From Number Sense to Pythagoras

For many years, Connected Mathematics has found a home in our Lincoln Middle School curriculum and is the corner stone for high student achievement in mathematics.  Connected Mathematics is a comprehensive, problem-centered curriculum designed for 6th - 8th grade students based on the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics' (NCTM) Principles and Standards for School Mathematics.  The curriculum was developed by the Mathematics Project (CMP) at the Michigan State University and funded by the National Science Foundation.

Lincoln Middle School students are making connections with math and the real world daily using Connected Mathematics.  Topics such as numbers, algebra, geometry, measurement, probability and statistics are integrated with real life situations and students make connections with what they know and what is to be learned.  Students investigate major problems in each unit, and explore and discovery solutions with one another with the teacher facilitating the learning.  They experience extensive problem sets in each investigation in which students practice, apply, connect, and extend new understandings.  Also, within these investigations, content is addressed as well as process, which is significant in acquiring a true understanding of mathematics and is based on standards of the NCTM.  Process standards like problem solving, reasoning, communication, representation and connections are what students experience on a daily basis. This balanced approached between content and process provides students with the resources to be successful mathematician.