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The Mathematical

May 2021

TheMathematicalMay 2021
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Milestones Info

The Georgia Milestones Mathematics EOG/EOC assessment is a criterion-referenced test that is designed to provide information about how well a student has mastered the grade-level state-adopted content standards in Mathematics. The assessment consists of only selected-response and technology-enhanced questions. With the removal of the constructed response items, the assessment time for each section is up to 65 minutes, which is a reduction from previous years. Below are Study Guides for each grade level.


Grade 3

Grade 4

Grade 5

Grade 6

Grade 7

Grade 8

Alg I

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Calculator Info for GMAS

Georgia Milestones will provide an online graphing calculator, where allowed, for student use. This feature will eliminate the need for handheld devices to enter the testing environment. Calculators are not permitted on certain designated sections of each mathematics test.


Please provide the time for students to explore and become comfortable using the online calculator. You can use the link above for the DESMOS calculator. You can also have students log on to the online GMAS practice platform (www.gaexpericneonline.com) to experience the testing platform and its online tools including the calculator.

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K-12 Math Standards Survey Extended to May 7th

The Georgia Department of Education welcomes your feedback and comments regarding the proposed K-12 Mathematics Standards. Upon adoption by the state board, these mathematics standards will be implemented in the 2022-23 school year after a year to train teachers, communicate with parents, and update assessments in line with the new standards.​


> Survey for Feedback on​ the K-12 Mathematics Standards​

​(Please review the standards for grade bands and courses, listed here, before providing your feedback.​)​


The survey will close at 5:00 PM EDT on 5/7​​/2021.​

Math in May Suggestions

As you finish up this school year, sometimes it can be challenging to keep your students engaged and on-task. Here are some suggestions you can try that can help reinforce skills learned this year and introduce new ones to help your students be more successful in the next school year.


  • Problem-Based Learning activities: these activities allow students to use the skills they learned in class and use them in real world situations. (Sites: Robert Kaplinsky, Mathalicious, YummyMath, or Mindsets Learning)


  • 3 Act Tasks: these tasks allows students to use what they know to solve a situational problem. They are required to ask questions, decide what information they need, and make reasonable estimations as they solve them. (Sites: When Math Happens, Andrew Stadel 3-Act Math Tasks or LiveBinder of 3-Act Tasks)


  • Escape Room tasks: these tasks allow students to work collaboratively on challenging problems. Teachers can have them work in small groups or as one whole group. (Sites: How to Create an Escape Room, Common Supplies Needed, and BreakoutEDU has some free challenges or you can make your own)


  • Open Middle challenges: these problems are open-ended allowing students to practice their skill set to find the best possible solution. While it looks like they only have one problem to solve, they will actually solve it multiple times to find the best solution. (Hint: give students a recording sheet to record their different attempts) Teachers can use numbered water bottle caps to make it easier for students to try their various solutions. (Site: Open Middle)

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Integrating rich math tasks is essential if we want our students to be appropriately challenged in our math classrooms. There are 6 main characteristics teachers should look for when selecting or creating a rich math task for their students:


  1. Accessibility to all learners
  2. Real life tasks
  3. Multiple approaches and representations
  4. Collaboration and Discussion
  5. Engagement, curiosity, and creativity
  6. Opportunities for extension


For details and more information on each of these characteristics and to view/print the infographic, click here.

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Ways to Prevent Cheating on Google Form Quizzes

Here are some tips to help remove opportunities for students to cheat when taking an online assessment using Google Forms. Below are 5 tips on how to prevent this from occurring.


  1. Shuffle answer choices
  2. Use Page Sections to block assessment previews
  3. Use page breaks to create alternate assessment paths
  4. Prevent cheating by asking better questions
  5. Enable locked quiz mode


To read more about these different tips and how to use them, click here for the full article.

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The Why behind "re-do's" and "re-takes"

Not everyone is comfortable with re-do’s and re-takes, which are more appropriately recognized as re-learning (or learning properly) and re-assessing. According to Rick Wormeli, we need to remind ourselves of four operational tenets to create a common frame of reference and sense of “why” of re-learning and re-assessing:


  • Repeated learning and assessment (re-iteration) with critical feedback, and improved performance because of that feedback, is one of the most effective ways any one person becomes competent in any field, including our own.


  • It is the recovery process that teaches, not the label. Walking with students as they recover from mistakes and failures teaches more content and cultivates more maturity than do unrecoverable labels of “F” or “0.” Even more striking, denying students the opportunities to recover from these failing labels communicates that it is okay for students to remain incompetent in the material.


  • There is a big difference between what we do with students in the learning process and what we demand of certified professionals in the field. We do not demand adult, “fully certified in the field” performance from morphing, insecure humans as our standard for performance in secondary schooling. Nor should we apply this thinking as a rationale for denying re-learning/re-assessing opportunities. It is ineffective and can even be abusive to require experienced, high-quality, post-certification performance in an adolescent’s one attempt at demonstrating competency during their learning process in a false bid to “prepare them for the working world.” To be clear, it is not in alignment with how adolescents and young adolescents learn.


  • Falsifying the report of student proficiency does NOT teach students responsibility or prepare them for success in future courses. Frankly, it’s dishonest. Unfortunately, this can happen when averaging the score of a student’s first attempt at an assessment with the scores of later attempts at the same assessment, or when declaring a “ceiling” grade on any subsequent re-assessments (such as when declaring the highest score achievable on re-assessments as 70, even though the student demonstrates performance equated to a much higher score).


To read more about practical tips for re-learning and re-assessing, click here.

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Exit Tickets in the Classroom

Class is done. We’ve learned a lot. We’ve tried some new things. We’ve had some great discussions. So … now what?


How can we make the most of the end of class? How can we tie a bow on a day of class to wrap everything up?


An exit ticket gives us that opportunity! Exit tickets are also a research-based best practice for several reasons ...

  • Students are second-most likely to recall what they learn at the very end of class (most: beginning). Therefore, the end of class is when their brains are primed for learning.


  • When students recall what they've learned without textbooks or notes, it produces great long-term memory effects.


  • Reflection on learning -- and the learning process -- can help learning stick and help them become better students.


To read more and get some ideas and templates for Exit Tickets, click here.

Math Teacher Lounge - Wrong and Brilliant - Segment 3

Is there a different and better way to teach right and wrong in math class? Watch these two episodes to see how right and wrong answers can reveal student understanding and help teachers guide their instruction. The third installment is here! The first and second segments are also posted below.
Math Teacher Lounge: Wrong and brilliant segment 3 with Megan Franke
Math Teacher Lounge: Wrong and brilliant segment 2 with Mandy Jansen
Math Teacher Lounge: Wrong and brilliant segment 1

Math Google Classrooms

Don't miss out on valuable information, helpful videos and tutorials, and professional learning registrations. Be sure to join the appropriate Math Google Classroom to ensure you have access to all the latest information. It is recommended that teachers turn on the email notification feature so that you are notified whenever a new post is made. To enable email notifications, go to Settings (when you click on the 3 horizontal lines in the top left corner), and turn on "Receive email notifications."


Join your grade-level Google Classroom to keep up with all the latest information!

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MATHCON 2021

All K-12 Math teachers are invited to join MathCON for Teachers to learn about the new Georgia Standards for Mathematics and learn strategies to support increased student success.


Meet up with old friends and make some new ones. Register now to reserve your spot!


When: July 19-22, 2021

Register here.

Upcoming Professional Learning Upcoming Professional Learning

West GA RESA Opportunities

Number Talks (RESA Mini)

On-Demand Video (17 min) - Watch this short video on Number Talks in the classroom.

Watch now!


Facebook PLC for High School Math Teachers

Join our Facebook group for high school Math Teachers! Stay up-to-date on the latest math news and tools just for you!

Join here!


K-5 Math Endorsement

K-5 Math Endorsement is coming soon! Look for details in RESA's March Newsletter!

Need more info? Contact Joanne Britt


Get Google Certified

Do you want to obtain your Google Level 1 Educator certification? If so, this is the class for you!

Learn More and Register

Upcoming Webinars

GCTM 2021 Summer Mathematics Academies

Raising the Standards: Equipping Teachers to Empower Students

June 22, 23, and 24; Virtual sessions 9:00 - 3:00

Register for two and a half days of professional development opportunities focused on the following:


  • Equipping teachers with effective strategies to meet the needs of ALL students
  • Exploring ways to ensure access and equity
  • Experiencing engaging, rich tasks aligned to revised grade-band GSE standards
  • Enhancing educator knowledge


Cost: $80 for non-members, $50 for members

Email questions to academies@gctm.org

Register starting April 1st here: www.gctm.org/academies




MATHCON 2021

All K-12 Math teachers are invited to join MathCON for Teachers to learn about the new Georgia Standards for Mathematics and learn strategies to support increased student success. Meet up with old friends and make some new ones. Register now to reserve your spot!


When: July 19-22, 2021

Register here.




Dive Deep into Mathematics: Fractions

4-Part Series starting May 13, 2021

This 4-part series will be a hoot as we dive deep into fractions!

This series of webinars talks about Developing the Concepts and Skills of Common Fractions. These sessions will give you many “aha” moments about why your students might be struggling with fraction concepts, and equip you with new ways of thinking about fraction instruction for all your students. You can register for one session or all of them!


  • May 13, 7:00pm - Using multiple fraction representations to build a foundation of success in mathematics


  • May 27, 7:00pm - Exploring the different interpretations of fractions that should be covered in elementary school


  • June 10, 7:00pm - Naming and relating the types of fractions


  • June 24, 7:00pm - Exploring the strategies for comparing common fractions in elementary school


Register here.




Strengthening Problem Solving Virtually and In-Person Series

Webinar Recordings - Watch Now

Part 1:Mathematical Discourse and Collaboration

Part 2: Mathematical Task Selection




When Modeling Gets Messy: Help Students Discover New Ways of Thinking About Math Modeling

Webinar Recording - Watch Now

This session introduces the “Spies and Analysts” mathematical modeling strategy. During this collaborative session, discover practical ways to get students “unstuck,” allowing them to persevere in modeling, which is key for problem-solving in the secondary classroom. Teachers and students will love this creative and critical-thinking strategy and applying it to many mathematical problems in and out of the classroom. By HMH and aimed at secondary teachers.

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Virtual Math Professional Learning Catalog

GaDOE is launching a new Virtual Mathematics Specialist program that will provide professional learning for teachers and teacher leaders specific to the various grade levels and high school courses as an additional layer of support for continued growth and development. All teachers are invited to participate in these high-quality professional learning opportunities.


Please find a link below to the communication that includes specific dates and times for each of the professional learning sessions by grade level and high school course. Also, the GaDOE has established a new online professional learning community to support teachers and leaders. The interactions in the mathematics groups will be led by the Virtual Mathematics Specialists and the GaDOE Mathematics Team.

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Comments, Questions, or Concerns?

Please contact Michelle Clarke, Math Content Specialist, with any comments, questions or concerns.

Email: michelle.clarke@cowetaschools.net
Website: curriculum.cowetaschools.org
Location: 167 Werz Industrial Boulevard, Newnan, GA, 30263
Phone: 770.254.2800
Twitter: @clarkemath

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