Organizing the Math Block
New curriculum, small group instruction, and more
In September, our district adopted a new math curriculum - Illustrative Mathematics (IM). While the program has its pros, the heavy emphasis on problem-based, inquiry learning feels counterproductive at times.
Based on fall 2023 benchmark data, 8% of my students scored proficient in math while 65% scored below basic. This isn’t to say that my students can’t benefit from problem-based learning (they enjoy group work and engaging activities), but they could also benefit from explicit instruction and additional practice problems to achieve mastery.
The IM curriculum claims to be inclusive but many of my students are unable to complete work independently or in pairs because the content is inaccessible to struggling readers.
Despite the challenges listed above, Tier 1 lesson planning with IM is very easy. The curriculum is very engaging and students enjoy the collaboration and connections they make with their classmates. The program also came with manipulatives and resources to incorporate more opportunities for hands-on learning activities.
How I Plan My Math Block
To address some of IM’s shortcomings, I don’t follow the program’s four phases exactly as they are presented. I use teacher discretion to make changes to the lessons as necessary. If I need to incorporate a reteach or a mini-lesson before Activity 1, I will do that. If students are struggling to solve an Activity in their groups, I’ll address the entire class and work together.
Pre-Lesson:
Do Now [10 minutes]: Each day, students begin class with a Do Now. The Do Now is a spiral review of topics including place value concepts, addition/subtraction, multiplication, and more. Students have about 5 minutes to solve 2-3 problems and we review the answers together.
Math Instructional Block: Our math instructional block is 90 minutes long and incorporates 30 minutes for small-group instruction.
Warm-Up [5 minutes]: Each IM math lesson begins with a warm-up. My warm-ups are broken into four components: launch, think time, turn-and-talk, and share out. Since most of the problems are short, students have about 30 seconds of thinking time, 60 seconds to turn and talk with a neighbor, and then I record their answers on the board for the whole group discussion with the remaining time.
Activity 1 [15-20 minutes]: After the warm-up, we complete the first IM activity. This activity usually pushes students to solve problems using prior knowledge. We take about 5 minutes to launch the problem, 5-10 minutes of group work time, and 5 minutes to debrief. If a small percentage of students are struggling, I’ll pull them to my table to assist with solving the problem. If most students are struggling without making progress, we’ll regroup and solve together.
Break / Fluency Games [10 minutes]: We use online games like 99 Math or Blooket to practice fluency.
Activity 2 / Lesson Synthesis [15 minutes]: The second activity is where I introduce new concepts, procedures, and/or vocabulary. I use explicit instruction to teach new concepts and weave in guided practice using questions provided in the activity. If the lesson objective is out of reach using the IM Activity, I supplement or replace this portion of the lesson with other materials.
Cool Down [5 minutes]: Students complete the IM Cool Down to demonstrate an understanding of the day’s content. This is the graded portion of the lesson and serves as a formative assessment.
Small Group Instruction / Centers: This portion of the math block is 30 minutes. In a perfect world, I’m able to work with two groups for about 15 minutes each, but that isn’t always the case.
Small Group Instruction: Students receive explicit instruction on a skill or practice a procedure to address missed learning.
Independent Practice: While I’m working with the small group, the rest of the class completes independent practice via Khan Academy, practice problems, and/ or assignments on iReady.
Centers: Students play math games with manipulatives, cards, or Legos.
Conclusion
While my math block isn’t exactly structured as intended by IM, it works for my students. I’m able to utilize the district’s core curriculum materials while providing my students with the resources they need to accelerate and address missed learning.
Resources:
Illustrative Mathematics (IM): The IM curriculum is available free of charge to teachers. The materials are free to access via a Creative Commons license.
Khan Academy: This free resource provides students with videos and practice problems for the Common Core State Standards. Teachers can make a free classroom account for their students and track their progress throughout the year.