• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Customer Service
  • My Account
  • Cart

RightStart™ Mathematics by Activities for Learning, Inc.

Menu
  • Curriculum
    • The RightStart™ Difference
    • RightStart™ for Home School
    • RightStart™ Tutoring
    • RightStart™ for Classrooms
    • Research
    • Spotlight on Kids
  • Games
  • Resources
    • Take the Placement Test
    • Recorded Webinars
    • Sample Lessons
    • Teaching Support
    • Levels G and H
    • Apps
    • Songs
    • Calendar
    • Social Media / Articles
    • FAQs
  • Blog
  • About
    • About the Author
    • Our Staff
    • Awards & Reviews
    • Customer Testimonials
    • Our Affiliate Program
  • Contact
    • Submit a Testimonial
    • Request a Presentation
    • Request an Event Speaker
    • Request a Classroom Quote
    • Request Professional Development
  • Placement Test
  • Shop

Spiral or Mastery?

November 18, 2011 by Kathleen Cotter Clayton

Is RightStart™ Mathematics Spiral or Mastery Approach?

RightStart™ Mathematics is a unique program that has aspects of both spiral and mastery approach. Both approaches have some validity as well as some drawbacks. First we need to define our terms.

Spiral learning is based on behaviorism, which says we are programmable machines and we need endless repetitions to master something. Spiral curriculums cover the same material year after year in ever widening circles, with the anticipation that increased exposures will eventually lead to mastery of the basics. The number of topics covered is broad, but they never go deep. It is more of an exposure philosophy.

Mastery approach curriculum builds sequentially. This philosophy states that there is no need to move to the next step until the preceding one is mastered. Therefore, lessons may take many days or even weeks if necessary for students to master the facts. Fewer topics are covered. Pre-testing and post-testing are done to assure mastery.

The human brain works by attaching new information to something already known. The more ways information is attached in the brain, the better it is learned. Children need more than one exposure and one way to learn a topic, but repeated exposures to the same material are not enough for mastery.

RightStart™ Mathematics introduces a large number of topics, but they are built sequentially for greater understanding. Students need to be challenged by many topics in order to see the interconnectedness in mathematics. For example, one of the goals of mathematics instruction is that students be fluid in their basic facts. So, students learn strategies for mastering the facts. They master them by playing games, which gives them a reason for learning the facts.

We need to teach students to be problem solvers. Thomas E. Clark, author of VideoText Algebra, defines the goal of arithmetic as finding an answer, and the goal of mathematics as solving a problem. In RightStart™, students learn techniques for thinking mathematically. Lessons systematically introduce principles of mathematics that lead students to self-discovery.

FacebookTwitterPinterestPrintFriendly

Filed Under: 2. Lessons, 4. General Info, 7. Classroom

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. My Favorite Homeschool Math Curriculum - Faithful Provisions says

    September 4, 2014 at 9:04 am

    […] Solid foundation that works in a spiral approach. (Read more about what a spiral approach is here.) […]

Primary Sidebar

Categories

  • 1. Card Games
  • 2. Lessons
  • 3. Struggling Learner
  • 4. General Info
  • 5. News
  • 6. Montessori
  • 7. Classroom

What our Customers Are Saying

Thank you so much for your RightStart Math Curriculum. I have been using it for 3 years with my son and my daughter is beginning her second year. I love the strategies you use for teaching math and the lessons are fun to teach.
Jennifer Traugott
My daughter is 7 and this is our 2nd year to use RightStart Math. She is in 2nd grade and is adding and subtracting 4 digits numbers with trading like it is nothing. She also can do her multiplications. The most amazing thing is that when she is somewhere and has to spend her money she is quick to tell them how much change she needs back. I have seen a lot of teenagers and adults who cannot do thi… Read more
Jana Owens
My daughter is in 4th grade this year. Math has always been a struggle for her, as it was for her father. I discovered that she has dyslexia (which is hereditary). I didn’t realize that had any effect on math, but I found out that people with dyslexia cannot learn with rote memorization or sequential skills. This makes it harder for them to remember math facts or how to do algorithms. Before I kne… Read more
Anna Knotts

Footer

RightStart™ Mathematics logo
Shop Online Apps Customer Service
Copyright © 2023 Activities For Learning, Inc. | All Rights Reserved | Privacy Policy | Developed by Vivid Image
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Curriculum
    • The RightStart™ Difference
    • RightStart™ for Home School
    • RightStart™ Tutoring
    • RightStart™ for Classrooms
    • Research
    • Spotlight on Kids
    • Back
  • Games
  • Resources
    • Take the Placement Test
    • Recorded Webinars
    • Sample Lessons
    • Teaching Support
    • Levels G and H
    • Apps
    • Songs
    • Calendar
    • Social Media / Articles
    • FAQs
    • RightStart™ Math Online Conference 2023
    • Back
  • Blog
  • About
    • About the Author
    • Our Staff
    • Awards & Reviews
    • Customer Testimonials
    • Our Affiliate Program
    • Back
  • Contact
    • Submit a Testimonial
    • Request a Presentation
    • Request an Event Speaker
    • Request a Classroom Quote
    • Request Professional Development
    • Back
  • Placement Test
  • Shop
  • Customer Service
  • My Account
  • Cart