An example of an Everyday Math worksheet in 4th grade
This is the homework sheet that was handed out at the Radnor Township School Board Meeting, and so far I haven't heard that anyone on the board came up with an answer. But, it's only been 36 hours, so maybe they're still working on it :)
I realize the homework is do-able. My concern with this type of work from Everyday Math is that the material isn't taught, the children are left to "discover" the answer. And if they don't "get it" Everyday Math assures you that they will see it again as the curriculum spirals back. Fractions, money and time are handled in the same way.
In my experience this leaves children feeling very frustrated and their confidence plummets. I would rather teach my child the steps, have them practice, then have them do it.
We need to give students the tools they need to succeed, provide them with the building blocks they need to get to the next level. Providing a calculator, is not the answer, unless the students are using Everyday Math. The Everyday Math, elementary school, teacher handbook states the following:
"Mastery of the intricacies of the algorithms is a huge endeavor, one that experience tells us is doomed to failure for many students. It is simply counter-productive to invest many hours of precious class time on such algorithms. The mathematical payout is not worth the cost, particularly because quotients can be found quickly and accurately with a calculator."
Is that really what we want for our children? Or should we provide them with a strong coherent curriculum, teach them to mastery, and instill confidence in them? Doing this would help to build them up as competent learners and as successful do-ers, in my opinion.
(Sorry about the image quality, didn't realize it was going to go viral ;)
The National Math Panel Report
Recommendation # 1
Recommendation # 1
The curriculum for grades K-8 should be streamlined. It should follow a coherent progression with emphasis on mastery of key topics, there should be a focus on the critical foundations for algebra, and any approach that continually revisits topics without closure should be avoided.
