Over a two-month period this spring, a group of teachers, administrators, staff members, and Intermediate Unit 13 (IU13) staff members from Lancaster Mennonite School at the New Danville Campus launched a program to encourage math skills gains for second- and third-grade students. The effort started with teachers analyzing the mid-year Acadience math and NWEA MAP Growth assessment data and identifying students' addition and subtraction fact skills as an area of recommended growth.

Working together, the team developed a plan to improve scores for those specific skill areas in each class by the end of the year. Second-grade teacher Sophie Dodge and third-grade teacher Angela Dietzel sought the support of IU13 math consultant Judy Trusz, as well as Lancaster Mennonite librarian Sarah Fichtner and IU13 math specialist Janelle Lammey.

Through a series of classroom observations and data meetings, the team formed small groups of students across both grade levels that would meet for 15 minutes per week for targeted addition and subtraction strategy instruction specific to their current level.

Each Wednesday morning, the four New Danville staff members now meet with their groups for a time called Math Buddies. The group leaders have used all sorts of games, speed activities, direct instruction, technology-integrated activities, and other evidence-based strategies to engage students in fun and collaborative multi-age fact practice time. The Lancaster Mennonite values of empowering lifelong learning and nurturing curiosity are at work during Math Buddies time, as students make new friends, laugh together, and challenge one another to strive for academic excellence.

Two months into the initiative, the team again met with Trusz. The team shared that over the two months, the data collected by the teachers showed that the students participating in Math Buddies demonstrated significant growth across the board and were on track to meet the team's goals before the end of the school year. The team also found that all the students enjoyed Math Buddies.

In speaking with supervisors at the IU13, Trusz commented, "I am so impressed with what this group of women from New Danville has accomplished in the past two months when they focused on math facts and differentiation by combining efforts of many people on staff."

Principal Lindsay Carson noted, "This collaboration and innovation is truly a strength of Lancaster Mennonite - the partnership between staff members and the belief that all of our students are truly 'our' students, that their progress is everyone's responsibility."