Exploring Creation with Mathematics

Provides comprehensive teaching guides with detailed instructions, supply lists, answers, and teaching tips, though formal professional development is not mentioned.

Reviews describe extensive teaching guides with 'reduced images of student text pages with overprinted answers, sometimes accompanied by tips or special instructions' and comprehensive parent guidance.

Strong support for direct instruction with comprehensive teaching guides that provide explicit guidance on what to say and do during lessons.

Reviews emphasize 'comprehensive parent guide that tells her exactly what to say and do' and describe detailed teaching guides with tips and instructions for teaching lessons.

Incorporates systematic retrieval practice through Daily Skills Practice sessions and games, plus mixed review problems at chapter ends in higher levels.

Reviews describe '5-10 minute Daily Skills Practice that reviews concepts previously taught' and mention 'sets of mixed review problems' at chapter ends, plus games for skill reinforcement.

Uses effective mastery-based approach with built-in spiral review through Daily Skills Practice that reviews previously taught concepts for 5-10 minutes daily.

Cathy Duffy review describes Daily Skills Practice that reviews concepts from previous units, and the curriculum description specifically mentions 'mastery approach with built-in spiral review.'

Extensive use of visual models and manipulatives including base ten blocks, ten frames, LEGO bricks, linking cubes, and other concrete materials following CRA progression.

Reviews detail extensive manipulative use including 'base ten blocks, ten frames, LEGO bricks, linking cubes, dominoes, playing cards, dice, counters' and describe concrete-representational-abstract instruction sequence.

The curriculum demonstrates strong balance by emphasizing both conceptual understanding through hands-on activities and mastery of math facts through systematic practice.

Reviews specifically note 'strong emphasis on mastering both math facts and conceptual understanding' and use of concrete-representational-abstract instruction sequence with manipulatives before moving to abstract concepts.

Includes word problems and real-world connections, though the systematic approach to teaching word problem schemas is not clearly described.

Reviews mention 'word problems' and that 'courses link mathematical concepts to the real world, primarily through word problems,' but don't detail systematic instruction in problem-solving strategies.

Limited evidence of systematic worked examples, though the comprehensive teaching guides provide detailed instruction on what to say and do during lessons.

Reviews mention teaching guides with detailed parent instructions and 'reduced images of student text pages with overprinted answers, sometimes accompanied by tips,' but don't specifically describe worked example formats.

Limited evidence of formal diagnostic assessments, though the Daily Skills Practice provides ongoing review and there are end-of-unit projects.

Reviews mention Daily Skills Practice for ongoing review and end-of-unit projects, but don't describe specific diagnostic assessment tools or placement tests.