The Common Core Mathematics Standards : Transforming Practice Through Team Leadership

Transform math instruction with effective CCSS leadership

The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for mathematics describe the "habits of mind" that teachers should develop in their students without which the content standards cannot be successfully implemented. This professional development resource helps principals and math leaders grapple with the changes that must be addressed so that teachers can implement the practices required by the CCSS. Features include:

• A clear explanation of the CCSS for Mathematical Practice
• Techniques to help leadership teams collaboratively implement and maintain the new standards
• A proficiency matrix with examples of instructional strategies for helping students reach competency in each standard
• An example of how a fourth-grade classroom might implement the CCSS

Readers will find reproducible, pullout tools to help with the change process, including an instructional sequence chart. A comprehensive and easy-to-use resource for teachers, district and school leaders, and mathematics curriculum coordinators, The Common Core Mathematics Standards provides the definitive road map for leading the change necessary to align math instruction with best practices.

Ted H. Hull completed 32 years of service in public education before retiring and opening Hull Educational Consulting. He served as a mathematics teacher, K-12 mathematics coordinator, middle school principal, director of curriculum and instruction, and a project director for the Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas in Austin. While at the University of Texas, 2001 to 2005, he directed the research project “Transforming Schools: Moving from Low-Achieving to High Performing Learning Communities.” As part of the project, Hull worked directly with district leaders, school administrators, and teachers in Arkansas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and Texas to develop instructional leadership skills and implement effective mathematics instruction. Hull is a regular presenter at local, state, and national meetings. He has written numerous articles for the NCSM Newsletter, including "Understanding the Six Steps of Implementation: Engagement by an Internal or External Facilitator" (2005) and "Leadership Equity: Moving Professional Development into the Classroom" (2005), as well as "Manager to Instructional Leader" (2007) for the NCSM Journal of Mathematics Education Leadership. He has been published in the Texas Mathematics Teacher (2006), Teacher Input Into Classroom Visits: Customized Classroom Visit Form. Hull was also a contributing author for publications from the Charles A. Dana Center: Mathematics Standards in the Classroom: Resources for Grades 6–8 (2002) and Middle School Mathematics Assessments: Proportional Reasoning (2004). He is an active member of Texas Association of Supervisors of Mathematics (TASM) and served on the NCSM Board of Directors as regional director for Southern 2.

Ruth Harbin Miles coaches rural, suburban, and inner-city school mathematics teachers.  Her professional experiences include coordinating the K-12 Mathematics Teaching and Learning Program for the Olathe, Kansas, Public Schools for more than 25 years; teaching mathematics methods courses at Virginia’s Mary Baldwin College; and serving on the Board of Directors for the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, the National Council of Supervisors of Mathematic, and both the Virginia Council of Teachers of Mathematics and the Kansas Association of Teachers of Mathematics.  Ruth is a co-author of five Corwin books including A Guide to Mathematics Coaching, A Guide to Mathematics Leadership, Visible Thinking in the K-8 Mathematics Classroom, The Common Core Mathematics Standards, and Realizing Rigor in the Mathematics Classroom.  As co-owner of Happy Mountain Learning, Ruth specializes in developing teachers’ content knowledge and strategies for engaging students to achieve high standards in mathematics.

Don S. Balka, Ph.D., is a noted mathematics educator who has presented more than 2,000 workshops on the use of math manipulatives with PK-12 students at national and regional conferences of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics and at in-service trainings in school districts throughout the United States and the world.

He is Professor Emeritus in the Mathematics Department at Saint Mary’s College, Notre Dame, Indiana. He is the author or co-author of numerous books for K-12 teachers, including Developing Algebraic Thinking with Number Tiles, Hands-On Math and Literature with Math Start, Exploring Geometry with Geofix, Working with Algebra Tiles, and Mathematics with Unifix Cubes. Balka is also a co-author on the Macmillan K-5 series, Math Connects and co-author with Ted Hull and Ruth Harbin Miles on four books published by Corwin Press.

He has served as a director of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics and the National Council of Supervisors of Mathematics. In addition, he is president of TODOS: Mathematics for All and president of the School Science and Mathematics Association.