3rd Grade - Gateway 2

The instructional materials for My Math Florida Grade 3 meet expectations that the materials develop conceptual understanding of key mathematical concepts, especially where called for in specific standards or cluster headings.

Examples where materials develop conceptual understanding of key mathematical concepts, especially where called for in specific content standards or cluster headings include, but are not limited to:

• The content in Chapters 1-3 and 9 and 10 specifically and fully address standards which are explicitly outlined as conceptual standards. (3.NBT.1, 3.NF.1 and 3.OA.2)
• The content in Chapter 6, Lesson 8 focuses on 3.NBT.1, which is a conceptual understanding standard.
• All lessons in the series have a section "Investigate the Math" which targets conceptual understanding. This is contained in the online lesson presentation. For example, page 697B, Teacher Edition.
• All lessons in the series have a section called "Talk Math" which targets conceptual understanding. This is contained in the online lesson presentation. For example, see page 16, Teacher Edition and Student Edition.
• In the Student Edition, the majority of lessons begin with an "Explore and Explain" section which targets conceptual understanding. For example, see page 779, Teacher Edition and Student Edition.
• The majority of the homework contains problems that provide students the opportunity to view and to demonstrate their conceptual understanding. For example, pages 93-94, Teacher Edition and Student Edition.

Examples where Brain Builders enhance conceptual understanding include but are not limited to:

• Chapter 2, Lesson 2, Brain Builders, Item 8 states, “Steve colors the following sums on an addition table. Describe the pattern. If he continues the pattern, will the numbers continue to be even? Explain.” Students develop conceptual understanding by using the patterns on the addition table to reason about sums.
• Chapter 4, Lesson 2, Brain Builders, Item 13 provides a picture of five packages of 6 eggs each and students write a correlating real-world problem. Students use the picture to contextualize the problem helping them build conceptual understanding of multiplication.
• Chapter 7, Lesson 1, Brain Builders, Item 16, students are shown part of a multiplication table and asked to color the row of products of 3s and then describe the pattern they see. Students are developing conceptual understanding of products by using patterns on the multiplication table.
• Chapter 12, Lesson 4, Brain Builders, Item 5, students create a scaled picture graph. Next, in Item 6, students explain how the graph would change if the scale changed to a value of 2. Students develop conceptual understanding of graphing and multiplication.

The instructional materials for My Math Florida Grade 3 meet expectations that the materials are designed so that teachers and students spend sufficient time working with engaging applications of the mathematics. Engaging applications include single and multi-step problems, routine and non-routine, presented in a context in which the mathematics is applied.

• The Teacher Edition states "Math in my World," "HOT (Higher Order Thinking) Problems," and "Real-World problem solving readers" address application.
• While "Real-World Problem Solving Readers" are available to provide additional problems, they were not reviewed by EdReports.org. They are not included in the basic package with the Student and Teacher Editions, and were therefore considered supplementary.
• Beginning in Grade 3, the majority of lessons begin with "Math in my World" which uses real-world problems to introduce concepts. For example, see Chapter 3, Lesson 2, page 139.
• Some "HOT Problems" address application (for example, pages 32, 38, and 370, Teacher Edition and Student Edition). However, some do not (for example, pages 64 and 367, Teacher Edition and Student Edition).
• Real-world problems are found in the majority of lessons and homework assignments.
• Countdown to FSA provides performance tasks requiring application of the standards

Examples where Brain Builders and Performance Events provide opportunities for students to independently demonstrate the use of mathematics flexibly in a variety of contexts include, but are not limited to:

• Chapter 1, Performance Event, each of the five parts relate to a game Sara and De’Quan are playing. Part C: “Find each player’s total score when they do not round after each turn and when they do round after each turn. Does rounding the scores to the nearest ten after each turn change the outcome of the game? Explain.”
• Chapter 6, Lesson 1, Brain Builders, Item 5, “Mason has 1 notebook for science and 1 notebook for reading. He put 9 stickers on each notebook. How many stickers did Mason use in all? Write two multiplication sentences.”
• Chapter 9, Lesson 4, Brain Builders, Item 20, “A clerk unpacked 2 boxes of nails. Each box held 4 cartons with 10 packages of nails. To find the number of packages of nails, one clerk multiplied (2 x 4) x 10. Another multiplied 2 x (4 x 10). Who is correct? Explain.”
• Chapter 13, Performance Event, each of the 5 parts relate to Apples (a pony) and his new home. Part B: “Apples needs her very own pasture, where she can eat grass all day. The table shows some possible dimensions for Apples’s pasture. Find the perimeter and area of each pasture.” A table is provided for four different pastures. This activity engages students in the application of mathematics.

The instructional materials for My Math Florida Grade 3 meet the expectations that the three aspects of rigor are not always treated together and are not always treated separately. There is a balance of the three aspects of rigor within the materials.

At the beginning of each lesson a "Rigor" section exists, identifying levels of complexity by problem or exercise number. For example, Chapter 1, Lesson 5 has two problems for conceptual learning (understand concepts), 16 problems for fluency/procedural skill (apply concepts), and five problems for application (extend concepts).

The instructional materials for My Math Florida Grade 3 meet expectations that the Standards for Mathematical Practice (MPs) are identified and used to enrich mathematics content within and throughout Grade 3. Overall, the instructional materials do not over-identify or under-identify the MPs, and the MPs are used within and throughout the grade.

• The Teacher Edition, pages T22-T24 state the MPs and their corresponding pages.
• The practices are identified throughout all 110 lessons. Each lesson focuses on three to four practices.
• The Student Edition does indicate which MPs with which the student is working in the lesson and in the homework.

The instructional materials reviewed for My Math Florida Grade 3 meet expectations that the materials explicitly attend to the specialized language of mathematics. Overall, the materials for both students and teachers have multiple ways for students to engage with the vocabulary of mathematics that are consistently present throughout the materials.

• The special language of mathematics is a strength of the series.
• Individual vocabulary cards are found at the beginning of each chapter in the Student Edition.
• Vocabulary checks are included in some homework assignments. For example, Chapter 1, Lesson 1, page 14.
• Vocabulary assessments can be created online.
• Virtual word walls are available online.
• "Match the Pairs" is an interactive vocabulary component.
• "Check my Progress" assesses vocabulary.
• Each chapter begins with a foldable which supports vocabulary development.
• "My Math Words" is at the beginning of some chapters. For example, Chapter 4, page 186.
• The Teacher, Student and online editions contain extensive glossaries in English and Spanish.
• Lessons contain mathematical terminology.