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District outlines K–8 shift to Eureka Squared and 'building thinking classrooms'
Summary
Curriculum staff demonstrated the district's multi‑year shift to Eureka Squared, OGAP training and 'building thinking classrooms' teaching practices; presenters emphasized coaching cycles and grade‑level progression from concrete tasks to algebraic reasoning.
Curriculum leaders presented a multi‑year plan for math instruction that the district says emphasizes conceptual understanding and consistent teacher practice across grades. Jen Bordis, the district's K–8 curriculum coordinator and instructional coach, and Sarah Farwell, a science and math specialist, described the phased rollout of Eureka Squared (the district's K–5 math program), OGAP training for fraction instruction, ongoing coaching cycles and a focus on research‑based instructional practices from the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM).
Presenters said the district moved from strict program fidelity during early adoption to broader instructional guidelines that emphasize NCTM practices and allow teacher professional judgment while maintaining vertical coherence. "The coolest thing ... is the fact that [the guidelines are] emphasizing NCTM ... put[ting] the focus on that instead of a program," Bordis said.
As an example, the presenters led an in‑room task that illustrated how students build area and multiplicative reasoning in elementary grades and how that conceptual base maps to algebraic expressions later in the sequence. Bordis led the exercise with audience volunteers, showing how breaking 24×22 into (20+4)(20+2) builds fluency and conceptual understanding that scaffolds to algebra.
Presenters also explained implementation structures: teacher committees at each grade level, professional development and coaching cycles (Bordis reported about 13 week‑long coaching cycles this year, most focused on building thinking classrooms) and an intention to monitor student outcomes using STAR and state SAS scores as part of MTSS monitoring.
Why it matters: Instructional continuity and professional learning can affect how well students master grade‑level standards. District leaders said the work is intended to increase equity and rigor by ensuring similar language and models across classrooms; administrators tied the instructional work to proposed staffing investments (specialist teacher‑leader roles) that would support implementation.
