The Math Learning Center Blog

At the Math Learning Center, we believe that all students can make sense of mathematics. Some students just need more time, more opportunities, and more support than others. Our approach emphasizes problem solving, the use of faithful visual models, and a focus on developing fluency. In March 2021, the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) and the What Works Clearinghouse released a new version of...

The year is coming to an end. Soon your classroom will be quiet. No more pencils, no more books, no more finger counting, no more area models, no more calendar grid markers, no more pattern blocks and geoboard bands and base ten pieces littering the floor. As Sam Keen said, “Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability.” You’ve earned all the relaxation you can get this summer; enjoy it...

At The Math Learning Center, we are committed to supporting elementary mathematics education that builds on the strengths of all students and teachers. We are always seeking to improve our curriculum and professional learning materials to reflect the most current research on equitable and effective teaching and learning. Recently, we’ve focused our efforts on revising Bridges Intervention to align...

It’s spring! The sun is shining, plants are growing, and frogs and bugs abound. At The Math Learning Center, we’ve created some fun activities with springtime themes to help get your math blooming! Like February’s popular Share the Math Love celebration, each of the following activities includes the Share Your Work feature. You can send students a link or code to access the activity, and students...

The 100th day of school is nigh! This point in the school year is significant for its place value importance, but it also indicates that the school year is more than half over. It is an exciting milestone for children, sometimes a relief for teachers, and a reason to celebrate for all. At MLC, the past few months have given us our own reason to celebrate the growing popularity of our free math...

The hundreds chart is an amazing tool for counting, skip counting, adding, subtracting, multiplying, exploring patterns, investigating place value, problem solving, and more. The standard hundreds chart – with 10 rows of 10 and starting with 1 in the upper left corner – has been used in elementary classrooms for decades to allow for these very opportunities. In more recent years, charts of...

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...

Meet Fawn Nguyen What grades do you teach and/or what is your title/role? My current role is Math TOSA (teacher on special assignment) for a K–8 school district. I support math teachers and their students. What school, district or institution do you work for? Location? Rio School District, Oxnard, CA What motivates you? My own three children and my students motivate me. They are young people whom...

Meet Shelley Whittaker Elementary Educator at Frank W. Begley Public School in Windsor, Ontario What inspired you to become an educator? First and foremost, my love of kids inspired me to become an educator. Also, I credit two all-star educators in high school—Nancy Lilliman and Rick McInnis literally saved my life. And based on the impact they had on my livelihood, I realized the incredible role...

As teachers, we strive to develop classrooms full of competent, confident mathematicians, and we know the vital role families have in supporting that work. But families, in turn, may also need support. The Math Learning Center’s Mathematical Practice Cards for Families can help. The Mathematical Practice Cards are a simple set of four two-sided cards based on the Math Practice Standards and...