Math Pathways & Pitfalls® is aligned with the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics in the domains of Operations and Algebraic Thinking and Numbers and Operations. Each book teaches age-appropriate math skills for two grade levels while also helping students get ready for algebra concepts they’ll need later on.
- Book 1 (Kindergarten–Grade 1): early and whole number concepts; algebra readiness
- Book 2 (Grades 2–3): understanding place value; adding, subtracting, multiplying, dividing; algebra readiness
- Book 3 (Grades 4–6): working with fractions and decimals; algebra readiness
- Book 4 (Grades 6–8): Learning about percentages, ratios, and proportions; algebra readiness
Math Pathways & Pitfalls lessons build on each other within each topic. At the same time, teachers can choose specific lessons to address particular student needs, match their curriculum requirements, or align with the Common Core and math standards from selected states.
Learn how to select and sequence lessons according to the Common Core.
Principles and Practice
We provide a professional development model that guides teachers through five foundational principles and teaching practices aligned with the Common Core’s 8 Standards for Mathematical Practice. Each training session shows teachers how to use the principle in their Math Pathways & Pitfalls lessons.
Our team works directly with schools and districts to design lessons that use these proven teaching methods. We offer each training as a full-day workshop at your school, your district office, or at WestEd’s office in Alameda, California. Teachers can attend all five workshops or choose the ones that work best for them. This partnership gives districts the materials they need and the practical guidance on how to use them in the classroom.
Common Core Standards for Mathematical Practice
- Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them
- Reason abstractly and quantitatively
- Construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others
- Model with mathematics
- Use appropriate tools strategically
- Attend to precision
- Look for and make use of structure
- Look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning
Math Pathways & Pitfalls Five Foundational Principles and Alignment to the 8 Common Core Standards
Principle 1: Building Mathematical Discussions
Using academic language to reason about, explain, and justify mathematical ideas builds understanding and the capacity to make mathematical arguments.
[Aligns to Standards: 3, 5, 6]
Principle 2: Making Sense
Making sense of the mathematical meaning of words, symbols, and diagrams in contextualized and decontextualized problems is fundamental to finding and evaluating solutions.
[Aligns to Standards: 1, 2, 4]
Principle 3: Confronting Pitfalls
Contrasting mathematical reasoning with and without pitfalls builds conceptual understanding and prompts students to self-monitor and self-correct.
[aligns to Standard: 3]
Principle 4: Visualizing and Connecting
Discussing relationships among mathematical ideas using visual, verbal, and symbolic representations builds robust conceptual understanding.
[aligns to Standards: 1, 4, 7, 8]
Principle 5: Capturing Key Ideas
Creating a strategic public record of key mathematical ideas as they are being discussed helps students understand, summarize, and remember those ideas.
[Aligns to Standard: 2]
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