Response to Intervention in Math

Paul J. Riccomini is an experienced classroom teacher, author, mathematician, and leading special education expert. Dr. Riccomini began his career as a dual-certified general education mathematics teacher of students with learning disabilities, emotional and behavioral disabilities, and gifted and talented students in Grades 7-12. He taught mathematics to both general and special education students in inclusive settings. He is coauthor of the best-selling Response to Intervention in Math (Corwin, 2009) book and is an associate professor of education at the Pennsylvania State University. His teaching experiences required him to have both strong content knowledge in mathematics and to develop and maintain strong collaborative relationships with both general and special educators. As a former middle and high school mathematics teacher, he knows firsthand the challenges faced by students who struggle in mathematics and recognizes the importance of early mathematics development. He hopes the writing of this book will assist teachers in their efforts to develop young mathematicians. Dr. Riccomini provides professional development in schools across the nation. His dynamic presentations offer research-validated practices that focus on the development of improved instructional practices for all students. Dr. Riccomini's written work includes numerous research and practitioner articles for students with and without learning disabilities, including one of the first books to address Response to Intervention in the area of mathematics. Additional publications he coauthored include three Tier 2 Interventions for the areas of fractions, integers, and simple equations. Bradley S. Witzel, PhD, is an award-winning teacher and professor who works as an associate professor and education program coordinator at Winthrop University, the flagship education college for the state of South Carolina. As a classroom teacher, and before that as a paraeducator, he worked in multiple settings teaching mainly math and science to high-achieving students with disabilities. Dr. Witzel has written five books, including the best-selling Response to Intervention in Math through Corwin, as well as several dozen book chapters, research and practitioner articles, and training manuals. He has also produced six education videos and several hundred conference and workshop presentations. He is a selected member of the Governing Board of the Southeast Regional Educational Laboratory (REL), funded by the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), and of the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) Accessibility and Accommodations work group. Dr. Witzel currently serves as the editor of Focus on Inclusive Education through the Association for Childhood Education International (ACEI) and recently served as a panelist on the IES practice guide Assisting Students Struggling with Mathematics and as an invited reviewer of the final report from the National Mathematics Advisory Panel. Most importantly, he is a father of two, husband of an educator, and son of two educators.

Preface Acknowledgments About the Authors 1. What Is RTI, and Why Is It Important? Overview of RTI Key Research Support for RTI and Mathematics Summary 2. The RTI Process for Math: Getting Started Selection of the RTI Team Members Belief System Common Models of Implementation Assessment Importance of the Core Mathematics Program Summary 3. A Tiered Approach to More Effective Mathematics Instruction Tier 1 Instruction and Curriculum Tier 2 Intervention and Curriculum Tier 3 Instruction and Curriculum Summary 4. Mathematics Interventions Overview Who Needs Intervention? What Do I Teach for the Intervention? Who Should Intervene? Where? How Long? How Do I Organize My Curriculum? What Types of Curricular Strategies Should Be Used for Tier 2 and Tier 3 Interventions? Summary 5. Number Sense and Initial Math Skills Assessments of Number Sense Instructional Delivery of Number Sense Curricular Elements of a Number Sense Intervention In Context Summary 6. Building Students' Proficiency With Whole Numbers Importance of Proficiency in Whole Numbers General Recommendations for Building Proficiency Building Automatic Recall of Basic Facts With the Mastering Math Facts Program Building Proficiency With Whole Numbers Through PALS Math Summary 7. Fractions and Decimals Fractions in the Standards Assessment for Fractions and Decimals When Are Calculators Sufficient? Teaching the "What" With Fractions and Decimals Teaching the "How to Compute" With Fractions and Decimals Teaching Fluency With Fractions and Decimals In Context Summary 8. Teaching Problem Solving Strategically Problem-Solving Programs Summary 9. The Importance of Teaching Mathematical Vocabulary The Importance of Teaching Mathematical Vocabulary Instructional Activities to Promote Learning of Essential Mathematical Vocabulary Assessing Students' Knowledge of Mathematical Vocabulary Summary 10. Next Steps in the RTI Process Professional Development Reconsidering the Tier 1 Mathematics Curriculum Why Is This Important for Educators Implementing an RTI Math Model? An Alternative Approach: A Two Tier 1 Core Mathematics Program Summary References Index

"Does a great job of blending ideas from mathematics education and the National Mathematics Panel Report with special education research. A great resource for those starting an RTI mathematics program." -- Russell Gersten, Professor Emeritus, University of Oregon "Finally, a scholarly and practical text to help administrators and teachers learn about and institute Response to Intervention in math! Riccomini and Witzel have assembled a straightforward, well-organized, and systematically presented text that will be popular with inservice and preservice teachers alike. It is easy to follow and not overwhelming. As a teacher educator, I am always searching for a text that has utility for later use, and this is such a book! This is one of those rare textbooks that teachers will use long after their course on effective instruction." -- Kimberly Bright, Associate Professor of Educational Leadership and Special Education "The most comprehensive RTI book for mathematics that I have seen to date. The importance of choosing a research-based, effective, balanced core program cannot be overstated. By following the guidelines in this book, districts can make good, sound decisions." -- Shelly Kelly, Math Instructional Coach "This book hits the right balance between being practical and research driven. It provides scientific, research-based instruction in mathematics, show that RTI can focus on more than just reading. It's a tour de force!" -- Kathy Durbin, Student Services Director "This book is well written and well organized. I found the list of web sites for math programs and interventions of great use. I highly recommend Response to Intervention in Math." -- Joseph C. Ciechalski