🔹 Strong Curriculum, Slippery Memory
You’ve just wrapped up the unit on area. Your students seemed to get it, they measured rectangles, calculated square units, and explained their reasoning beautifully. But now it’s Unit 5. You ask a multiplication-based area question, and get crickets. Sound familiar?
The Illustrative Mathematics® curriculum is conceptually rich and thoughtfully sequenced. But it moves fast. Without an intentional review structure in place, earlier learning fades fast. This can be an issue when state testing rolls around.
🔹 Forget-Me-Not: What Research Says About Helping Students Retain Learning
Forgetting is normal. In fact, our brains are built to forget unused information so they can focus on what feels most relevant.
That’s where spaced retrieval practice comes in.
Spaced retrieval practice means recalling information from memory, not re-reading or re-hearing it. In IM, this looks like students answering questions from past and current units.
Research backs up spaced retrieval practice:
- John Hattie (2009) ranks both retrieval practice and spaced practice well above the 0.4 threshold that marks a strategy as worth implementing. When combined, they offer a powerful effect on long-term learning.
- Dunlosky et al. (2013) identified retrieval practice as one of the most effective learning strategies across a wide range of age groups, subjects, and learning environments. Their research highlights its exceptional value for promoting long-term retention,
When state testing rolls around, students who’ve practiced retrieving content all year long are far more prepared to access what they’ve learned, without the panic.
🔹The Easiest Way to Build in Spaced Retrieval Practice Without Added Workload
Our IM-Aligned Spiral Reviews are perfect for implementing this practice without adding teacher workload.
Each week includes:
- 15-20 questions to promote explicit practice of the current and most recent IM Unit Topics.
- 4–5 questions that spiral back to content from earlier Units
- Low-stakes review to reduce pressure and increase participation
- A Teacher Tip of the Week to explain new concepts simply for families
No extra prep. No reinventing the wheel.
🔹 Conclusion: One Routine, Big Payoff
Spaced retrieval practice helps students hold onto what they’ve learned and what they’re learning at that time
Spiral Reviews deliver both, plus a calmer classroom, an easy homework solution, and better preparation for state-testing.
🔹 What Next? Try It Out
If you’re a school or district leader interested in piloting this and other IM-aligned resources (available for Grades 2–5), take 5 minutes to fill out this form. We’ll be in touch shortly with next steps.
If you’re a homeroom teacher, scroll down on this page to access the first three weeks free and discover how consistent review can make a big difference in your classroom.
🔹 Bonus Read: Better Scores, Calmer Starts, and Happier Homework
✅ Calming Start to the Day
Teachers tell us it creates smoother mornings, less downtime, and a focused start to the math block. Check out what this user said.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “While using this resource, my students stayed engaged and excited to learn. It was challenging yet fun for them to work on these sheets.”
✅ A Homework Option that Actually Helps
IM doesn’t come with built-in homework. These Spiral Reviews can fill that gap with work that’s both purposeful and printable.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “My students are enjoying this resource as homework… they feel homework is faster and less stressful. As a teacher, I don’t have to spend time looking for resources to download and print.”
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