Blue Ribbon Reviews January 2006
By Linda Lindroth

Math concepts are sometimes abstract and difficult to visualize. Technology can provide tools for the math classroom to help students use math skills in a real-world context to make them more concrete.

Math for MicroWorlds EX™
The MicroWorlds products from LCSI use Logo programming language to provide students with real-world math explorations. Math for Micro-Worlds EX includes 10 digital tutorials with step-by-step instructions for completing activities on word problems, fractions, geometry, coordinates, money and division. The cd includes additional book samples so students can see what projects look like when completed.

The MicroWorlds Environment. The MicroWorlds EX program uses "Traveling Smart Turtles" – turtles with backpacks – to perform actions. Turtles can be any size or shape, or even invisible. They move at different speeds and follow instructions to complete tasks that are either pre-programmed in the Turtle backpack or created by students using the Logo programming language. Turtles can interact with keys, colors, messages or other turtles.

The Math for MicroWorlds EX activities use Math Turtles; students will also find it helpful to use the Bargrapher and Gridder Turtles. Samples from other users or those you create yourself can be copied into the Book Samples. Turtles can draw shapes for concrete examples of geometric principles. A project page can be designed to visually demonstrate area, perimeter, angles and measurement.

All of the activities in the book/cd Math for MicroWorlds EX support the math standards for grades 3-8 as well as the NCTM Technology principles. Each activity includes a detailed lesson-plan guide for teachers and step-by-step instructions for completing the activity in one to two class periods.

Visit www.microworlds.com or call 800-321-5646 for more information. Math for MicroWorlds EX Win/OS X is $89.

MathScore.com
Motivating students to practice problems (and repeat like problems) until a skill is mastered is not an easy task. The MathScore.com web-based practice environment actually motivates students in grades 2-8 to work on math facts and complete timed worksheets over and over for mastery so they can move to the next level. It's like a video game with a score to beat, the competition being the student's own scores.

Students select from a topic list (covering basic skills through pre-algebra), get an automated worksheet and receive immediate feedback. When a student misses a problem, an explanation of the solution is immediately generated giving the correct answer and the student answer. A Milestone Chart tracks each skill, listing the level, the number of problems, the time limit and the rating or score. Once a student reaches mastery, he or she can repeat a worksheet to get above proficient (100) and go over 100 (advanced), or move on to the next skill. Students also love to play CopyCat, which helps them learn the computer number pad.

The Monitoring Tools and reports for school or home are outstanding. Reports include the mean, median and mode for skill levels and even the number of problems and time spent on task. Everything is color-coded for the student and the teacher, making it easy to browse reports.

Visit MathScore.com for more information. Home use is $19.95 per month; inquire on the website about the cost to purchase for school use.

Linda K. Lindroth is Technology Editor and Web Coordinator for Teaching Pre K-8. She is also a Technology Resource Teacher in a K-5 computer lab in Lexington, KY.