Seventh-grade teacher awarded challenge grant to pilot small-group math program at Bessie Allen Middle School

Royal Smit, a seventh-grade math teacher at Bessie Allen Middle School in North Fond du Lac, said he received a Wisconsin Retired Teachers Association challenge award and will use it to pilot a small-group math program and buy larger whiteboards for his classroom.

"What we've learned just like any other school in the state and around the nation, math scores have been going down," Smit said, describing the motivation for his proposal. He said the program — which he called "Level up learning" and said he is developing with CESA 6 — will place students in small groups to work on more challenging problems, share strategies and communicate solutions.

Smit described the classroom changes he plans to make to support the approach. "Students that have been able to use the side small boards feel like there's not enough space at times to be able to do the work, and then you can see the difference with the groups with the big boards," he said. He told the meeting that permanent whiteboards will give groups the workspace and tools necessary to collaborate and attempt more demanding problems.

Smit said the award will help him acquire the materials and make the classroom adjustments. He thanked the Wisconsin Retired Teachers Association for the challenge award and said the pilot is scheduled to begin next school year. He said he is working with CESA 6 (a regional cooperative educational service agency) on the curriculum and implementation.

There was no formal motion or vote associated with the remarks; Smit spoke during the public comment portion of the meeting and outlined his classroom plan and how he intends to use the award to support collaborative, higher-level math instruction.