4th Grade - Gateway 1
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Focus & Coherence
Gateway 1 - Meets Expectations | 92% |
|---|---|
Criterion 1.1: Focus | 2 / 2 |
Criterion 1.2: Coherence | 4 / 4 |
Criterion 1.3: Coherence | 7 / 8 |
Students and teachers using the materials as designed will devote a majority of time in Grade 4 on the major work of the grade. The materials are mostly coherent and consistent with the standards. Assessments only represent grade-level work. Seven percent of the lessons are on future grade-level content and are not clearly identified. At least 64% of the time is spent on the major work of the grade. Overall, the materials do provide a focus on the major work and the materials are coherent.
Criterion 1.1: Focus
The Grade 4 My Math instructional materials assess topics from future grade levels, but an online test generator is available, so points were not deducted. The form assessments are featured in the digital companion. Six assessment forms exist for each chapter and an online test generator is available.
Indicator 1a
The Grade 4 My Math instructional materials assess future grade-level content on form assessments, however an online test generator is included in the materials for teachers to create their own assessments. With the inclusion of the digital test generator the Grade 4 My Math materials would not assess future grade level content if teachers created their own assessments.
- A test generator is included with the digital companion and teachers can build their own assessment, which would not assess future grade level material.
- The online assessments contain six form assessments per chapter.
- The assessment for chapter 12, on forms 2A and 2B, question 15 and forms 3A and 3B, question 16, assess combinations which is a Grade 7 expectation.
- All assessment forms and several questions in chapter 6 assess students using procedures for division, and at this level conceptual understanding should be emphasized.
- Assessment forms in chapter 7 have 5 questions using parenthesis, a Grade 5 expectation and 3 questions using equations at the Grade 6 level.
- Four benchmark tests are available online. Benchmark 1 (chapters 1-3), Benchmark 2 (chapters 4-6), Benchmark 3 (chapters 7-10), and Benchmark 4 (chapters 11-14).
Criterion 1.2: Coherence
Students and teachers using the materials as designed devote the large majority of class time in each grade K-8 to the major work of the grade.
Students and teachers using the materials as designed would devote the large majority of class time to the major work of the grade. Time spent on the major work was figured using days, lessons and chapters. At least 64% of the time is spent on the major work of the grade.
Indicator 1b
Instructional material spends the majority of class time on the major cluster of each grade.
The Grade 4 instructional materials spend the majority of time on the major clusters of the grade. Grade 4 material for My Math is taught in 14 chapters scheduled to be taught in 160 days.
- Each chapter provides two days for review and assessment, which are included in the 160-day count.
- In the materials, 105 out of 160 days, or approximately 66%, are focused on the major work of the grade level.
- Nine of the 14 or about 64% of the time is spent on the major work of the grade.
- Three chapters (7, 11 and 12) or about 21% of the time is spent on supporting work, which is truly supporting the major work of the grade. This brings the time spent on the major work to closer to 85% of the time.
- Two chapters (13 and 14) of the 14 chapters, or about 14% of the time, is supporting work, which is treated separately.
Criterion 1.3: Coherence
Coherence: Each grade's instructional materials are coherent and consistent with the Standards.
The instructional materials are mostly coherent and consistent with the standards. Seven lessons from future grade level content are present and are not clearly identified as such. The materials represent a year of viable content. Teachers using the materials would give their students extensive work in grade level problems, with 93% of the lessons representing grade-level work. Materials describe how the lessons connect with the grade-level standards and with prior and future standards. Overall coherence and consistency of the standards is achieved in Grade 4 My Math.
Indicator 1c
Supporting content enhances focus and coherence simultaneously by engaging students in the major work of the grade.
Supporting content for Grade 4 My Math enhances focus and content by engaging students in the major work of the grade. Overall, the instructional materials do not miss opportunities to connect non-major clusters of standards to major clusters, and as a result, the supporting content does engage students in the major work of Grade 4.
- In Chapter 7, students must use operations (4.OA.A) to complete patterns (4.OA.C).
- In Chapter 11, lessons 2, 4, 6, 7, 9, 10 and 11 support the major work by using fractions and the four operations to solve problems.
- In chapter 12, lessons 4-6 are supporting the major work by using the four operations to solve problems.
- In chapter 13, lessons 2, 4 and 5 are using the four operations to solve problems.
Indicator 1d
The amount of content designated for one grade level is viable for one school year in order to foster coherence between grades.
The amount of content designated for Grade 4 My Math is viable for one school year. Overall, the amount of time needed to complete the lessons is appropriate for a school year of approximately 170-190 days.
- The materials are written for 160 days of a school year.
- Each chapter also has remediation and enrichment activities available plus chapter projects.
- The major work of the grade is the focus for 115 of the days.
Indicator 1e
Materials are consistent with the progressions in the Standards i. Materials develop according to the grade-by-grade progressions in the Standards. If there is content from prior or future grades, that content is clearly identified and related to grade-level work ii. Materials give all students extensive work with grade-level problems iii. Materials relate grade level concepts explicitly to prior knowledge from earlier grades.
Grade 4 My Math materials are partially consistent with the progressions in the standards. Future grade level content is not clearly identified. There are extensive grade-level problems and concepts are explicitly related to prior knowledge.
Materials mostly develop according to the grade-by-grade progressions in the standards.
- There are eight lessons, which deal with future grade-level content and those are not identified as off grade-level work.
- The content in chapter 6, lessons 5, 6, 7, 9 and 10, use the division procedures, but at this level conceptual understanding should be emphasized.
- The content in chapter 7, lessons 7, 8 and 9, are expressions at the Grade 6 level.
- Each chapter has a section at the beginning called "What's the Math in this Chapter?" On these pages, the progression from grade to grade is shown.
- In each chapter there is also a spot for coherence, which lists what happened before, now and next in the standards. An example of this can be found in chapter 6, lesson 1 on page 329A.
Materials give students extensive work with grade-level standards.
- The chapters in this book contain a check my progress section to make sure students are ready to move on.
- Only one lesson (lesson 7, chapter 2) exists on subtracting across zeros, which may not be enough for this concept.
- Differentiated instruction activities are available in the teacher edition for students who are approaching level, on level and above level.
- Grade level practice is evident in the "Practice the Strategy," "Apply the Strategy," and "Review the Strategy" within each lesson.
- There are 119 lessons over 160 days.
- Of these, 111 or 93% of lessons provide work with grade-level problems.
- The content in chapter 6, lessons 5, 6, 7, 9 and 10, use procedures for division, but at this level conceptual understanding should be emphasized.
- The content in chapter 7, lessons 8 and 9, are expressions at the Grade 6 level.
Materials relate grade level concepts explicitly to prior knowledge from earlier grades.
- The "Am I Ready?" section at the start of each chapter is focused on knowledge that is truly prior knowledge either from prior grade work or from previous work in grade 4. All prior knowledge is grade appropriate.
- The materials relate grade level concepts explicitly to prior knowledge from earlier grades.
- In the teacher guide, each chapter contains a section called "Where's the Math in this Chapter?" with information on what students should already know prior to entering Grade 4. Also, each lesson in the chapter has a clearly identified section on coherence which states previous standards needed.
- Each chapter begins with a readiness quiz. This quiz can be taken in the student edition under "Am I Ready?" or online.
- Each lesson begins with a review problem of the day to review prior knowledge. For example, in chapter 4, page 197B contains the "review problem of the day."
Indicator 1f
Materials foster coherence through connections at a single grade, where appropriate and required by the Standards i. Materials include learning objectives that are visibly shaped by CCSSM cluster headings. ii. Materials include problems and activities that serve to connect two or more clusters in a domain, or two or more domains in a grade, in cases where these connections are natural and important.
Grade 4 materials foster coherence through connections at a single grade level. Overall, the materials do include learning objectives that are visibly shaped by the CCSSM cluster headings, and the materials connect two or more clusters in a domain or two or more domains in a grade when appropriate.
Materials include learning objectives visibly shaped by CCSSM cluster headings.
- Each standard is taught in the sequence that the CCSSM is written.
- In the chapter overview of the teacher edition, each lesson is identified as major, supporting, or additional work. Also, the learning objective is listed below.
- For example, chapter 4 focuses on major work of 4.NBT.A and 4.NBT.B. Lesson 2 has students estimating products by rounding and lesson 5 has students multiplying by a two-digit number.
- Each lesson identifies the domain, cluster, objective, and any additional objectives that are addressed in the lesson.
Materials include problems and activities that serve to connect two or more clusters in a domain or two or more domains in a grade.
- The content in chapters 2, 3, 5 and 6 connect 4.OA and 4.NBT.
- The content in chapter 7 incorporates both 4.OA and 4.G.
- The content in chapter 8 uses 4.NF and 4.NBT standards.
- The content in chapter 14 combines 4.MD and 4.G.
- The content in lesson 2 in chapter 9 connects 4.NF.B.3 with 4.NBT, 4.NF.B.3.A and 4.NF.D.3.D.
- The content in lesson 3 in chapter 14 connects 4.MD.C.5.A with 4.G.A.1.