Moses Lake considers new math curriculum
Chrystal Doucette/Columbia Basin HeraldMoses Lake School District board members Alan Burritt and Lew Mason listen to a presentation on a proposed math curriculum adoption for kindergarten through fifth grade.
MOSES LAKE - The Moses Lake School District is considering a new math curriculum for children in kindergarten through fifth grade.
The curriculum recommended by the district's math adoption team is called Growing with Mathematics. A second set of materials recommended by the team is a calendar board called Number Corner.
District board members will vote on whether to approve the curriculum May 9.
The initial cost of purchasing the Growing with Mathematics curriculum is $380,000, said Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction Michelle Price. Workbooks would need to be replaced each year, Price said. Number Corner carries an additional cost.
Price did not know yet the total cost of implementing the program, but said she would make sure the budget request covered the life span of the adoption.
If approved, the curriculum would be used when classes start in fall, Price said.
North Elementary School math specialist Chris Kalmbach said Growing with Mathematics was the preferred choice out of five programs. Each curriculum was examined to determine which aligned best with state standards, Kalmbach said.
Two programs came out on top: Growing with Mathematics, and Bridges.
Longview Elementary School teacher Sue Mather said teachers were given the opportunity to look over the curriculum options and talk with colleagues about them.
"It was overwhelming that the teachers had a preference for the Growing with Mathematics," said Discover Elementary School teacher Ronda Fuller. "Of the 126 responses we received, 115 of the teachers said that they would like to adopt the Growing With Mathematics, as opposed to only 11 who had a preference for the Bridges."
She noted no program is perfect, and teachers recognized a need for a calendar component to their curriculum.
"As K-5 programs, both of these really cover the grade level expectations well and that the mathematics is quality mathematics that we want our students to learn," Kalmbach said. "Some of the strengths of the Growing with Mathematics program, though, however, one of the big things is just the organization of the teacher's materials. It was easy to follow, it was easy to identify the things that you needed to find. There was also a strong focus on problem solving."