Doubling & halving Ratio table Using quarters Over strategy While my students use the new...

The Number Pieces app is an excellent tool for teaching and learning place value. Here are a few activities that you can use with kids in grades 1–2. These activities explore base ten concepts and models within 1,000 that will help lay the foundation for learning double-digit computation. Activity 1: Ask the child to show a certain number using the base ten pieces. For example, 3 tens, 7 ones, and...

"Assessment should be more than merely a test at the end of instruction to see how students perform under special conditions; rather it should be an integral part of instruction that informs and guides teachers as they make instructional decisions." – NCTM Although the role of assessment has become a complex and sometimes charged topic, the daily reality of assessment in the classroom remains both...

The new and improved Free Products page in our online catalog features a fresh look, new category descriptions, and additional products. The newly created Lessons & Activities categories contain over 150 individual Bridges supplement sets as well as grade level correlations to the Common Core State Standards. These teacher materials and worksheets that can be used with any curriculum. In addition...

MLC’s online catalog now features complete sections for Bridges and Number Corner Second Edition including pages for all grade-level products K-5. “We are gratified by educators’ enthusiasm for the Second Edition”, said Rick Ludeman, MLC president. He added,“The new product pages allow us to share more details about the extensive set of classroom materials that come with each classroom package.” A...