News
Math Program helps students boost skills, confidence
by SF Ed Fund on
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James Lick Middle School math teacher Mike Longnecker helps his sixth-grade student Diego with ratios.[/caption]When Diego started sixth grade this year at James Lick Middle School, his math skills were comparable to that of a third-grade student, his math and science teacher Mike Longnecker said. He was a perfect candidate for a volunteer in our Math Program.
“He was struggling to keep up because he was having problems doing basic addition,” Mr. Longnecker said. “He didn’t know 8+7=15. He was having a hard time doing that kind of stuff on his fingers. Then, subtraction — forget about it. He didn’t have his times tables memorized.”Diego wasn’t receiving extra attention at home, where his mom works two jobs and his dad spends long hours commuting to the East Bay for work, so Mr. Longnecker decided to pair him with Aziz, a volunteer through the Education Fund’s new Math Program. In the last seven months, he’s seen a dramatic turn around, in Diego’s skills and confidence in the classroom.[caption id="attachment_527" align="alignright" width="227"]
Volunteer Aziz works one-on-one with Diego to help him catch up to grade level.[/caption]“Aziz takes him out to the library and he’ll spend two full periods with him just doing speed drills, practice, things Diego’s not getting at home,” Mr. Longnecker explained. “He’s been catching up so fast. This kid’s self-esteem has skyrocketed just from working with Aziz. He went from Fs to Cs. It’s not As, but being as far back as he was, that’s super impressive to me.”Mr. Longnecker also received an Education Fund Innovation Grant for his class to put new math and science concepts to the test with an explosive volcanology project. In April, his students came to school on a Saturday — yes, a Saturday — to build scale model replicas of the volcanoes they had been studying in their latest science unit and to apply their newly acquired knowledge of ratio and proportions. Even Diego.
“The kids got to choose their own role. They could become the builders, or they could do the plaster, the painting, the filming or editing of our video of the whole project. Diego chose film, which is great, because a lot of times he doesn’t just feel comfortable jumping in there and taking off. This gave him a chance to be a part of it,” Mr. Longnecker explained.Diego’s not alone though. In the first semester of our new Math Program, 26% of students working with a volunteer had improved by at least one grade level. We also awarded more than $15,000 for teachers to introduce new projects that bring math concepts to life for their students.
James Lick Middle School math teacher Mike Longnecker helps his sixth-grade student Diego with ratios.[/caption]When Diego started sixth grade this year at James Lick Middle School, his math skills were comparable to that of a third-grade student, his math and science teacher Mike Longnecker said. He was a perfect candidate for a volunteer in our Math Program.“He was struggling to keep up because he was having problems doing basic addition,” Mr. Longnecker said. “He didn’t know 8+7=15. He was having a hard time doing that kind of stuff on his fingers. Then, subtraction — forget about it. He didn’t have his times tables memorized.”Diego wasn’t receiving extra attention at home, where his mom works two jobs and his dad spends long hours commuting to the East Bay for work, so Mr. Longnecker decided to pair him with Aziz, a volunteer through the Education Fund’s new Math Program. In the last seven months, he’s seen a dramatic turn around, in Diego’s skills and confidence in the classroom.[caption id="attachment_527" align="alignright" width="227"] Volunteer Aziz works one-on-one with Diego to help him catch up to grade level.[/caption]“Aziz takes him out to the library and he’ll spend two full periods with him just doing speed drills, practice, things Diego’s not getting at home,” Mr. Longnecker explained. “He’s been catching up so fast. This kid’s self-esteem has skyrocketed just from working with Aziz. He went from Fs to Cs. It’s not As, but being as far back as he was, that’s super impressive to me.”Mr. Longnecker also received an Education Fund Innovation Grant for his class to put new math and science concepts to the test with an explosive volcanology project. In April, his students came to school on a Saturday — yes, a Saturday — to build scale model replicas of the volcanoes they had been studying in their latest science unit and to apply their newly acquired knowledge of ratio and proportions. Even Diego.“The kids got to choose their own role. They could become the builders, or they could do the plaster, the painting, the filming or editing of our video of the whole project. Diego chose film, which is great, because a lot of times he doesn’t just feel comfortable jumping in there and taking off. This gave him a chance to be a part of it,” Mr. Longnecker explained.Diego’s not alone though. In the first semester of our new Math Program, 26% of students working with a volunteer had improved by at least one grade level. We also awarded more than $15,000 for teachers to introduce new projects that bring math concepts to life for their students.