The Carnegie Learning Math Solution + Thinking Classrooms

Iowa teacher Courtney Stephenson wears many hats, but a peek at her posts on X (Twitter) or a quick conversation shows that the 14-year veteran educator does so with overflowing energy, passion, and commitment.

Recently, Mrs. Stephenson—a 6th grade math teacher and math and science instructional coach—has also donned the hat of math classroom game-changer at ADM Community School District’s DeSoto Intermediate School. 

“We’ve been on a journey to find the best fit in a math curriculum,” she explains. “We wanted to make sure students had equitable instruction and what we’re using is high quality.”

ADM Community Schools found their perfect curriculum match in our Middle School Math Solution, and Mrs. Stephenson knew she’d found the perfect complement to Peter Liljedahl’s Building Thinking Classrooms.

Here’s how she’s guiding teachers to build thinking classrooms in mathematics that push students to think for themselves, gain true conceptual understanding, and become confident, engaged mathematicians.

A “game-changing” connection to Building Thinking Classrooms

When ADM Community Schools adopted the Middle School Math Solution in 2023, Mrs. Stephenson was just starting to learn about building thinking classrooms.

It was a match made in heaven.

“Pairing Carnegie Learning with building thinking classrooms has been a game-changer,” expresses Mrs. Stephenson. “Our students have gone from sitting and getting and being somewhat passive learners to actively taking control of their learning and being accountable. They approach tasks in a way we haven’t seen before. We’ve seen amazing impacts.”

Impact 1: Thinking over mimicking

Like many math classrooms across the country, Mrs. Stephenson saw a lot of old-school gradual release of responsibility in her room and among those she was coaching.

“It was a lot of I do, we do, you do,” she explains. “Kids were mimicking what I was doing and not actually doing the thinking for themselves.”

Liljedahl observed these characteristics during his research and advocates for a new approach. 

“In a traditional classroom,” he explains, “we show the students how to do it, then we do one together, then they practice it on their own, the classic I do, we do, you do, which promotes— whether you want it or not—a form of behavior called mimicking. So these students are just going to mimic their way through. In a thinking classroom, in order to get students to think rather than mimic, we have to remove the I do.”

In thinking classrooms, students learn through collaboration and risk-taking by engaging in what Liljedahl calls “thinking tasks.” This requires teachers to foster a culture of vulnerability where students are comfortable making mistakes that lead to deeper understanding.

Thinking classrooms also look different from traditional rows and seats. LIljedahl advocates for teachers to defront their classrooms (meaning there is no real “front” to the classroom) so students do the thinking and collaborate on vertical, non-permanent surfaces where they move around and engage in discourse.

This philosophy of student-driven learning is a natural fit with the Middle School Math Solution, where students learn through collaborative, teacher-facilitated experiences in the textbook, MATHbook, and individually when they use our online math coaching software, MATHia(R).

Mrs. Stephenson couldn’t love the fit more and is enthusiastic about the changes she’s helped enact. “Now they’re doing the thinking for themselves and I’m seeing them apply mathematical knowledge in ways I’ve never seen before.”

Impact 2: True conceptual understanding

Mrs. Stephenson has also led her students toward developing a conceptual understanding of math concepts.

“We’re getting away from math tricks and shortcuts! Students are building a true understanding of what they’re doing,” she says with a smile.

Mrs. Stephenson attributes this shift in student learning to implementing the Middle School Math Solution with fidelity. She also credits her push toward math thinking classrooms where students collaborate in random groups until they understand the material for themselves, not just because the teacher confirms their answer is correct.

Impact 3: Talking like mathematicians 

Another milestone achievement for DeSoto’s young learners? They sound like mathematicians.

“The math vocabulary is way beyond what I’ve ever seen prior to this year,” Mrs. Stephenson explains. 

Thinking classrooms and the Middle School Math Solution are driven by student discourse—with a particular emphasis on vocabulary. Mrs. Stephenson’s 6th graders have quickly adapted to using the language of mathematics, thanks to a math solution that empowers students to use vocabulary within the context of the work.

“We’re not saying ‘keep, change, flip’ anymore,” she explains. “My students are saying, ‘multiply by the reciprocal!’ Or with ratios, now they say ‘scaling up’ or ‘scaling down,’ where before they used to say, ‘we times-ed or divided.’”

Impact 4: Soaring student engagement

The impacts of building thinking classrooms in mathematics and the Middle School Math Solution aren’t only apparent to the teachers in the trenches. DeSoto principal Amy Hemphill has also seen drastic changes in students, thanks to the charge led by Mrs. Stephenson.

“I see a level of engagement that wasn’t there before,” shares Mrs. Hemphill. “The amount of active learning and active responding students do in math is new. Before, teachers were standing, and students were sitting and complying. They were just getting information and we would hope it sticks.”

She attributes much of the increased student engagement to the Middle School Math Solution. “It has tasks that are so relatable to students,” Mrs. Hemphill continues. “I remember one lesson that started with looking at a cell phone battery percentage, which is such a great real-world connection. If students see that connection, engagement is even higher.”

Mrs. Stephenson agrees. “They’re more engaged—everyone is participating. No one is coasting.”

Impact 5: Spike in student confidence

Mrs. Stephenson’s quest to bring thinking classrooms to DeSoto has not only increased student engagement but also boosted their math confidence. 

It all comes down to a classroom culture where students know they can make mistakes, experiment, and succeed.

Liljedahl states, “Good problem-solving tasks require students to get stuck and then to think, to experiment, to try and to fail, and to apply their knowledge in novel ways in order to get unstuck.”

The Middle School Math Solution is filled to the brim with these high-quality problem-solving tasks, and Mrs. Hemphill has seen the impact on student confidence firsthand. 

“I’m impressed by the higher level of grit I’ve seen our students bring to challenging math problems and activities,” she explains. “It's almost like a muscle that they've built. They know that they have the skills. Their walls don't go up right away.”

Can’t stop, won’t stop! We are so very close to the end of the school year, but these 6th graders are still locked in. Fantastic collaboration and fantastic math application! Bravo, pals! #WeAreADM #buildingthinkingclassrooms #carnegielearning pic.twitter.com/Lyq0qYXVyl

— Mrs. Stephenson (@stephenson_adm) May 15, 2024

Impact 6: Less pressure on teachers

Finally, Mrs. Stephenson has positively impacted her teachers (and in her own teaching practice!) by implementing the Middle School Math Solution and building thinking classrooms.

“The students are now doing the thinking for themselves,” she explains. “That takes a lot of pressure off of me as a teacher. I used to feel like, ‘Are they getting what I’m saying? Are they able to do what I’m doing?’’

But because the Middle School Math Solution and thinking classrooms put students at the center of the learning process, DeSoto teachers can act as facilitators instead of the sage on the stage who spends a whole school day doing all the talking.

“I also feel like the pressure has been taken off of me for some of the differentiation pieces,” Mrs. Stephenson continues. “When they’re working in groups, they all have something different to bring to the table and can show how they think about things differently”

Looking toward the future

These positive impacts on the students and teachers of DeSoto Intermediate School are only the start—Mrs. Stephenson and Mrs. Hemphill have big plans to build mathematics thinking classrooms for the benefit of every ADM student.

“We spent a lot of time learning about what we, as a district, believe to be best practices in math, learning, and teaching,” Mrs. Hemphill explains. “Carnegie Learning fits that bill perfectly. And now, thanks to [Mrs. Stephenson], we can enhance the curriculum with this great instructional practice of building thinking classrooms. She’s been invaluable in supporting our teachers, which flows down to our students. We know we will get our students to unprecedented levels of success.”