News

On September 24, the North Central ESD hosted the first convening of the Math Breakthrough Network in Wenatchee with teams from the Cashmere, Chelan, Ephrata, and Quincy School Districts.

The Math Breakthrough Network brings teachers, school leaders, and key staff together to strengthen math teaching and learning across schools in the North Central Educational Service District region. The network’s goal is to ensure every student experiences clear, engaging math instruction that builds understanding, reasoning, and confidence.

The network focuses on the instruction students receive every day. In participating classrooms, students will have opportunities to explore math problems, explain their thinking, learn from one another, and represent ideas in different ways. Teachers will use student work, classroom conversations, and frequent checks for understanding to identify what students know and adjust instruction.

Participants will learn and improve together through multiple connected experiences throughout the year.

• Quarterly professional learning: Participants will deepen their math knowledge, strengthen teaching and leadership practices, and coordinate support across schools, with learning tailored to their roles.
• Three rounds of collaborative lesson study: With guidance from expert instructional coaches, school teams will plan lessons together, observe how students respond, and refine their teaching based on evidence of student learning.

The network’s approach is grounded in improvement science—a practical process of testing changes, studying the results, and using what is learned to improve. Teams will establish shared beliefs about what every student should experience in math and use a research-based lesson structure, such as introducing a problem, giving students time to explore it, and bringing the class together to discuss and connect their learning.

Four priorities guide this work:

• Strong daily instruction: Clear learning goals, meaningful problems, mathematical discussion, and timely feedback.
• Teacher learning and collaboration: Shared planning, peer observation, and opportunities to examine student thinking.
• Instructional leadership: School leaders who can recognize, support, and help strengthen effective math teaching.
• Coordinated support: Consistent expectations across grade levels, accessible instruction, and additional help when needed, including support for multilingual learners, students with disabilities, and other underserved students.

By connecting professional learning with ongoing classroom practice, the Math Breakthrough Network helps educators turn shared learning into stronger instruction and more equitable opportunities for students.