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End Date:
06/02/2013

With Baychester Middle School’s iMath program, our math scholars will practice crucial core concepts in an interactive, positive way. Scholars will use iPad math applications to practice problems and concepts they might be struggling with, make real-world connections to what they are learning in class, take the risks necessary to master the content, and learn critical thinking and problem solving skills. Our goal is to help students grasp crucial math concepts that will help them to succeed in future educational endeavors and beyond.

Our mission at Baychester Middle School, a Title I school in Bronx, NY, is to provide our scholars with an education that will prepare them to succeed in high school and college. But, when many of our scholars entered the sixth grade last year, they came in underperforming for their grade level and lacked the foundational skills necessary for success in sixth grade math. Through innovative math approaches, such as math gallery walks (where problems were displayed around the room and scholars would have a certain amount of time to solve them) and math study cafes (where students where paired with a partner to help them with problems that they may have been struggling with), plus three hours a day in math (including class, intervention blocks, math club, and lunch time help), we were able to raise scholars’ scores on the NY State Exam from levels 1 and 2 to levels 3 and 4. With the increase in scores, 65% of our students performed at or above grade level by the end of the year. They entered 7th grade this year with more confidence, better problem solving skills, and a love for math that was not previously evident.

This year, our current sixth grade class entered with some of the same characteristics as last year’s, and so far, it has been a bigger challenge this year with larger classroom sizes and limited resources. So, we want to provide a newer, innovative approach to math learning.

During class and math club, and after we provide instruction on a topic or concept, students will work in small groups and one-on-one with teachers with the iPads and online math programs to practice the skills and concepts that were taught. This way, students that have mastered the concept can assist students who need more help, and struggling students can receive more one-on-one attention. Students can work at their own pace and receive hints on problems they need help with, or explanations on how to do the problem for ones they missed. Students will follow up weekly with their peers and teachers on their progress, and parents will be given a weekly progress reports so they can provide additional support at home.

Our goals are:
To get students to master and retain math skills
To help scholars become confident with math material
To make them aware of their strengths and weaknesses and give them explicit pathways towards growth, so they can make choices about their learning
To instruct scholars on how to use technology resourcefully and responsibly, as well as provide early exposure to technology they will use in the future
To improve grades and skill levels of our scholars.

As a teacher, I want to provide my scholars with the best classroom environment possible. My scholars live in an urban community, where money and resources are hard to come by. Regardless, our scholars are hard workers. Those that have entered last year performing below grade level in math have proven that hard work can pay off with determination and perseverance.

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