Help Math Program

HELP Math is unique in its focus on academic language in the context of instruction. It targets vocabulary development and academic English with the following research-based strategies:

Pre-teach essential vocabulary in context – Building background knowledge (Marzano); KEY WORDS Activity in many lessons
Repeat and practice of essential words in various different contexts – Academic language is included in every activity and presented in a variety of contexts
Integrate Academic Language throughout the instruction and interactivity – simultaneous development of math concept and language mastery
Academic Language is modelled with guided practice, repeated, visualized, explained, and practiced again so that it is rendered understandable/comprehensible, and can be mastered so that the language is ready to be used to develop additional concepts (when a new concept is introduced, key vocabulary is additionally scaffolded, ensuring mastery)
Synchronicity – of audio, visual, and text, which creates connection between words, symbols, and meaning
Visual representations - HELP Math provides a visual illustration of concepts (e.g., a figure), as well as English and native language (Spanish) audio and interactivity (e.g., click the butterfly).
Extra and content-specific vocabulary explained in English and Spanish through hyperlinks and key terms dictionary - always includes text, audio and visual. This pedagogical functionality is included in “Formulas” and “Need More Help” scaffolds
Scaffolding the linguistic load through repeated exposure to Academic Language in a variety of contexts (e.g., during instruction, learning games, etc.)
Clear description of academic tasks
Appropriate speech (pace of virtual math coach, sentence structure, paraphrasing)
Interactive Notepad - building students’ reasoning and writing skills using academic language
Interactive Notepad can be used for KWL activities, for example:
- What is my objective for today (know and understand by the end of the class)?
- What do I know about this already (prior knowledge)?
- What new vocabulary was introduced today?
- One question that I would like to ask my teacher is…

Supporting Academic Language