You Must Teach This New Curriculum with Fidelity

Good morning!

Oh, come on, we can do better than that! I said, “Good morning!”

That’s more like it.

Thank you for joining me today for this workshop on implementing ReadingMath123ABC, an innovative, comprehensive curriculum your school district purchased for $250,000 based on one website’s positive review.

When ReadingMath123ABC’s 140 lessons are implemented with fidelity—that is, exactly as directed, like you are following a recipe for a soufflé—your students all will learn. Isn’t that incredible? If they don’t learn, our expert tools will pinpoint the reason: you didn’t implement the curriculum with fidelity.

To ensure your students’ success, all you need to do is follow the ReadingMath123ABC curriculum guide.

That’s right! Simply take a seat, hold the ReadingMath123ABC book in your lap, and read it aloud. Alternatively, you could stand and hold the book.

You can also memorize the book, but what teacher has the time?

Many of you have completed teacher-education programs, attended conferences, and stayed up-to-date on the latest research. You also do assessments to know what your students need to learn and converse with them so you can understand their interests. Ugh, too much information, right? It’s so confusing.

When you plan lessons, you might reference a commercially published curriculum, but—I shudder to say this—you also might spread a one-day lesson over two days or—my god—change some words in a lesson… so the concept… makes more sense… to your class…? Yikes!

Instead, why don’t we put that expertise in the P.E. teacher’s scooter closet, shut the door, and do precisely what ReadingMath123ABC’s big book says? Actually, your school district purchased it, and you have to use it, so that’s what you’re doing.

Let’s take a deep dive into the program.

Every ReadingMath123ABC lesson starts with a fun, personal anecdote. Students love when teachers launch a lesson that way. Good news: we’ve written the personal anecdotes for you.

For our introductory math lesson about fractions in kindergarten, we’ve got a story about a time you went to a restaurant with three friends. You wanted to share a big brownie but didn’t know how to cut it so everyone could have a piece the same size.

After you share this fun personal anecdote, give students a minute to think about how to divide the brownie and have them share their idea with a neighbor. Next, pass out twenty-five individual paper brownies, paper plates, and plastic knives in one minute. Then allow students to try their idea with the paper brownie in one minute. (We tested this activity in our mind, and it went smoothly.)

Here’s an excerpt from the teacher-student dialogue in this lesson:

TEACHER: On my snap, tell me how many brownie pieces you have created. Snap!

STUDENTS: Four! (They must say four.)

TEACHER: A+ for all! (If your school doesn’t give grades in kindergarten, you may wish to adjust your school’s grading practices so students have adequate background knowledge about A+, A-, B+, B-, and so on.)

Teacher tip: If you feel that students would be more engaged if the story were about a blondie, feel free to substitute that dessert or use another one from this list: cookie, pie, or cake. That’s one of the great things about ReadingMath123ABC: you can choose the dessert that feels right for your students.

The curriculum writers, who taught middle school math for an entire year, knew this activity would be perfect for the littles.

See? We’ve done all the thinking for you. You’re busy teachers, and you don’t have time to use your brain or make decisions. Please don’t, because then there would be no need for ReadingMath123ABC’s Aaron Sorkin-level of specificity.

Instead, let us do the heavy lifting from here in New Hampshire at our conference table.

All you have to do is teach ReadingMath123ABC with—let’s say it together—fidelity!

Does anyone have any questions? The only question you’re allowed to ask is, “How do I get started? We start by reading page one, right?” And to that, I would say, “That is correct—thank you for checking.” Let’s take a break. Thanks so much, everyone.