math skills builder

User Guide

Attainment’s

Math Skills Builder

Math Skills Builder User Guide

Contents

© 2020 Attainment Company

Introduction 1

Quick Start 2 Overview 2 Step-By-Step 2

Descriptions of Program Elements 5

Prompts 8

Assessment 8

Customizing Options for Individual Users 9 MainOptionWindow 9 Users 10 Settings 10 Results 13 TheAttainmentHUB 14

Technical Support & Contact Information 15

Math Skills Builder User Guide 1© 2020 Attainment Company

Introduction

Math Skills Builderisacurriculumforteachingstudentswithmild,moderate,orseveredisabilitiestosolvemathematicalstoryproblems.Math Skills Builderincludeseightunitsofinstructionwithfivelessonseach;thestoryproblemsarethemebased.Thecurriculumteachesstudentstosolvemathproblemsconceptuallybyhavingthemidentifythetypeofproblemtheyaresolving.Theproblemtypesare:Group,Compare(More)andCompare(Fewer),andChange(Addition)andChange(Subtraction).Theseproblemtypesdictatetheoperation(+or–)forsolvingtheproblem.The12-stepProblem-SolvingCheckliststepsusersthroughtheprocessofthinkingthroughandthensolvingtheproblem.

Math Skills Builderisaresearched-basedcurriculumthatwasderivedfromtheinterventiondevelopedbyaU.S.DepartmentofEducationIESgrant(#R324A130001)withPrincipalInvestigatorsDianeBrowder,FredSpooner,andYa-yuLo.AuthorsAliciaSaunders,JennyRoot,andDianeBrowderworkedcloselywithclassroomteachersandtheirstudentswhoeitherhadamilddisability,anintellectualdisability,oranautismspectrumdisorder(ASD)todesignandfield-testeachcomponentofMath Skills Buildercurriculum.

Thesoftware/iPadappisusedduringLesson4ofUnits2–8toprovidestudentswithadditionalopportunitiesforsolvingmathstoryproblemsusingadifferentformofmedia.ThereisnosoftwareactivityforUnit1.

Math Skills Builder User Guide 2© 2020 Attainment Company 2

Quick Start

OVERVIEWMath Skills BuilderallowsuserstopracticesolvingmathproblemsusingthePracticeModeortotakeanassessmentoftheirmathproblem-solvingskillsusingtheAssessmentMode.

OnthetitlescreenselectaUnit,aTheme,andaMode. Then tap Start

Amathstoryproblemwillappearaswellasthefirststep.Thereare 12 steps in Math Skills Builder’sproblem-solvingprocess.

Tocompleteeachstepandmoveontothenextstep,tapitscheckboxtocheckitoff.

Resultdetailswillbedisplayedonceaproblemissolved,butusersmustbeloggedintotheiraccountforresultstobesaved.Resultsaregeneratedonlyforcompletedstoryproblems.

STEP-BY-STEPThe12stepsuserscompletetosolveproblemsareasfollows:

STEP 1 Listen to or read the problem. TaptheListenicon thentapthecheckboxtocompletethestep.NOTE:Ifauserwantstoreadtheproblemratherthanlistentoitbeingread,heorshecanreaditbutthenwillstillneedtotaptheListeniconinordertocheckoffthestep.

STEP 2 Find the “whats ” Tapthetwo“whats”inlinestwoandthree,thentapthecheckboxtocompletethestep.Thewhatsarethe“nouns”offocusinlinestwoandthree.

Example of a “what” in Step 2.

3Quick Start Math Skills Builder User Guide

STEP 3 Find and write the label Tapthelabelfoundinlinefour,thentapthecheckboxtocompletethestep. Thelabeliswhattheuserissolvingfor.

STEP 4 More/Fewer? Different? Same? Taptheselectionthatmatchesthetypeofstoryproblem,thentapthecheckboxtocompletethestep.Inthisstep,theusermustconsiderwhetherthewordsmoreorfewer appear in thequestion(line4).Ifnot,theuserthenconsiderswhetherthe“whats”arethesameordifferent.Makingthesedecisionshelpsusersknowwhichtypeofproblemtheyaresolving.

STEP 5 Choose the graphic organizer. Taptoselectoneofthethreegraphicorganizers,thentapthecheckboxtocompletethestep.Compareproblemshaveeitherthewordmoreorfewerinthequestion,Groupproblemshavedifferent“whats,”andChangeproblemshavethesame“whats.”

STEP 6 Say and sign the rule. Tapthebarbelowthegraphicorganizerstowatchavideooftherulerelatedtotheproblemtype.Usersshouldsayandsigntherulewhileviewingthevideo.

STEP 7 Find the numbers. Tapthenumbersinlinestwoandthree,thentapthecheckboxtocompletethestep.

STEP 8 Fill in the number sentence. Tapanumber,thentapwhereitgoesinthenumbersentence.Repeatwiththesecondnumber.Whenbothnumbersareinthesentence,thentapthecheckboxtocompletethe step

STEP 9 Write + or – Taptheplusorminussymbolandtapwhereitgoesinthenumbersentence.Thenthentapthecheckboxtocompletethestep.

STEP 10 Fill in the graphic organizer. Tapthenumbersand“whats,”thentapwhereeachgoesinthegraphicorganizer.Tapthelabelandtapwhereitgoesinthegraphicorganizer.Thentapthecheckboxtocompletethestep.

Example of Step 9.

4Quick Start Math Skills Builder User Guide

STEP 11 Make sets TaptheCountingCubesandtapwheretheygointhegraphicorganizer.ToeraseaCountingCube,taperase,thentapthecube.Whendone,tapthecheckboxtocompletethestep.

STEP 12 Solve the problem and write the answer. Tapthemovearrow(s)inthegraphicorganizer.Thentapanumbertofillintheanswerinthenumbersentence.

AtthecompletionofStep12,theuserwillreceivefeedbackonhisorherperformance.Ananimationshowsthenumberofsteps(of12),theuserrespondedtocorrectly(withoutprompting).Thisanimationcanbeskippedforolderusers.AstheCountingCubesstack,thestarfillsin.Userresultsaredisplayedaftereachstoryproblemiscompleted.Whenstudentsareloggedintotheiraccount,thedetailsoftheirworkaresavedinResults.

Example of a feedback screen. The animation can be turned off in Settings.

Indicates the number of steps responded to correctly.


Descriptions of Program Elements

Graphic organizer: Graphicorganizersarevisualdisplaysthatguideusers’thinkingastheysolvetheproblems.Onegraphicorganizerrepresentseachproblemtype:Group,Compare,andChange.

Group type problems: Combinetwoormoredistinctgroupsintoonelargegroup(additionofsumsupto10).

Compare type problems:Comparetwoitems(twoobjectsortwopeoplewithcontrastingquantities)tofindthedifference(subtractionofdifferencesupto9)includingCompare(More)andCompare(Fewer).

Change type (addition) problems: Addtwo“same”things,whichaltersastartingamountbyaddingmoretoit(additionofsumsupto10).

Change type (subtraction) problems: Addtwo“different”things,whichaltersastartingamountbydecreasingitortakingawayfromit(subtractionofdifferencesupto9).

Mode: ThesoftwareprovidesaPracticemodeandanAssessmentmode.InPracticemode,usersreceivepromptingtohelpthemsolvetheproblem(ifneeded).ThePracticemodeisusedduringLesson4ofUnits2–8inthecurriculum.InAssessmentmode,usersmustsolvetheproblemindependentofprompts.TheAssessmentmodeisusedatthecompletionofaunittodetermineiftheuserisreadytomoveontothenextunit.

The three graphic organizers, representing Group, Compare, and Change. In the program, they are presented in random order.

6Math Skills Builder User GuideDescriptions of Program ElementsDescriptions of Program Elements

Problem-Solving Checklist:Thischecklististhetaskanalysisthatguidesusersthroughthe12stepstosolvemathstoryproblems.Toviewthechecklist,taptheProblem-SolvingChecklisticon inthetoprightcorner.

Session: EachtimeStartistappedonthetitlepage,twostoryproblemsaregiveninasession.ThenumberofstoryproblemspersessioncanbeadjustedinSettings;twoisthedefault.

Theme: Themathstoryproblemscenteraroundthemes(e.g.,videogamestore,arcade,schooldance)inordertohelptheuserseehowmathisaroundhimorherandpartofdailylife.

Unit: ThesoftwaregeneratesstoryproblemsforMath Skills Builder curriculumUnits2–8.(Unit1isareviewofearlynumeracyskillsandisavailableonlyintheprintcurriculum.)Eachunithasadifferentfocus.Thefollowingisthefocusoftheunitsincluded:

Unit2—GroupTypeProblemSolving

Unit3—CompareTypeProblemSolving

Unit4—DiscriminationofGroupandCompareProblemTypes

Unit5—Change(Addition)TypeProblemSolving

Unit6—Change(Subtraction)TypeProblemSolving

Unit7—DiscriminationofChange(Addition)andChange(Subtraction)ProblemTypes

Unit8—DiscriminationofAllProblemTypes

See the next page for an illustration of the different problem types.

Problem-Solving Checklist. Completed steps will be shown with checkmarks. Exit by tapping the single-line icon at top right.

7Math Skills Builder User GuideDescriptions of Program Elements

Group Type Problem—Units 2, 4, 8 Compare Type Problem—Units 3, 4, 8

Step 11 Screens for Each Problem Type

Change (Addition) Type Problem—Units 5, 7, 8 Change (Subtraction) Type Problem—Units 6, 7, 8


PromptsInthePractice mode,whenapromptisnecessary(i.e.,ifthestudentdoesnotrespondwithinthetimeframesetormakesanincorrectresponse),theprogramprovidesaprompt.Thereareseverallevelsofpromptsbuiltintothesoftwarefromtheleastintrusiveprompt(leastsupport)tothemostintrusiveprompt(mostsupport).

Whenananswerisselectedwithinthesetwaittime,andtheuserchecksoffthestep,theprogramplaysasoundindicatingacorrectorincorrectresponse.Somestepsgiveadditionalfeedbackreinforcingacorrectchoice.Whenanincorrectresponseischosen,theuserisgivenanotheropportunitytorespondwhentheprogramsays,“Tryagain.”

Whenananswerisnotselectedbeforethesetwaittime,promptsfollowthissequence:• Ifnoresponse,aLevel1promptisgivenbyasking,“Whatisthenextstep?”• Ifstillnoresponse,aLevel2promptisgiven;thispromptreadsthestepaloud.• Iftheuserstilldoesnotrespond,aLevel3promptisgiven,whichgivesa“hint”oftheactionneeded.• Iftheuserstilldoesn’trespond,thecorrectresponseismodeled(amodelingprompt)andthe

userisgivenanopportunitytofollowthemodelwhentheprogramsays,“Yourturn.”

Theamountofwaittimebeforeapromptisgivenisadjustableforindividualusers.ThisadjustmentismadeinSettings(thedefaultwaittimeis5seconds).

Havinganadultpresentduringthepracticelessonsisveryimportant.Ifafterfourprompts,theuserstilldoesnotrespondcorrectly,physicallyguidingtheusertothecorrectresponsewillassistinthelearningprocess.

AssessmentThe Assessmentmodecanbeusedtodetermineifauserhasreachedmasteryoneachproblemtype(andwhetherheorshecandiscriminateamongproblemtypes)beforemovingontothenextunitofinstruction.Assessmentoftwoproblemsontwoconsecutivedaysshouldbegiventodeterminemastery.Masteryiscorrectrespondingto12of12stepsfortwoproblemsontwoconsecutivedays.Inunitswheretheusermustdiscriminateamongproblemtypes;twoofeachtypeofproblemshouldbeassessedontwoconsecutivedaystoensuremastery.IntheAssessmentmode,nopromptingisgiven.


Customizing Math Skills BuilderTofindtheOptionsmenuinWindowsandMac,movethecursortothetopofthehomescreentorevealahiddenbanner.ClickonFile then Options

TofindtheOptionsmenuonaniPad,tapthegearsinthetoprightcornerofthescreen.

MAIN OPTIONS WINDOWFromthemainOptionswindow,youcan:• Add,edit,ordeletestudentusers• Changesettingsforusersorfortheprogram

asawhole• View user test results• Seeoverallusageoftheapp

NOTE:AppsopenedontheWebskipthis windowandgodirectlytoSettingsmenus forthecurrentuserandapp.

User SectionThe“User”sectionincludescreating/modifyingauserlist,plus“Settings”and“Results”foreachindividualuser.SeebelowformoreinformationonUsers, Settings,andResults

NOTE: TheHUBbuttonisforweb-basedsoftware.IfyoupurchasedMath Skills Builderforstand-aloneWindowsorMac,ignoreit.

Program ParametersThenextsectioncontainsgeneralparametersfortheprogram.

Teacher Password(optional).Whenpasswordisadded,there’stheoptiontorequirethepasswordtoswitch users

User Must Type Name—Whenselected,therewillnotbeapulldownlistonloginmenu.

Save and Close

Main options window: User Section at the top, Program Parameters at the bottom.

10Math Skills Builder User GuideCustomizing Math Skills Builder

Fullscreen—canbedisabled;however,runningfullscreenisrecommendedatalltimes.

Allow Guest Logins—Whenthisfeatureisdisabled,onlynameduserscanusetheprogram

Track Usage—Thisisnotspecifictoanyuser,butageneralrecordoftheamountoftimeusedonparticulardays.TheUsagebuttonwillshowyouachartofusage.

USERSUse the AddandDeletebuttonstoaddorremoveusers.Theprogramwillaskyoutosetapassword;selectSkiptobypass.Thenselectanavatar;itcanbecustomizedwiththeEditbutton.

Theprogramcanstoredataforanunlimitednumberofusers.Thesettingsforeachuserareindependent,butonlyoneuser(oraguest)canbeactiveatatime.

SETTINGSSelect the SettingsbuttonfromtheMainOptionswindowtobringuptheSettingswindows,eachaccessedbyitstab.ThiswillchangesettingsforthecurrentnameduserorforGuest.

NOTE: ChangingthesettingsforGuestisequivalenttochangingdefaultsettings.Theywillapplytoany-onewhousestheprogramwithoutanamedlogin.

The HUB button ,totheleftofSettings, isforthosewithweb-basedsubscriptionsonly. See p. 14.


Program SettingsProgramSettingsareappliedtothemathstoryproblemsinallunitsandthemesforauser.

The Story Problem Optionsinclude:

Seconds to wait before prompt:ThissettingappliestothePracticemodeonlybutallowsthewaittimebeforepromptingausertobeadjusted.Theoptionsare5,8,10,12,15,and20seconds;thedefaultis5seconds.

Number range: Theprogramrandomlyassignsnumbersinthestoryproblem.Forbeginningusers,settingthenumberrangefrom1–5willsimplifythe task.Thedefaultis1–10.

Number of problems: Completingtwoproblemspersessionisrecommendedbutthenumberofproblemscanbeadjustedforindividualusers.Optionsare1–6problemspersession;thedefaultis2problems.

System SettingsAlternative access—Math Skills Builderisaccessiblewithamouse,touchscreen,interactivewhiteboard,andswitches.Switchaccessisbuiltinthroughtheuseofscanning.Settingsforscanningandswitchescanbechangedinthistab.

System settings for scanning offer a wide variety of

options for individual learners, including

select key, rate, and color.

Program Settings tab


Scanning: Scanningcanbesetassingleswitch(automatic)ordoubleswitch(stepscanning).

Autoscan Delay: Selectthelengthoftimethecursordwellsoneachselection.(Singleswitchonly)

Scan Next: Keyboardoptionsforgoingtonextselection.(Doubleswitchonly)

Scan Select: Keyboardoptionsformakingselection.NOTE:OntheiPad,Scan NextandScan Select are

replacedwithDevice Debounce: Thelengthoftimeinwhichrepeatedswitch

inputisignored.Highlight color:Yellowbydefault.Canbechangedto

green,red,orblack.Auditory cue:Speechbydefault.Canbechangedto

Sound,ordisabledwithNone.Auditory Rollover—Whenthisischecked,theprogramwillreadwhateverthecursorishoveringoverafter1.5seconds.Virtual Keyboard (Windows/Mac only)—Checktoshowanonscreenkeyboard.Show Touches (iPad only)—Awhitecircleappearsonthescreenindicatingatapordrag.Sounds—Musicandsoundeffectscanbemadesofterorturnedoff.Avatar—Select Edittomakechangestoanexistingavatar,including:Skin,hair,eyeandshirtcolor;headshape;eyes,noseandmouthfeatures,includingeyeglasses;facialhair;andclothingaccessories.Thereisalsoanoptionforusingawheelchair Password (Windows only)—Passwordcanbesetorchangedforanexistinguserhere.

A student avatar can be customized when created, or by selecting Edit on System Settings tab.

System Settings tab


RESULTSResultsarerecordedduringanysessioninwhichtheusercompletesatleastonestoryproblem.TheseresultscanbeviewedatanytimebyclickingtheResultsbuttoninthemainOptionswindow.Resultsareonlydisplayedfortheuserwhoisloggedintohisorheraccount.Resultsaresortedbyunit,butchoosingtheSort by dateboxatbottomwillsortresultsbydate.Resultsforeachunitcanbecollapsedbyclickingontheblacktrianglenexttotheunitnumber.

Viewing the ResultsSelectaresulttohighlightit.ThentheView, Print,andDelete buttonsbecomeclickable.Deletedresultscannotberestored.Double-clickingonaresultandclickingViewwilldisplaytheproblemandthedetails.

TheResultspagecanbeprintedbyclickingthePrint buttonandconfirmedbyclickingPrintagaininthewindowthatpopsup.ClickingtheredXintheupperrightcornerorOKwilltakeyoubackonelevel.

This correct response did not require a prompt.

This Level 1 prompt (a pacing prompt) is scored correct.

Inthedetailsofauser’sresults,thetimerequiredtocompletethetwoproblemsisindicatedatthetopofthescreenaswellasthepercentagecorrect,whichisbasedonthenumberofstepsfollowedcorrectlywithoutprompting.Dataforeachstepoftheproblem-solvingprocessareshown.Thelegendisatthetopofthescreen.

ALevel1promptisconsideredapacingprompt;iftheuserrespondscorrectlyatthispoint,thestepisscoredcorrect,butthepacingpromptisnoted.

Legend


THE ATTAINMENT HUBThe Attainment HUBprovideswebdeliveryofsoftwareandotherlearningmaterials.TheHubhasanumberoffunctions:• My Products:Apurchasedproductcanbedownloadedtoa

computerordeviceviaaccesscodeprovided.• Free Trials: Attainmentoffersfreetrialsofmanyapps.These

versionshavefullfunctionalitybutlimitedcontent,e.g.,asinglechapterorlesson,togetfamiliarwithanappbeforebuying.

• Cloud Management: Withaweb-basedsubscription,AttainmentCloudappscanbeaccessedremotelybymultiplestudents,andresultsmonitoredbytheirteachers.

• Reports: LoggingintotheHubfrominsideanappwillsyncitsClouduserdata.Reportsincludestestandpracticeresults,andusagetimeforany/allstudentsandany/allapps.

TheHub’sURLishttps://hub.attainmentcompany.comandfirst-timeuserswillcreateanaccount.

Onceloggedin,selectfromfouroptions:Downloadaproduct;downloadafreetrial;accessweb-basedappsubscription;ormanagestudentaccountsontheCloud.

Logging into the Attainment HUB (above left) brings up the dashboard (above right).The Cloud Management option is only available to users with web-based subscriptions. Cloud Management (right) is a menu for setting up student accounts, assigning apps to them, enabling home use, and monitoring their progress.

My Products

Free Trials

Cloud Management

Reports Help


Technical Support and Contact Info

IfyouhaveaproblemrunningtheMath Skills Builder softwareorapp,pleasecalloremailAttainment Technical Support.Ifpossible,haveyourcomputernearbywhilewediscusssolutions.Youcanspeedtheprocessifyoucollectsomebasicinformationaheadoftime:• UsingWeb-basedordownloadedstand-aloneversion?

—IfWeb-based,whichWebbrowserareyouusing?• AreyouonaWindows,Mac,iOS,orAndroiddevice?• Whatoperatingsystemareyourunning?• Whatwastheerrorandtypeoferrormessage,ifany?• Whattriggeredtheproblem?• Canyouduplicatetheproblem?

Tech Support is available weekdays from 9 am–5 pm (CST)Email: [email protected]

U.S and Canada: (800)327-4269International:+1(608)845-7880

We welcome your questions and comments:[email protected]

Attainment Company, Inc.P.O. Box 930160 • Verona WI 53593-0160 USA

www.AttainmentCompany.com

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