Great News!

Dear Parents,

I have been so busy; I have not had a chance to write to you about our new math curriculum being used in 2^nd, 3^rd, and 4^th grades.  We are really excited to be able to offer this program, Everyday Mathematics.  When I came to Christ Church School several years ago, we were using Saxon Math through 5^th grade.  Saxon Math does not use the higher level thinking skills that is so important for the upper grades and the upper math courses.  It is very good for the lower grades because of its repetition of skills; however we found that we needed a more rigorous math curriculum that would transition and incorporate into the intermediate grades.  After thinking for two years about what we could do to get more “higher level thinking” skills and problem solving in our math program, we decided to implement Everyday Mathematics.  We chose this curriculum because it fits into our Classical Education approach better than other programs by incorporating both the repetition or spiral teaching of math facts and the problem solving and critical thinking crucial to the Classical approach.  We are still going to use the traditional way of solving math problems, but we will also teach alternative methods to help students that struggle with the traditional methods.  We will also continue the CCS approach of using one grade level acceleration for our students.  I am really excited to implement this program because I was one of the first teachers to use it in TISD.  After implementing this program, our math scores for the district rose every year.  I am confident that it will do the same for Christ Church School.  We want the best for our students and I believe that can be achieved with Everyday Mathematics. 

Be Blessed,

Lanelle Holbrook