Every Melcher-Dallas Elementary school day has the hum of learning, the spark of curiosity, and those exciting moments when things click for students.
Helping create those moments is Becky Wadle, a part-time math interventionist and the district’s Talented and Gifted (TAG) coordinator, who believes that the best learning happens when students are met exactly where they are and supported as they grow.
This school year, Mrs. Wadle began an exciting new chapter, moving from her role as a 6th-grade teacher to serve in this position. Principal Jon Suntken added that the role was created to assist students needing extra assistance in the area of mathematics.
Math interventionists are educators who provide targeted, small-group instruction to students identified through assessment data and teacher input as needing additional support to reach grade-level expectations.
At the Elementary, there is large group and small group math work time, and Mrs. Wadle works with students three to four times per week during the small group math time. Improvement goals are set; however, not just by Mrs. Wadle and the classroom teachers. Students take ownership of their goals too, tracking their progress and celebrating along the way.
Inside the math groups, learning is fun. There are math games, fluency challenges and problem-solving adventures. A favorite game of students is called “Salute.” Students hold cards on their foreheads without looking, while Mrs. Wadle announces the sum or product of the two numbers. Each player can see the other’s card—but not their own! Quick thinking leads to figuring out what number they must be holding. Mrs. Wadle explained that the game also helps the students see the inverse relationship between addition and subtraction and multiplication and division.
One of the district’s tools for tracking students’ progress toward grade-level skills is called i-Ready. Students were assessed at the start of the school year and again recently to track their progress. The great news is that students’ hard work is paying off—most students have made at least a level of growth toward meeting grade-level expectations.
Through targeted instruction, engaging activities, and student ownership of learning, students are growing both in skill and confidence.