Math

AR AIMS May Newsletter

New- created on March 15, to help with school closures-

AR AIMS Math Digital Google Site

SUMMER PD WORKSHOPS

Summer 2020 AR AIMS Math Laying The Foundation (LTF) Training

AR AIMS Math Laying the Foundation workshops (sponsored by NMSI – The National Math and Science Initiative) give teachers the resources they need to raise expectations and develop advanced levels of thinking. Teachers will be provided with activities and instructional strategies that are developed by expert educators and will challenge all students as well as encourage them to be more confident and creative problem solvers.

In the summer of 2020, AR AIMS Math LTF training will be a blended workshop, consisting of virtual and face-to-face training over a 3 month period. Twenty Four total hours of professional development will be earned upon completion of the program.** During the week of July 13th – 18th, teachers will participate in virtual training over video conferencing and complete independent assignments to earn 8 hours of professional development.

During the months of August and September, teachers will work with their peers and the presenters to implement the LTF activities into their lessons, learn more about what activities are offered through LTF, and reflect on what is working in their classroom, earning the teachers 8 hours of professional development. Teachers will then meet for 8 hours at a face-to-face training that is scheduled tentatively for early October and will be held in Little Rock, AR. We are very excited about this new format! It will provide teachers the tools they need to implement LTF into their classrooms.

Tentative Schedule for the week of July 13th – 17th

  •  Friday, July 10th – Teachers will receive an email with information about logging into their LMS (Learning Management System) and their first assignment which will be due at 10am Tuesday,  July 14th.
  • Tuesday, July 14th – 1pm to 3pm – Virtual Meeting via Zoom (or another platform) 
  • Assignment will be given that is due at 5pm Wednesday, July 15th
  • Thursday, July 16th – 1pm to 4pm – Virtual Meeting Via Zoom or another platform

Information will be provided at the session about the requirements for the 8 hours of PD to be completed in August and September

AR AIMS LTF professional development meets the requirements for ADE’s PreAP Certification; ADE requires that teachers attend a sanctioned outlet to obtain PreAP Certification at least every 5 years.  

January 2020

  • The math consultants and director made 117 visits to the 39 active partner AR AIMS schools receiving math services. Consultants work with teachers to implement a rigorous curriculum in their classroom, model lessons, and observe teaching and give feedback. 
  • The AP Math Two-day workshop was attended by 51 math teachers from around the state and received very positive feedback. The two presenters are known throughout the US for their development of a strong curriculum and the participants gained materials to use in their classroom throughout the year. 96% of the teachers surveyed stated that this workshop was more beneficial than other workshops they’d attended.
  • The AR AIMS AP Math sites were reconstructed this year to include a more complete curriculum in both AP Statistics and AP Calculus. New activities, guided notes, exams, and other materials were added to the site, and it is being updated with new materials throughout the year.
  • The mock reading for AP Math and AP Science is scheduled for April 6, 2020, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Little Rock. College Board AP readers in both Calculus and Statistics will train teachers to understand how to score the AP math areas mock exams. 
  • LTF Math training will be available to Middle and High School teachers this summer at three summer training sessions. Also, the newly created curriculum “Bridging Algebra 1 and Physical Science” workshops will be available at various locations around the state. AR AIMS Algebra 1 and Physical Science Teams are working to vet the curriculum in their classroom and will lead our training this summer. 
  • Plans are in the works to develop an LTF-infused math curriculum designed to work with the Arkansas Math Standards in 6th grade through Pre-Calculus. Workshops and resources should be ready to offer in the summer of 2021.