United Vision Sets the Course for Eureka Math² Implementation in Forsyth County Schools

When new math standards were approved in the state of Georgia in 2021, administrators in Forsyth County Schools moved swiftly to revitalize math instruction and update their math curriculum district wide.

District Profile

• 55,030 students, PK–12
• 42 total schools
• 42% White, 35% Asian,
  14% Hispanic, 4% Black
• First school year of implementation: 2023–2024

“Before last school year, we were using a run-of-the-mill core math curriculum. It didn’t spark much inspiration in our students and teachers. So when we found out that new standards were on the way, we made a deliberate decision to adopt a new curriculum in the same year. That just made the most sense to us,” said Dr. Brian Lack, K–8 mathematics curriculum and instruction specialist.

The biggest difference in their curriculum adoption this time around was drafting a clear vision for math instruction across the district. Developing that vision was not a top-down process; it was spearheaded by the district’s math advisory team and set the course for success.

“Each of our schools had a math leader nominated by their principal. We came together and dug into a wide range of resources: NCTM, EdReports, Georgia’s K–12 Mathematics Standards. We looked at our district’s strategic plan. We looked at our learner profile. One thing became crystal clear: We had to evolve to meet the needs of 21st century learning in ways that we had not before.”

With a growing ESOL population, the team knew it was more important than ever that they put student-to-student discourse at the center of their math instruction. They also knew that professional learning would be critical to helping teachers become comfortable with the major instructional shifts the team wanted to make.

“We knew from the start that students actually doing the math, doing the thinking, and doing the talking had to be central to our vision. We also knew that finding a curriculum that was educative—deeply embedded with high-quality professional learning supports—would be key. That vision really drove everything,” explained Lack.

Seven different curricula that had strong ratings in EdReports were reviewed against the district’s vision-aligned rubric. Although input was gathered from parents, teachers, and principals throughout the process, it was the math advisory team who vetted the resources closely and made sure the selection held true to their goals.

“I’m so glad that our process wasn’t simply, ‘Flip through some materials and use the eyeball test.’ We were far more intentional than that. We had that clear vision, and Eureka Math²® rose to the top because of it. It scored very high on our rubric for promoting student thinking, academic rigor, and an engaging learning environment.

Any fears or reservations were overcome by the quality and design of the curriculum. Teachers really loved the assessments—namely, the Exit Tickets and how clean they were—and we loved that Eureka Math² was the only one that really, truly did not give lip service to the use of manipulatives. We loved how concrete materials were a vital component of the instruction,” said Lack.

Grounding Implementation in Strong Instructional Leadership

Forsyth County leaders were just as thoughtful with the implementation of Eureka Math² as they were with its selection. Lack prefaced the rollout with a presentation at every school that detailed the team’s vision for math instruction and how teaching and learning would look different with the new materials. This was followed by two full days of professional learning—Great Minds® Launch and Lead sessions—for instructional coaches in May 2023 to prepare them for implementation.

The final piece of prework happened over the summer, which involved teams of curriculum leads gathering to look at assessments, the state math standards, and the curriculum to ensure that they were fully aligned and set up for success.

“We felt confident in mapping the curriculum to the state standards ourselves, so that’s exactly what we did over the summer. We built an internal website with day-by-day pacing: we were not overly prescriptive, we just aimed to make implementation the easiest possible lift for our teachers. After we mapped everything out, we then attacked a plan for district-wide professional learning,” said Lack.

Heading into the 2023–2024 school year, Lack pushed to increase professional learning time for math to three full days—one during preplanning in August, one in October at the end of the first quarter, and one in late February between the third and fourth quarters.

Using a train-the-trainer model, the district had instructional leaders go through topic study and guided observation professional development with Great Minds. Those leaders were then able to spend their allotted professional learning days diving into instructional planning with teachers, which involved looking at the curriculum mapping, unpacking the goals of upcoming modules and lessons, and reviewing any unfamiliar strategies and models.

“In between our professional learning days, we did a lot of coaching visits and classroom walk-throughs, visiting nearly every classroom at a school with a team of 20 to 30 coaches. Using look-fors developed by Great Minds, we were able to share very specific feedback with principals. Even without our Georgia Milestones End-of-Grade assessment results back yet, we could see clear qualitative evidence that classrooms were moving in the right direction with respect to our vision,’” said Lack.

Exciting Boost to Student Engagement and Achievement

By the end of the district’s first year of implementation, Lack noted that there was much to celebrate. “I developed an internal website for curriculum mapping and planning, and I made sure to give our teachers a huge shout-out on it. It was a tough first year, but the hard work our teachers put in absolutely paid off. We had multiple schools rank in the top 20 statewide for math achievement, and the state superintendent came out and recognized that accomplishment.”

“Student engagement has been off the charts. In October, when we asked teachers ‘What’s going well?’ that was the number one response. No one could deny it. Students are engaged,” said Lack. He went on to describe the changes he has observed in their math classrooms with Eureka Math²:

“You see movement. You see students standing, collaborating in small groups, and doing the talking. It’s a big shift from what we used to see: students sitting at their desks, listening to the teacher. Now, there are more raised hands, and there is more excitement around the ambiguity in the tasks because we are positioning students as problem solvers. The energy in the classroom is palpable and you see it in many of the teachers, too. Especially those who’ve embraced the role of facilitator and trust their students to do the thinking.

Teaching math has become more exciting because students are the ones driving the learning. When teachers step back and create space for student thinking, discourse, and discovery, the classroom comes alive. Without that shift, instruction can quickly become routine and uninspiring—both for students and teachers. We have tons of teachers that now understand and believe in it, and it’s transforming the way math looks and feels in our schools.”

Planting Seeds for Knowledge to Grow

As teachers have transformed into those facilitators of knowledge, the benefits of using a knowledge-building curriculum district-wide have become apparent. Lack said that Eureka Math² has brought consistency and clarity to mathematical vocabulary across the district along with more vertical use of number bonds. “We had never really used number bonds in the upper grades before, so it’s been exciting to see teachers and students using them to decompose mixed numbers and make connections with the foundational work from grades K–2.”

Lack also noted that more students are representing their thinking with models and diagrams, especially tape diagrams, which has helped develop students’ conceptual understanding. “We stretched a lot of minds last year when we tackled tape diagrams for division, fractions, and fraction division. I’ve already seen the impact—students drawing models and demonstrating a deeper understanding of proportional thinking. It’s really helped shift teaching and learning from procedural to conceptual.”

Ultimately, when reflecting on the implementation of Eureka Math² so far, Lack expressed deep appreciation for their teachers, who have embraced the curriculum and worked hard to hold true to the district’s vision for math instruction. “The hardest part is that, at first, it’s like driving through heavy fog—you can’t clearly see where you’re going. Teachers had trust issues with the curriculum. They’d say, ‘We haven't taught this yet,’ or ‘When is this topic coming up?’ But I’ve been so impressed by how our teachers stuck with it and committed to implementing it with fidelity.”