Phase I of the California Statewide Early Math Initiative was a collaborative effort between AIMS, Fresno County Superintendent of Schools, the California Early Math Project, WestEd, and film producer Les Mayfield III. Through the initiative and in collaboration with partners, AIMS developed a statewide strategy to unite county offices of education, infant/toddler and preschool programs, local educational agencies, teacher associations, higher education, state agencies, administrators, and teachers and parents to:

• Develop knowledge and understanding of early math and science alongside teachers, care providers and parents

• Bridge the gaps in mathematics education between early education and K-12

• Develop and disseminate innovate math and science activities, strategies, and resources

• Develop a model for teacher coaching and leadership throughout California, starting with the Central Valley 

The centerpiece of AIMS’ work is the professional development and coaching program, a multi-year learning and training effort to help early childhood directors, coordinators and lead teachers implement high-quality, equitable early mathematics education across the state. The program’s goal is to improve early mathematics education with an emphasis on acknowledging the assets present in the sociocultural and linguistic differences in California communities. Participants study and develop multiple ways to provide accessible opportunities to all children and families that tie into the state’s Infant/Toddler and Preschool Learning Foundations and the California Common Core Math Standards and Practices. Activities have included:

• a week-long professional learning seminar at the AIMS Center summer 2019

• quarterly Community of Practice meetings

• a two-day virtual summer institute 2020

In addition, each agency received monthly one-on-one coaching support to help shape individualized implementation plans.

implementation highlights

During the 2020 Institute, each organization shared a summary poster of their implementation plan, including their project goals, timeline, and impact.

Research Fellowships

The California Statewide Early Math Initiative invited participation by doctoral students across California. These research fellowships supported involvement of doctoral students from 3 different research universities in California. Research fellows supported AIMS with developing and facilitating the Professional Development for the initiative, conducted research, and engaged in scholarship through conference presentations and publications.

Publications & Presentations

Caldwell, B., Gribble, J., Macias, M., Reimer, P. N., Rosenbaum, L. F., & Spina, A. (2019, November). Fostering culturally-responsive, play-based learning as part of California's Statewide Early Math Initiative. Promising Math 2019: Early Math Learning in Family and Community Contexts, Chicago, IL.

Gribble J., Reimer, P., Rizo, A., Pauls, S., Caldwell, B., Macias, M., Spina, A., Rosenbaum, A. (2020). Robot block-based coding in preschool. In M. Gresalfi & I.S. Horn, (Eds.), The Interdisciplinarity of the Learning Sciences, 14th International Conference of the Learning Sciences (ICLS) 2020, Volume 4 (pp. 2229-2232). Nashville, Tennessee: International Society of the Learning Sciences.

Macias, M., Spina, A., Rosenbaum, L. F., Caldwell, B., Gribble, J., Reimer, P. N. (2020, May). Professional development aligned with leaders’ goals in early childhood STEM education: A collaboration between researchers and practitioners. Building Interdisciplinary Community: GGSE Research Symposium. UC Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA.

Rosenbaum, L. F., Caldwell, B., Gribble, J., Macias, M., Spina, A., & Reimer, P. N., (2020). Efforts to support and study early math professional development through a research-practice partnership. Poster presented at the 2020 Research Day Conference. Berkeley, CA. *Conference cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic.

Spina, A., Macias, M., & Reimer, P. N. (2020). How facilitators define, design, and implement effective early childhood mathematics professional development. In Sacristán, A.I., Cortés-Zavala, J.C. & Ruiz-Arias, P.M. (Eds.). (2020). Mathematics Education Across Cultures: Proceedings of the 42nd Meeting of the North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education, Mexico. (pp. 1931-1935). Cinvestav / AMIUTEM / PME- NA. https:/doi.org/10.51272/pmena.42.2020

Reimer, P. N., Rizo, A., Pauls, S. (2021, June). Remote engagement in early mathematics professional development: Using tangible artifacts to mediate participation. Poster presented at the 42nd Meeting of the North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education, Mexico.

Partner Organizations

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

Bay Area

Central California

Southern California