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Location: Orio, Spain / Number of students: 342
Grades using Innovamat: Elementary school / Using Innovamat since: 2021
At Innovamat we believe that teaching mathematics should be more than just memorizing formulas and rules. We strive to create a learning environment where students can experiment and make meaningful connections.
At the Orioko Herri Ikastola school in Orio, they share this view of mathematics. We went to talk to them and they explained the transformation their math classes have undergone after the implementation of the Innovamat curriculum.
Maialen San Sebastián, a 2nd grade teacher, has noticed a big change in student motivation since they started using Innovamat. “They switch on in class right from the start and, above all, everyone participates; even those students who used to struggle the most, now they also get involved and share their suggestions, hypotheses…”, she says.
Students are no longer afraid to participate, to have their say and to present their conjectures. Classes are much more active.
For her part, Aurora Azkue, 5th grade teacher, highlights how the challenges provided in Innovamat present concrete and challenging situations that get both the students and the teachers involved. “We have worked the map of Barcelona, and I get involved with the students too. The challenge worked on scale, distance…, and even if it wasn’t too difficult for them, the word itself says: it is a challenge,” she says.
Aitor Dorronsoro, 6th grade teacher, highlights how Innovamat has changed the way he teaches: “Before we started a topic and it was worked on again and again until it was done. Then we moved on to another topic, and so on. Now, we don’t explore topics as deeply, but because we don’t have to. We continue to learn and later we return to the activities and establish more Connections.”
Maialen tells us that previously, she and her students were not satisfied with the teaching materials they worked with. However, she says that thanks to Innovamat, they now have access to a variety of complementary manipulatives that help them understand mathematical concepts better: “With this curriculum we have all the manipulatives at hand.” “And we have the guides, where the next steps that need to be taken are explained” she adds.
The guides provided by Innovamat are very useful for Maialen as they are designed in a clear way and they are easy to follow. If you have any questions or doubts, you can consult these guides or also get quick answers from the advisors.
Aurora also found a solution for their needs in Innovamat. As a former kindergarten teacher, Aurora was familiar with the use of manipulatives, but she didn’t have a suitable textbook to teach math. Innovamat gave you not only manipulatives, but also complementary logbooks that help your students record their learning.
Both teachers are excited about how Innovamat has improved their math teaching. Maialen is particularly excited to see how motivated students are and how they engage with manipulatives, and how they are learning through exploration and collaboration.
“I think Innovamat shows us that in mathematics there are different ways to get to the same answer. In math we always look for an answer and there are different ways to find it, but one is no better than another. Students learn a lot from each other. They absorb what their classmates say easily,” she explains.
Aurora is grateful for the opportunity to teach her students different ways to get to the same destination and that they themselves can choose which way to go to solve a mathematical problem. She says that:
“I, as a teacher, will teach you different ways to reach the same destination, and then you will decide which way to go.”
Aurora recalls a visit by an Innovamat advisor who changed the way she thought about teaching division: “An Innovamat coordinator came and told us ‘To divide you don’t need to know all the times tables’. He told us just like that. And I thought, what? So why are we teaching up to the ten times table? And also teaching them in a memory-based way? At that moment I thought: what is the difference between the math we have been taught and are teaching, and what Innovamat suggests? The goal is the same: solve a division, but you don’t need to know as much content if you know how to use logic.”
Student motivation and active participation in classes have improved their understanding and skills in mathematics. Challenges are challenging for students. They see them as an opportunity to test their skills and learn in a meaningful way.
