One plus one will always equal two, but the way that children learn to add, subtract, multiply and divide has evolved over the years. Massapequa’s elementary math coaches support instruction in this important content area, which begins with basic number skills in kindergarten and advances to more complicated concepts by fifth grade.
Lisa McKillop and Natalie Rakamaric support scores of teachers at the six elementary schools. Their direct work with the faculty improves instruction for students. Ms. McKillop works at Birch Lane, Fairfield and McKenna elementary schools, and Ms. Rakamaric is at East Lake, Lockhart and Unqua schools.
The work of the math coaches stretches beyond the grade-level teachers as they also support special education teachers, kindergarten support specialists, math specialists and teaching assistants.
Ms. McKillop and Ms. Rakamaric offer professional development training sessions to new teachers in the district and experienced teachers who are new to a grade level. They share strategies for math instruction and show teachers how to use different resources effectively. These sessions, held at McKenna’s Teacher Learning Center, bring together teachers from multiple buildings.
The coaches also work with grade-level teams at each building in professional development periods, typically before a new unit starts. These before-school sessions are conversations facilitated by Ms. McKillop and Ms. Rakamaric, with the purpose of having teachers share best practices with each other. They have recently hosted Staff Development sessions on fractions, number sense and rounding numbers.
“The goal is getting teachers together to collaborate and share best practices,” Ms. Rakamaric said.
During classroom visits, the coaches will work directly with students to model teaching strategies and showcase small-group activities. They demonstrate the use of concrete manipulatives like base-10 blocks and counters, and also introduce differentiated activities that the students can engage in independently during centers.
Ms. McKillop and Ms. Rakamaric work directly with teachers to review data to make instructional decisions that best meet the individual needs of every learner. They noted that a method that worked one year may not work the next, depending on the strengths and needed areas of improvement of their class. Data is collected from in-class exams, teacher observations and iReady diagnostic assessments, a universal screening that is given three times per year.