Webinar Frequently Asked Questions

Q. If I currently use the Kendall Hunt free digital materials, will I need to register to access the free digital IM v.360 K–8 curriculum?

A. Teacher accounts created on either site will work for both sites. Teachers will not need to sign up or re-register to use the new IM 360 site, but instead navigate to the bottom of the new site to sign in.

Q. When can I access IM Math v.360 on the new free digital site?

A. Coming soon in July 2024, IM will share the new curriculum website—AccessIM—with free digital access to IM v.360 as an open education resource. During April 2024, AccessIM will be ready for the beta testing phase, which is critical to ensure website stability and readiness for back to school 2024. The official full public launch for the new IM K–8 v.360 digital platform is in July, which is when the downloadable PDFs (blackline masters, student assessments, etc.) will have full functionality.

Q. Will students have access to the digital materials?

A. Student-facing digital materials are available for grades 6–12. Schools and teachers can decide which version, print or digital, is appropriate for their students. Grades K–5 only include teacher-facing digital materials.

Q. Do families need an account or can they access materials on the free digital IM v.360 site?

A. Access to the student and family materials does not require registration.

Q. Are there embedded security measures that keep students/parents from accessing assessments and answer keys on the free digital IM v.360 curriculum site?

A. Illustrative Mathematics takes accessing educator materials, such as answer keys and assessments, seriously. AccessIM requires a no-cost two-step registration for educators to access the free digital materials so that the assessments and answer keys are password protected. The first step is an identify (ID) verification process, followed by completing the registration form. In order to create a higher level of security, we have implemented an ID verification process for any new user using the secure Stripe Identity system. New registrants are required to upload an ID card (i.e., passport or driver’s license) and a picture of themselves that they have captured via their computer webcam or mobile device. In doing this, the new authentication process will help determine that the requestor is an adult educator and not a student or someone with malicious intent attempting to access materials. (NOTE: Educators currently using the Kendall Hunt free digital materials will not need to re-register to use the new IM 360 site because educator accounts created on the current and new site will work for both.)

Q. What version will we use? Will the current version still be available so we can implement IM v.360 when we are ready? If we adopt IM, do you recommend a soft rollout for high school courses?

A. The current version of IM K–12 Math will continue to be available from IM Certified® partners, and there are multiple decision pathways to transition to IM v.360. Current IM K–12 districts may find the options in this visual helpful. Contact your IM Certified partner for guidance based on your unique needs or if you have a current multi-year contract.

Q. With K–5 center changes, will we need to reprint our centers and are there any new centers? Will center materials that we purchased still align to the updated curriculum?

A. In June 2024, the IM curriculum team shared the IM v.360 Center Updates with more complete information about IM v.360 center changes, including low priority and high priority updates. Low priority changes include teacher-facing changes and style-based student-facing changes. These changes may help students be more independent but do not affect the math instruction. High-priority changes impact the content and instruction delivery and should be updated accordingly. If you are using v.360 with existing v.1 centers, note the high priority changes. In addition to grade level changes, there’s also a K–5 chart color-coded by priority on page 27.

Q. Will there be new content downloads for LMS platforms for IM v.360?

A. Contact IM Certified partners—Imagine Learning, Kendall Hunt, and Kiddom—for availability of files for learning management systems.

Q. What was the big-picture philosophy behind the IM v.360 update?

A. The IM Certified blog post Introducing IM 360: Taking Students Around the World of Mathematics describes how IM users’ feedback informed updates for the new version, and also includes sample unit previews.

Q. What are changes in IM K–12 v.360?

A. The IM 360 Summary of Content Updates describes the upgrades and revisions in the new version. The notes for grade 6–8 updates and revisions also apply to 9–12 materials and the accelerated grades 6 and 7 courses. 

Q. Will unit assessments change?

A. The revision process included reviewing and revising assessments for clarity and alignment, which also includes cool-downs as daily formative assessments. Assessment guidance for cool-downs was revised for K–12. New features include Checkpoint Guidance in K–5 and Section Level Checkpoint Assessments in 6–12. Some units in 6–12 will continue to have Mid-Unit Assessments.

Q. Would you share the reason behind changing the title from Which One Doesn’t Belong (WODB) to Which Three Go Together?

A. We received feedback from IM users about WODB with a request that we consider more inclusive language. Our team has modified the existing WODB activities so they work as “Which Three Go Together.”  All four solution choices will continue to have logical reasoning, so the dynamics of the routine hasn’t changed completely.

Q. Why does IM have multiple publishers whereas most curriculum programs just have one?

A. We want to give districts and schools choices in how they access high-quality curriculum. As the authoring team, Illustrative Mathematics creates our curriculum and professional learning, and our IM Certifed® facilitators (IMCFs) work with teachers during professional learning sessions. However as a nonprofit organization, we have no infrastructure for the manufacture, printing, sales, and distribution of the materials or extensive customer support teams. Considering that districts’ and schools’ needs are unique to the students they serve and the educators they employ, it is important to match the needs of the teacher and student populations with the tools and resources that best align to their teaching and learning preferences. As districts and schools determine how students and teachers will access materials, they can choose digital access, print materials, or a combination through our three IM Certified partners, which also provide customer support during curriculum adoption and implementation. Learn more on our partner webpage.

Q. What are the differences between the free accounts and the paid versions with IM Certified partners?

A. The choice of partners gives districts and schools multiple options for accessing the same high-quality curricular content. Each partner supports digital access and offers print purchases, professional learning sales and scheduling, and customer support during curriculum adoption and implementation. Districts and schools can choose between the free digital materials on our open education resource (OER) platform, or two choices for technology-enhanced platforms.

For schools that choose the free digital OER platform, Kendall Hunt provides customer support, such as print or professional learning purchases. The free digital version is the complete curriculum but does not allow for rostering of students or student sign-in.

For more digital features, districts and schools may choose Imagine Learning or Kiddom as their partner. These digital platforms include the capability to roster students and generate assessment data reports. These platforms allow teachers to assign tasks and assessments digitally for completion by students within the digital platform.

Q. What is the earliest that we can begin ordering the new curriculum? Do the IM Certified partners have integrated math with the new updates?

A. Contact your IM Certified partner(s)—Imagine Learning, Kendall Hunt, and Kiddom—for ordering availability timelines for IM K–8 v.360. High School Integrated Math 1 will be available Summer 2024, including a California version. Geometry, Algebra 2, and Integrated Math 2 and 3 courses will be available for back to school 2025.

Q. When will we see the updated version of IM in Kendall Hunt materials?

A. Kendall Hunt is an IM Certified partner and will continue to provide customer support for users of the free digital curriculum materials of IM K–12 Math and IM v.360. While IM K–12 Math is an open education resource with free digital materials that is hosted by Kendall Hunt, access for IM v.360 digital materials is on a new IM website called AccessIM. The beta testing phase begins in April 2024 to ensure website stability and readiness for back to school 2024. The official full public launch for the new IM K–8 v.360 digital platform is in July, including Algebra 1 and Integrated Math 1. IM 6–8 Math Accelerated v.360 and other high school courses for the new version, will be released for back to school 2025.

Q. Will these changes affect our ability to purchase print books or the cost? Will print books be updated?

A. Contact your IM Certified partner for further information about print purchases, changes, price quotes, and guidance based on your current context and if you have a multi-year contract. Current IM K–12 districts may find the options in this visual helpful as they consider multiple decision pathways to transition to IM v.360. While the curriculum content is the same for all IM Certified partners, there may be differences in layout or format or enhanced text features and you will need to contact the partners for more information and guidance.

Kendall Hunt print materials, which are formatted by the IM team and are exported from our content management system, will include some new text features as well as curriculum updates for IM v.360 print materials. If you used the free digital materials and purchased print books through Kendall Hunt, contact them for further information.

If you are using the enhanced digital materials from Imagine Learning or Kiddom, contact them for further information about print materials.

Q. To help us turnkey the information of the updates to our school community, will there be a demo video, and will all of the amazing resources such as Google slides be updated in the new website?       

A. Introducing IM® v.360 is a webinar recording to share with teachers to explain curriculum updates and to give a walkthrough of the new free digital curriculum site. IM is working with Kendall Hunt on plans to update the Google slides for IM v.360. Contact IM Certified partners for demo videos for the enhanced digital platforms for IM v.360.

Q. Can we access new features of IM v.360, such as the assessment guidance or new checkpoint assessments, and not use the full platform?

A. If using the free digital platform, you will be able to access both IM K–12 Math and IM v.360, and utilize the desired resources.

Q. The webinar recording link will be great. Will it include updates? Where can I get more detailed information?

A. Access the webinar recording to learn about the IM v.360 updates directly from the IM authoring team, and visit the IM 360 webpage for more information and to  sign up for updates. The IM 360 Summary of Content Updates includes K–5 and  6–8 updates, which also apply to 9–12 materials.

Q. How do I learn more about professional learning to support teachers with using IM v. 360?

A. Contact one or more IM Certified® IM Professional Learning™ partners for more information and for PL sales and scheduling. Our professional learning web page provides more information. If schools only have a few teachers who need training, consider upcoming academy offerings with individual registration. 

Q. When considering IM professional learning, can we choose between the current version and the new version?

A. Professional learning is available for IM K–12 Math and IM v.360. Contact an IM Certified Professional Learning partner for more information.

Q. What are “modeling lessons” in K–5?

In most units, the final lesson is a “modeling lesson.” It is optional because it does not address any new mathematical content standards, but does provide students with an opportunity to apply precursor skills of mathematical modeling. In K–5, modeling with mathematics is problem solving. It is problem solving that provides opportunities for students to notice, wonder, estimate, pose problems, create representations, assess reasonableness, and continually make revisions as needed. In the early grades, these opportunities involve various precursor modeling skills that support students in being flexible about the way they solve problems. In upper elementary, these precursor skills become various stages of the modeling process that students will experience in grades 6–12. In addition to the precursor skills and modeling stages that appear across lessons, each K–5 unit culminates with a lesson that explicitly addresses the modeling skills and stages while pulling together the mathematical work of the unit.

Q. How does the curriculum support students’ development in mathematical modeling across grades K–12?

The Standards for Mathematical Practice (MP) describe the types of thinking and behaviors students engage in as they are doing mathematics, such as these descriptors for MP4 in K–5 mathematics:

MP4 I Can Model with Mathematics

• I can wonder about the mathematics involved in a situation.
• I can think of mathematical questions to ask about a situation.
• I can identify the questions to answer in order to solve a problem.
• I can identify the information I need to know, and don’t need to know, to answer a question.
• I can collect data or explain how to collect it.
• I can model a situation, using a representation, such as a drawing, an equation, a line plot, a picture graph, a bar graph, or a building made of blocks.
• I can think about the real-world implications of my model.

For IM 6–8 Math^TM, this IM blog post, Unit 9 in IM Grades 6–8: Hidden Gems, explains how the last unit of each course focuses on Math Practice 4 (MP4) and lays a foundation for mathematical modeling in high school. For IM 9–12 Math™, Making Authentic Modeling Possible clarifies the what, why, and how of modeling prompts in high school courses.

Q. Why are there not more practice problems? What are suggestions for using practice problems effectively?

It may help to understand the “why” of some intentional design decisions about practice. Distributed practice (revisiting the same content over time) is more effective than massed practice (a large amount of practice on one topic, but all at once). Some of the research that informed our thinking includes Daniel Willingham on distributed practice and Steve Leinwand on a small set of targeted problems.

• IM K–5 Math  includes practice problems for each unit section. Throughout the year, the K–5 math centers provide meaningful math practice, and the game-like activities are engaging for students.
• Each 6–12 lesson includes an associated set of practice problems. The 6–12 practice problem set associated with each lesson includes a few questions about the contents of that lesson, plus additional problems that review material from earlier in the unit and previous units.

This blog post, IM 6–12 Math: Grading and Homework Policies and Practices, shares some information gathered from a survey sent to teachers using IM in their classrooms and also explains how some teachers use the practice problems.

Q. Where can I find extra practice? What resources are available for students who need more support?

Contact your IM Certified partner to determine whether additional problems are available through their platform. Although there is not a bank of additional practice problems, the lesson structure and overarching design structure provide opportunities for students to consolidate and apply their new learning, which is a different kind of practice that is embedded within each lesson and ongoing. Providing access to grade-level mathematics does require that teachers make strategic adjustments in order for students to engage, make sense of the questions being asked, persist, collaborate with peers, share their thinking, listen to and understand each other’s thinking, internalize and try on new ideas, and practice and apply what they are learning. Often, a teacher can adjust or amplify something that’s already in the curriculum to support students with consolidating and applying concepts that are still in development.

These IM Certified Blog posts highlight strategies for planning a lesson in anticipation of varied student needs and offer specific examples:

• Visualizing IM K–5 Math™ within a Dream Team of Supports Part 1 and Part 2
• Differentiating Instruction with IM 6–12 Math™
• Leveraging IM 6–12 Math Teacher Materials to Enhance Access to Grade-Level Mathematics

Recordings of the 2023 webinar series are a resource to support implementation challenges:

• Implementing a Problem-based Instructional Model
• Building Thinking in an IM Classroom
• Leveraging Coherence to Build Responsive Classrooms
• Cultivating Brilliance Through Grade-Level Instruction
• Pacing Through Rigor
• Inspiring Collective Agency through Responsive Coaching

Q. What are enrichment opportunities to challenge students?

The problem-based approach, instructional routines, and lesson structure draw forth student thinking, reasoning, and communication in ways that challenge all learners from their multiple entry points. IM recommends that students with great interest in and comfort with mathematics go deeper into (rather than moving faster through) grade-level content.

• The K–5 exploration practice problems provide opportunities for students to further explore topics presented in lesson activities. It may also be appropriate to give students even more opportunities to dig deeper into grade-level mathematics using enrichment activities from other sources.
• K–5 centers offer different stages that allow students to engage with the same activity at the appropriate challenge level.
• In IM 6–12 Math lessons, the “Are You Ready For More?” extension activities offer additional opportunities for challenge.
• In IM 9–12 Math, the modeling prompts include options for assigning a task with higher cognitive lift and could also be expanded to include additional real-world situations to offer additional challenge.

Q. Is the curriculum aligned with my state standards? 

A. To request a state standards crosswalk, contact one or more IM Certified partners—Imagine Learning, Kendall Hunt, and Kiddom. A state standards crosswalk shows the correlation of state standards to the Common Core State Standards, which are fully aligned to IM lessons in each course. Some of the digitally-enhanced platforms offer the ability to customize your school dashboard with state standards and add additional information specific to your context. This feature is particularly helpful when you will be supplementing lessons for standards specific to your state.

Q. When will state versions be available? CA has some differences from Common Core.

A. IM K–5 and 6–8 Math v.360 will be ready for the 2024–2025 school year in both national and California versions.

Q. Teachers would like to change the order of the units to ensure standards are addressed prior to state testing. What do you recommend?

A. Above all, IM respects educators as professionals. Our typical guidance is to teach the curriculum with integrity. We also recognize that teachers know their students and what they need, so adjustments and adaptations are often necessary. That said, moving around or omitting parts of the curriculum could affect the coherence of the mathematics. For year 1 implementation, we suggest making only small modifications to the curriculum so as to understand the story of the math and the pacing. That way, in year 2, educators are more equipped to make informed adaptations, including pacing adjustments.

Although not available at this time for 6–12 or revised for the new version, these documents, created by the author team, may add clarity to the reasoning behind the unit sequencing in IM K–5 Math v.1:

• IM K-5 Math Unit order rationale v.I
• IM – Stories of Grades K-5.