Math

Rockwood Mathematics curriculum and instruction reflect the importance of mathematical literacy for all students.

The curriculum is designed to be robust and relevant to the real world, reflecting the knowledge and skills our students need for success in college and careers. To meet these expectations, our curriculum is student-centered and will allow for exploration, discovery, conjecture, and application of mathematics.

In an effort to produce a curriculum that meets the needs of Rockwood students, our work has been guided by: parent, teacher, and student recommendations; and guidelines from the Missouri Learning Standards, including the 8 Mathematical Practice Standards. Our goal is to foster a love of mathematics, focusing on the Standards of Mathematical Practice rather than rote calculation.

With the standards of mathematical practice, students will:

• make sense of problems and persevere in solving them
• reason abstractly and quantitatively
• construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others
• model mathematics
• use appropriate tools strategically
• attend to precision
• look for and make sense of structure
• make generalizations

Mathematics is a fundamental skill used in all areas of life. Because students need to become lifelong mathematical learners to be successful in society, the Mathematics Department's goal is to provide students with the necessary tools and opportunities to understand mathematical concepts and to continually relate mathematics to real-world applications and situations.

We believe that all students can achieve success in math. Focusing on the standards of mathematical practice, our teachers provide differentiation within their classrooms to challenge all learners. Students wishing to accelerate their learning in middle school have the opportunity to take integrated math classes that cover three years of mathematics standards in two years.