Course Description:
A sixth-grade math teacher helps two students during a lesson about math and music.
We can’t teach what we don’t understand. Early math is not often emphasized in teacher preparation programs. As a result, pre-service and in-service teachers alike often lack deep content knowledge in elementary mathematics. Only once educators have the content understanding themselves can they begin to facilitate meaningful learning in elementary mathematics classrooms.
Research has shown for over a decade that student success in early mathematics predicts later success in both math AND language arts. When students do not have positive and powerful mathematics experiences in elementary school, they often develop math anxiety and a lack of confidence in their own mathematical ability. These negative effects can impact students’ futures in a huge way. It is time to shift from a “reading only” early intervention strategy to one that prioritizes mathematical thinking and reasoning.
Math That Matters: Essential Understandings for Developing Numerical Fluency in Elementary School is an asynchronous course designed to build teacher capacity and content knowledge on the most foundational understandings in elementary mathematics. In the course, learners will have the opportunity to explore and learn the essential understandings through readings, interactive video lessons, and reflections.
