Mathematics

Exploring Math in the World Around Us

In the Lower School math program, we use students’ wonder about the workings of the world as the springboard for gradual, progressive exposure to concepts and skills involving both concrete objects and abstract thinking. At each grade level we emphasize the importance and real-world applications of mathematics. To achieve National Council of Mathematics standards in each grade, we develop students’ strengths in problem solving, mathematical reasoning, estimation, computation, geometry, measurement, statistics and probability, and algebraic thinking.

Our math curriculum connects each new concept to prior knowledge and emphasizes frequent review of skills and concepts. Students learn the appropriate use of mathematical tools, including paper and pencil, measuring instruments, calculators, and computers. They use manipulative materials at every level to discover the beauty of patterns and the strength of logical reasoning, and they gain a strong understanding of the basic operation of whole numbers, fractions, and decimals.

Students practice math skills and analytical thinking through meaningful hands-on activities. They sort and classify blocks at clean-up time or record the number of monarch butterflies emerging from chrysalises. They find tetrahedrons at the National Gallery of Art or juggle the weight allowance for supplies for a simulated covered wagon journey. They calculate the costs of supplies for class trips or estimate the volume of our gymnasium. Through real-world applications like these, students begin to delight in the math that surrounds them and to recognize how the study of math relates to their world.