Venber Middle School team recommends I-Ready for middle-school math after multivendor review

Venber Middle School staff and the district curriculum team presented their recommendation to adopt I-Ready as the middle-school math curriculum after a months-long vendor review and teacher evaluation process.

Associate Principal Alison, who led part of the vendor review, told the board the committee evaluated six math programs and used an evaluation tool focused on conceptual understanding, application and fluency. "We used the tool to look at what teachers and students would experience," Alison said, adding that teachers ranked I-Ready as their top choice and Eureka Math second.

The committee said it took place over the fall and winter and included classroom teachers, special-education and intervention staff, instructional coaches and administrators. Principal Alan Hartley and curriculum director Jamie Olsen described hands-on vendor presentations and small-group evaluations that identified strengths and "stretches" (potential barriers) for each package. Highlights the team cited for I-Ready included built-in real-world connections, parent letters tied to each unit and guided student note-taking in workbooks that align with slide-based lessons.

Teachers told the board they valued a mix of workbook-based direct instruction and online components that provide immediate feedback. One instructional coach said the program's materials included pacing guides, exit tickets and fluency supplements that can support remediation and extension. "The units have letters for home that explain the math content," a presenter said, describing how family materials could help caregivers follow classroom work.

Board members asked about sequencing (noting a local priority to cover equations earlier in the seventh-grade year), the balance of screen time versus paper workbooks, and transition to high school. The presenters said the curriculum provides pacing, assessments and supports for students who need remediation and that the district is coordinating with the high school's platform choices to ensure a smooth transition to ninth grade.

Next steps the team outlined include full access to online materials before summer, an inservice day and professional development on April 2, and a first-year implementation plan with ongoing coaching. The board did not take a final vote on adoption at this meeting; the presentation was listed as an information/action item and will return for any formal adoption step required by district procurement and policy.

The presentation also included short demonstrations and remarks from students about extracurricular successes, which staff said helped illustrate the district's broader academic and extracurricular work.