For past newsletters, please click on the mathematics tab above.
For past newsletters, please click on the mathematics tab above.
Are you doing something amazing in your classroom that you would like to share with others? Please submit ideas to jhamlet@ksde.org to be showcased next month.
If you have questions about curriculum, assessments, standards, etc., the KSDE math team is here to help and support you in any way possible. All you need to do is reach out. Please contact Jennifer Hamlet, KSDE Math Program Manager, at 785-296-6823 or email her at jhamlet@ksde.org.
New Virtual Office Hours (Third Wednesday of every month): Jennifer Hamlet, KSDE Math Program Manager, will host one-hour virtual office hours on zoom from 4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. for educators to ask questions, get support, or just chat about concerns/issues.
Join Zoom Meeting: https://ksde.zoom.us/j/82246007530
Passcode: 607090
Q: Does KSDE have a list of suggested math curriculum for districts?
A: At this time, KSDE cannot recommend any specific curriculum. KSDE did do a survey of math curriculum that is being used by districts across Kansas.
Q: Can 8th grade Algebra I count for High School credit?
A: This is local decision that the school board of education for each district will need to determine.
Q: Where are the resources for the KAP mini tests, interims, and summative assessments located?
A: Resources | Kansas Assessment Program (ksassessments.org)
Q: Are the Kansas Math Standards changing for the 2024-2025 school year? If not, when will they be reviewed next?
A: The Kansas Math Standards will not be changing for the 24-25 school year. KSDE has not set a timeframe when the math standards will be updated next.
Q: When will the Standards Alignment Toolkit for math be done?
A: We will not have the entire toolkit completed until later this year, but the new Math Guidance Document will be released at the KSDE conference, October 23rd - 25th.
Q: Is IXL free for the 2024-2025 school year?
A: Yes, IXL will be free again this school year. The future years will be determined later on this year.
Q: Are the interim questions rejects from the summative assessment?
A: No, the items on the interims are new and designed specifically for the interim blueprint.
Q: Will there be a new Kansas Examiner's Manual?
A: Yes, but it will be called the Test Administrator's manual. It will be for only those individuals that are administering the assessment and will include the manipulatives sheet/flow chart. The release date will be by December 20th, 2024.
Background of Kansas Math Pathways
Traditional postsecondary mathematics, including requiring college algebra for most majors, and requiring traditional prerequisite remediation that does not count toward a baccalaureate degree, impose unnecessary obstacles to degree completion for Kansas students.
According to KBOR’s Developmental Education Data Report, too few students are completing a traditional prerequisite developmental course and a general education math course within a two-year period. Further, according to a 2015 Report published by the Mathematical Association of America, A Common Vision for Undergraduate Mathematical Sciences Programs in 2025, “mathematics courses are the most significant barrier to degree completion in both STEM and non-STEM fields.”
The Kansas Board of Regents seeks to implement proven practices that remove these obstacles and advance access, affordability, success, and completion (all components of the Board’s strategic plan, Building a Future), by working with the Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin on Mathematics Pathways.
Kansas is now one of the 22 states participating in the Launch Years Initiative, which supports the scaling of mathematics pathways from high school through postsecondary education and into the workplace, aligned to students’ goals and aspirations. The Dana Center provides resources and support and holds an annual convening at which participating states can share ideas, best practices, and experiences related to the initiative.
The gateway and developmental course placement guidance, corequisite support section framework, shall take effect during the Fall 2026 semester and continually apply thereafter. See below for the timeline and the three pathways' graphics with what programs would fall under each pathway.
click here to see additional information - Math Pathways
The new KSDE Kansas Math Standards Guidance Document is finished! We are so excited for districts to have and utilize this document. Below, you will find a link to the document and an instructional video that talks about its components, creation, interim blueprints, and much more! This is a read only document, so you will need to make a copy to be able to edit and make it your own. If you are not aware of how to make a copy, it is in the video! 😊
KSDE Kansas Math Standards Guidance Document
Thank you for your patience awaiting the release of this document and I hope it will be an effective tool for your teachers and districts. I do want to send a shout out and big thank you to my KSDE Math team for all their hard work. This document took hours of work to put together and a lot of brain power.
Jolene Goodheart Peterson
Amber Boyington
Todd Flory
Lara Staker
Cherryl Delacruz
Diane Kimsey
Andrea Graham
Luke Henke
Julie Keithline
Shelly DeWeese
Erin Cole
And all the others that had feedback along the way!
The KSDE Math team and the service centers across the state are joining forces to offer Professional Learning opportunities centered on the Four Fundamentals. We’re thrilled about this collaboration and are committed to providing math educators with top-notch support and resources. See below for our first Professional Learning Day!
Location Date Registration
Greenbush (Lawrence) 12/09/24 Link to Register
02/24/25 Link to Register
Greenbush (Girard) 01/20/25 Link to Register
03/03/25 Link to Register
Smoky Hill (Salina) 12/12/24 Link to Register
(Hays) 01/21/25 Link to Register
Southwest Plains 12/16/24 Link to Register
02/21/25 Link to Register
ESSDACK 01/13/25 Link to Register
02/25/25 Link to Register
Orion 01/28/25 Link to Register
02/10/25 Link to Register
Location Date Registration
Greenbush (Lawrence) 04/21/25 Link to Register
Greenbush (Girard) 05/02/25 Link to Register
Smoky Hill (Salina) 03/06/24 Link to Register
Southwest Plains 04/01/25 Link to Register
ESSDACK 03/31/25 Link to Register
Orion 03/10/25 Link to Register
Please join us for our monthly professional development from the KSDE math team. Every month we will have mathematics updates from the state, professional development opportunities, and a topic of the month. We would love to have any teachers, curriculum leaders, and administration join us! Register below. You can click the register button at the time of the meeting as well, it does not have to be prior to be able to join.
Monthly Math Minutes Registration Link
December 10th 4:00 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. We will give you an update on Kansas Math Pathways, CTE Pathways, and have a Q & A session.
National Mathematics Day is celebrated in India on 22 December every year which is the birth anniversary of famous mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan.
Srinivasa Ramanujan was an Indian mathematician who contributed to number theory, infinite series and continued fractions in his short span of life.
He was the youngest to receive Fellows of the Royal Society and elected as Fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge.
We believe that every math teacher in Kansas should have a strong understanding of evidence-based teaching strategies, and that all teachers of math should have an equally strong understanding of math content. The Kansas Math Project, put forth in joint collaboration with the Kansas Department of Education, has been developed to precisely attend to each of these beliefs through a systematic framework of modules geared for teachers and administrators. Modules will be delivered both in-person and asynchronously to develop the math practitioner's aptitude to use the language of mathematics, integrate modeling and practice, and incorporate mathematics concepts and procedures that build students' fluency within the four operations, and their ability to set-up and solve text-based problems. In addition, the project will expand each teacher's scope of content knowledge along the progression of standards from PreK to Algebra 2.
Trainings
For the 2024-2025 school year, the following trainings are scheduled:
Feb. 24-25, 2025, at the Hilton Garden Inn, Hays (attendance required both days).
February 26-27, 2025, at the Sunflower Foundation, Topeka (attendance required both days).
April 28-29, 2025, at the Hilton Garden Inn, Hays (attendance required both days).
April 30 & May 1, 2025, at the Sunflower Foundation, Topeka (attendance required both days).
Registration for these trainings will be available at https://ksdetasn.org/mtss/kmp-information once all logistical information is confirmed.
If you would like to do the trainings via Moodle, please click the following link: Trainings via Moodle Once there, click on “Create account,” create your free Moodle account and begin with KMP Foundational Module A. You will sequentially go through KMP Foundational Modules A-E, taking each module’s quiz and ending with the cumulative quiz.
New Interim Interactive Performance Reports
Lexile & Quantile Hub is a free resource that is provided for all Kansas educators, parents, and students. Join us for the next Monthly Math Minutes on October 8th for a more in-depth look.
Lexile & Quantile contains targeted, free resources appropriately matched to students by Quantile measure and math content. Free premium membership to all Kansas educators.
Math Content with Quantile Measures.
More than 600 textbooks and software programs with over 80,000 lessons have been calibrated to the Quantile scale.
Over 3,100 online and downloadable resources have been calibrated to the Quantile scale.
Title: Educator Access to the Lexile and Quantile Hub
Description: This video provides an overview of how educators register to access tools and resources in the Lexile and Quantile Hub. KSDE has a partnership with MetaMetrics that allows all educators Premium access to the Lexile and Quantile Hub at no additional cost.
Title: Classroom Applications using Quantile Teacher Assistant
Description: This video provides a demonstration of how to utilize Quantile measures and the Quantile Teacher Assistant tool to support classroom instruction.
The Quantile® Framework for Mathematics gives you a powerful tool to personalize math learning for students by linking assessments to instruction.
It’s based on a scientifically validated developmental scale that measures both the math skill level of your students and the difficulty of math skills and concepts they encounter.
A student Quantile measure helps you better understand which skills and concepts your students are ready to learn so you can better personalize math instruction.
Math concepts and skills also have Quantile measures, so it’s easy to figure out which math concepts students are ready to learn next.
A growing number of math programs and state assessments report Quantile measures. In addition, many textbooks and instructional materials are linked to the Quantile scale. When you’re able to match students with math resources that support their knowledge and build it further, you’re also supporting their path to college and career readiness.
See full article: Understanding Quantile® Measures - Quantile (quantiles.com)
"The IXL Team would love to hear from you to support your implementation journey. Reach out to your Account Manager or Kansas@ixl.com!
Here are a few handpicked ideas for December:
Tis the season for keeping students engaged!
Use IXL for Classroom Engagement. This page has 3-step guides on how to use Live Classroom, Leaderboards, and Group Jams!
Leverage IXL's customizable Color-by Skill-sheets. Just put in the 3-digit IXL codes, save, and print for students to have a new way to engage with IXL. Learn more in this blog post.
Coming Soon: Kansas IXL User Group: Interested in joining a collaborative space where you can learn from others, share feedback from your implementation, and spark new ideas to elevate learning? Learn more about the Kansas IXL User Group here.
Consider attending an IXL Webinar this winter. These are 30-minute sessions hosted by IXL's Professional Learning team to take your usage to the next level.
Don't have 30 minutes? IXL Minis are jam-packed with insights you can start using right away. See them all here (must be logged in)."
They are amazing tools for personalized professional learning and great communities to network with other educators and leaders. Check out @KSDETCHRLEADERS and @KATMWebmaster on twitter and Kansas Association of Teachers of Mathematics on Facebook. #KSMath
Want to network with other math educators and leaders about Building Thinking Classrooms? Follow Dr. Peter Liljedahl, the author of BTC in mathematics, and you'll find tons of math educators and leaders to collaborate with.
Another great BTC resource is the BTC Facebook page where teachers share tips, ideas, success stories, and ways to address some challenges and struggles.