Ignite love for math in Bulgarian students

Math with JUMP is easy, math with JUMP is for everyone.

With this remark begins the methodological reflection after the visited classes in 1st and 2nd grade, with Mrs. Tsonka Todorova and Mrs. Iliana Kuteva, in the "Hristo Botev" Municipal School in the town of Stamboliyski. They recognize and live the motto of the methodology, because already for the third month with JUMP Math the math classes are not just more interesting for the children, but more than that: the students are engaged and active, they solve the problems with focus and believe in their own mathematical abilities.

Educators excitedly show the notebooks to the children, "see, this is much better than traditional". The problems and examples in the JUMP Math workbooks stimulate children to think and explore new math concepts at a much higher cognitive level. Instead of instructions such as "color" and "connect" that are repeated in standard textbooks, JUMP Math notebooks provide a variety of challenging problems to compare, sort, fill in, and find missing elements or patterns. The problems in this methodology are not just examples, but challenges to solve that develop children's thinking and exploration skills.

The shcool year has accelerated and 48 newly trained teachers like Mrs. Todorova and Mrs. Kuteva have joined the JUMP Math community. The special thing about these teachers is their students come entrirely from Roma communities and are study in 25 segregated schools across the country.

We've already witnessed the results during several school visits. Teachers are relived as they finally have a logical and easy to use methodological guide. Students are excited and williing to discover, participate in class and learn. Learning math with JUMP gives the the motivation to be in school every day. With JUMP their potiencial is being unlocked and they step on a new and stimulating path of learning and growth. 

It is truly amazing to be part of all this. Thank you for the support and have a joly Christmas holiday! 

Dear supporters,

We are grateful for having you with us during these turbulent times all around the globe!

The results from the national assessment at 4^th grade have been announced and without surprises for the consequential year there’s been a decline in students’ basic mathematical achievements. The main reasons (remaining unaddressed): the time spent in math classes and in online education the last 2 years, math curriculum and of course the methods of teaching math in school. The system can find solution for the last two but still resists to adopt in systematically due to the contract relationships with several big book editorials monopolizing the primary education.

Despite the challenges, during these last months we carried out two strategic partnerships:

1. IPE/ JUMP Math Bulgaria took part in the educational campaing led by Khan Academy Bulgaria (Education with backpacks) in support of Ukrainian students in Bulgaria. JUMP Math’s teachers’ guides were accessible and free of charge for all educators and volunteers in various initiatives in service to the children running from the war in Ukraine and their teachers.
2. As we already shared in the previous edition of our bulletin the biggest project for the next school year will be our partnership with The Trust for Social Achievement. Thanks to the TSA financial support we will teach more than 45 pedagocigal specialists from the 1^st and 2^nd grade from school all around the country catering primarily students from disadvantaged backgrounds and minority groups. JUMP Math will reach more than 600 students and will help them develop with confidence and joy the basic mathematical and functional skills.

We’ve already gone through the first milestone- invitation for the schools and the process of final selection, accomplished. One common message all school principals shared: “We are aware of the existence of JUMP Math and we’ve always wanted to use it but our small schools don’t have the necessary budget.” Only 30 schools in the project from more than 1000 in the country. It’s been an enormous motivation to go on looking for a systemic solution to the problems.

And, last but not least JUMP Math students score higher than the ones taught with traditional methods and books. The biggest recognition for JUMP's impact is when our partners share autonomously about their students’ successes.

With this we wish you pleasant and warm August. Looking forward to seeing you in the fall, as they say in the Bulgarian refrain “ ”!

Links:

• JUMP Math with the support of TSA

Hello, dear JUMP Math Bulgaria supporters!

This school year is about to reach to its end in less than two months. It has been a successful one since our team managed to orgasise three webinars and visit and support more than twenty JUMP classrooms. In January six new schools applied for the Ministry of Education procedure innovative school with JUMP Math and in February we carried out the first JUMP Math training.

The training season has begun and until the August we expect to incorporate around hundred newly trained JUMP Math teachers in our community. For the new 2022-2023 we also aim to start a strategic partnership with our fellow organisation Amalipe and their school network. We will be looking forward to updatign you on this one!

We've been constantly trying to reach more teachers and help more students understand and communicate with the world using the language of math. It’s already December and still we are receiving trained teachers who decide to improve their pedagogical math practice. We know it is never too late to invest in one’s professional development, it is never too late to help students fulfill their math talent. We have more than 2000 students taught with JUMP Math materials and around 10% are children from vulnerable groups supported by your kind donations. We started your methodological support interventions, visited JUMP classrooms, carried out webinars. We found inspiration in JUMP Math’s founder John Mighton and his last book All Things Being Equal: Why Math Is the Key to a Better World. In the midst of the world crisis, his message has never been more relevant: math will help create more equal and inclusive society, math will lead us to a better understanding and better decision making. Don’t miss to read his book.

We feel so privileged to have the opportunity to spread John Mighton’s legacy and powerful messages to Bulgarian teachers.

We wish you all, dear supporters in our big JUMP Math family, peaceful and pleasant Christmas holidays.

Thank you for the support all these years!

Let us have a better 2022! We have the key – math with JUMP Math.

Links:

• All Things Being Equal: Why Math Is the Key to a Better World

The last school year was different for all students and teachers around the globe. As their peers in many other countries Bulgarian teachers have faced a lot of difficulties especially in designing a meaningful math experience in the times of online learning. Unfortunately the unusual situation has caused a significant learning loss in many subject based on mathematical concepts. Thanks to the digital resources and the curriculum for filling in the learning gaps provided by JUMP Math many teachers in Bulgaria managed to help students and prepare them for the upcoming school year.

JUMP Math was the selected curriculum for filling in the learning gaps during the Summer Start Academy in the Sofia neighborhood Fakulteta. And yes, JUMP Math did ignite love for math for the students at the academy, and already some of their main subject teachers will be teaching math with JUMP Math during the school year.

In less than a month the new school year will be here. Teachers in the JUMP Math community are already preparing and getting motivated with our main belief that every child can learn math and love it.

We hope this school year is a better one!

Thank you! We appreciate your support.