Math literacy is an integral part of our students’ education and new programs have been added district-wide to help them grow and succeed through the support of community members and local businesses.
At Retta Brown, students are learning to choose between spending versus saving through the use of Retta Bucks. After all of our elementary schools read “The Lemonade War,” a book about a brother and sister who learn economic and financial principles through opening their own lemonade stands, Retta Brown took the opportunity to build on that by introducing their Retta Bucks. Thanks to a generous grant from Simmons Bank, the school purchased items for their Retta Store. Students receive Retta Bucks as positive reinforcement throughout the week and then every other Friday, they have the chance to either spend their Bucks on something at the store or save them to make a larger purchase later. Simmons Bank has enhanced this lesson in financial discipline by giving each 4th grade child their own mock check books. Students use these during math class to learn about depositing and withdrawing money and balancing their accounts.
At Barton Junior High, students have the opportunity to begin getting high school credit early with the addition of Physical Science to their curriculum this year. This course is geared toward students who excel in math and science and who are also enrolled in the Algebra I class for high school credit. Barton is planning to add a Computer Business Applications course for 8th grade students in the upcoming school year. This course will be the basis for many business courses offered at EHS.
Math and science are also being utilized at Barton this year as students developed concepts, design and marketed their own 9-hole golf course. The course will begin being built at Barton this spring and will be completed by next school year for use in the Physical Education program and other activities.
At the high school level, community support has allowed more students than ever to participate in county, regional, and state math competitions. The MathCats, as these competitive math students are called, are working hard to prepare for the state competitions this April.
El Dorado High School is also offering a Quantitative Literacy math course that is grounded in practical, real-world math that students can use in daily life. Students have the opportunity to apply the math they learn to every-day situations including personal and business finance, statistical analysis and probability models, and numerical reasoning.