Mathematics
Lower School
At AVS, students develop a strong, flexible number sense in order to provide the fundamentals needed for problem-solving.
By providing students with a variety of meaningful tasks and activities, students gain the capacity to flexibly work with number systems and build conceptual understanding of the different math domains. From here, procedural fluency is developed through classroom activities, such as number talks, games, and puzzles. By way of independent, partner, small group, and whole class learning, students engage in integrated projects to explore problems in depth and discover numerous methods to solve these problems. In addition, students construct viable arguments for solutions with efficiency, accuracy, and flexibility.
Students investigate and explore mathematics within hands-on experiences, such as designing and measuring animal play areas and learning coordinate planes through playing Battleship. Through mathematically rich activities, students expand their problem-solving skills by developing their abilities to recognize patterns, creating representations, making generalizations, and learning to choose tools and strategies to support their reasoning. Critical-thinking and communication skills are strengthened as students collaborate with teammates to share their own mathematical reasoning and constructively critique the arguments of others.
Students develop a rich conceptual understanding, procedural fluency, and real-world application of the following domains:
- Number sense
- Algebraic thinking
- Measurement and geometry
- Statistics, data analysis, and probability
- Mathematical reasoning
The following learning standards from junior kindergarten through fourth grade aim to maintain understanding through fluid, spiraling review, progress along a continuum that prevents gaps in learning, and encourage appreciation of math in real-world application:
- The Number System and Place Value
- Fractions/Decimals/Percents
- Addition and Subtraction
- Multiplication/Division
- Patterns and Algebraic Thinking
- Time and Money
- Measurement Comparison
- Graphing/Charts/Data Analysis
- Perimeter/Area/Volume
- Two and Three Dimensional Shapes and Angles
- The Coordinate Plane
Middle School
At Alta Vista the emphasis of mathematics. is to develop a strong, flexible number sense in order to provide the fundamentals for problem solving.
By providing students with a variety of meaningful tasks and activities, students gain the capacity to flexibly work with number systems and build conceptual understanding of the different mathematical domains. From here, procedural fluency is developed through classroom activities such as problems of the month, interactive online simulations, and rich tasks.
Big ideas are reinforced to cultivate lifelong mathematicians who develop, utilize, and reflect upon a repertoire of strategies in the problem-solving process.
Through mathematically rich activities, students expand their problem-solving skills by developing their abilities to recognize patterns, create representations, make generalizations, and learn to choose tools and strategies to support their reasoning. Critical-thinking and communication skills are strengthened as students collaborate with teammates to share their own mathematical reasoning and critique the arguments of others.
By way of independent, partner, small group, and whole class learning, students engage in integrated projects to explore problems in depth and discover numerous methods to solve these problems. In addition, students construct viable arguments for solutions with efficiency, accuracy, and flexibility. Students investigate and explore mathematics within hands-on experiences.
Courses Include:
- Ratio and Rationals
- Equality and Equivalence
- Probability and Proportions
- Pre-Algebra
- Algebra 1