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Borrowing/Carrying –> Regrouping

Participants in this workout learn to teach strategies that support conceptual understanding of place value instead of the algorithm.

Rational Number Project: Fraction Operations and Initial Decimal Ideas

Free lessons from the Rational Number Project about fraction concepts: adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing. Understanding of decimals is introduced as well. Teacher's guide, worksheets and colored fraction templates included. These resources help develop conceptual understanding.

Rational Number Project: Initial Fraction Ideas

Free lessons about fractions: concept, equivalencies, ordering, adding and subtracting. Teacher's guide, worksheets and colored fraction templates included. These resources help develop conceptual understanding.

Building Conceptual Understanding

Participants in this workout consider the conceptual understanding behind the traditional algorithm for long division and then recognize the importance of building students’ conceptual understanding beyond this example of long division and into every area of math.

Why Before How

Teachers can use this book to build the concept of place value, encourage students to consider multiple methods for solving problems, and build real understanding of the meaning behind addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division paving the way to beginning algebra.

The Best Way to Learn Math is to Learn to Fail Productively

Manu Kapur's research finds that students are more successful when teachers allow them to have a period of (teacher-planned) productive struggle with material before the teacher provides direct instruction on the math strategies.

Progression of Addition and Subtraction

What is a progression that builds to a conceptual understanding of addition and subtraction? In this 7-minute video, Gfletchy demonstrates strategies that teachers can use to develop students' conceptual understanding as a building block to fluency.

Progression of Division

What is a progression that builds to a conceptual understanding of division? In this 8-minute video, Gfletchy demonstrates strategies that teachers can use to develop students' conceptual understanding as a building block to fluency.

Progression of Early Number and Counting

What is an instructional progression that leads to conceptual understanding of counting and numbers? This 8-minute video lays out a progression for children learning these concepts, but ABE teachers of students with beginning numeracy will find useful ideas here.

Progression of Multiplication

What is a progression that builds to a conceptual understanding of multiplication? In this 6-minute video, Gfletchy demonstrates strategies that teachers can use to develop students' conceptual understanding as a building block to fluency.

Fluency Without Fear

Turns out memorization, timed tests and flash cards are not the most effective ways to learn math facts! This article from Jo Boaler addresses developing students' fluency with math facts (such as times tables), including confidence and how some common approaches to math facts can be related to anxiety and loss of perseverance.

For Teachers: Please Don’t Teach Exponent Rules

A teacher writes about how he approaches operations with exponents so that the students make meaning and discover the rules for operations with exponents for themselves.

Concept, Method, Procedure (The Secret Formula for Math Success)

Max Ray, of The Math Forum, explores developing procedures from conceptual understanding. His 5-minute video uses dividing by fractions as the topic for instruction.

Math Ceiling

This post from Math with Bad Drawings blog explores the following questions related to the Key Shift of rigor: Do we have a "math ceiling" where some math is beyond our ability to comprehend? If a student can perform the math task I am targeting without conceptual understanding (i.e., they know the procedure, but not why it works), do they really need more?

New Resources

Beginning ESL Literacy Distance Learning or In-Class Units

The Beginning EL Literacy (NRS ESL Level 1, CASAS STEPS 160-183) lessons provided here can be used in class, or assigned out of class as proxy hours by a TVM-certified teacher. The lessons are paper-packet based, and each has a QR code link to a video for the lesson. Each unit contains 5 lessons. Each lesson introduces 6-8 new vocabulary words, and is meant to build knowledge based on previous lessons.

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PD Catalog

Get an overview of all MN Adult Education professional development (PD) activities in one convenient, searchable place!

PD Catalog

Presenter Information

Get information about stipends, reimbursements, the MN Adult Ed policy on use of images in presentations, and other instructions for presenters.

 

MN Adult Ed YouTube Channel

The MN Adult Education YouTube Channel is a free online PD resource that you can use to explore teaching techniques and classroom ideas in action! Find out more in this MN ABE Connect newsletter article.

 

ATLAS Announcements & Future PD

Check out the latest list of ATLAS professional development announcements and opportunities! This is the document that is shared at all ATLAS events.

 

Virtual Meeting Resources

Find resources for conducting online meetings/events/presentations! You are welcome to use and adapt these materials to fit your own needs and context.

 

Upcoming ABE Events

March 9, 2026 6:30 pm–8:30 pm
Literacy Minnesota
Online

Volunteer Core Training Module 1: Overview of Minnesota Adult Education and Program Accountability

Online

Registration Deadline: MON. 3/9/26 Venue: Online (see details below) Participants learn about Adult Basic Education programming in Minnesota, demographics of learners, instructional content standards as well as initial and on-going assessment. This session wraps up with learner motivations, barriers and persistence. Learn More

Online
March 10, 2026 6:30 pm–8:30 pm
Literacy Minnesota
Online

Teaching Intermediate Alphabetics

Online

Registration Deadline: TUE. 3/10/26 Venue: Online (see details below) Teaching intermediate alphabetics (syllables, prefixes, suffixes, root words) is a great way to help students build their decoding and comprehension skills. Come learn a variety of fun and easy-to-use routines and activities for helping intermediate-level readers develop these important… Learn More

Online
March 11, 2026 2:00 pm–4:00 pm
ATLAS
Online

Antiracist Praxis Study Circle

Online

Application Deadline: FRI. 2/13/26 Many of us have heard the terms antiracist and DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion), but how do we actually implement these large frameworks into our adult English classrooms? This study circle goes beyond defining antiracism and explores how the research around Translanguaging by Ofelia… Learn More

Online