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    Mathematics

    Mathematics at Seattle Public Schools

    Our goal is to equip each of our students with the ability and preparation to meet the mathematical demands presented by college and careers. We strive to support students as they carry their mathematical thinking and problem-solving into multiple learning situations.

    Resources

    The Seattle Public Schools Mathematics Scope and Sequence, designed by our math educators in 2015 and based on Washington's Mathematics K-12 Learning Standards, provides an overall learning map for teachers. Your child’s classroom teacher can provide more information on these grade-level learning goals.

    Elementary School
    Math in Focus was adopted as the SPS elementary textbook in 2014, and is based on the Singapore method.

    To log in to the online textbook:

    Username: studentsps
    Password: check with your school librarian

    Middle School
    SPS adopted enVisionmath2.0 for middle school in 2018. Students can access digital content for enVision through Pearson EasyBridge by using their SPS credentials through the Seattle Public Schools student portal.

    Families interested in accelerated math placement in middle school should refer to these documents:

    High School
    Since 2008, SPS uses math textbooks published by Kendall Hunt for Algebra 1 through Calculus.  Students can access online versions of the textbook with username and password information supplied by their teacher.  The textbook for AP Statistics is published by Pearson.   Because these textbooks were adopted prior to the 2011 adoption of the Washington State Learning Standards, not all content in the textbooks is aligned to standard.  Teachers have been provided supplemental resources to use with students in order to address all of the grade-level standards.

    Conceptual Understanding: Making sense of mathematics

    Students who understand a concept can:

    • identify examples and non-examples
    • describe concepts with words, symbols, drawings, tables or models
    • provide a definition of a concept
    • use the concept in different ways

    Expectations for conceptual understanding ask students to demonstrate, describe, represent, connect, and justify.

    Procedural Proficiency: Skills, facts, and procedures

    Students who demonstrate procedural proficiency can:

    • quickly recall basic facts (addition, multiplication, subtraction, and division)
    • use standard algorithms – step-by-step mathematical procedures – to produce a correct solution or answer (might also include multiple algorithms)
    • use generalized procedures (such as the steps involved in solving an algebraic equation)
    • demonstrate fluency with procedures:
      • perform the procedure immediately and accurately
      • know when to use a particular procedure in a problem or situation
      • use the procedure as a tool that can be applied reflexively, and doesn’t distract from the task at hand (procedure is stored in long-term memory)

    Problem-solving and Processes: reasoning and thinking to apply mathematical content

    Students must be able to:

    • reason
    • solve problems
    • communicate their understanding in effective ways
    • solve increasingly complex problems from grade to grade
    • use increasingly sophisticated language and symbols to communicate their understanding, from grade to grade