Big Ideas Learning Mathematics Grade 8 (Math and You!)
Core Code Alignment
Mathematics
Secondary Mathematics (7-12)
07080000080: 8th Grade Mathematics
Secondary Mathematics (7-12)
07080000080: 8th Grade Mathematics
Recommendation
Recommended Primary
Evaluation
This curriculum is well organized around the Major Work, using a clear Investigate ? Key Concept ? Application ? Practice routine to connect reasoning and representations to purposeful practice and authentic applications (including Performance Tasks). Rigor is balanced across conceptual understanding, procedural skill, and application, with ongoing quick checks and end-of-chapter assessments that clearly measure standard mastery; application evidence appears in real?life problems and tasks with rubrics. Built?in differentiation (Levels 1–3), consistent lesson components, and Spanish-language access with ELL notes support a broad range of learners, though supports beyond Spanish are less specific. Diversity is represented in career videos; class norms and SEL prompts reinforce traits such as perseverance, respect, and responsibility. A significant constraint is teacher autonomy: presentation, problem sets, and lesson flow are largely locked, limiting modification beyond selecting which activities to run. Materials remain non-promotional, neutral, and age-appropriate, meeting compliance requirements.
Educators Using These Materials
No educators found.
Material Categories
Comprehensive
Rubric : Mathematics 2025
Compliance with State Law (Required)
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sensitive Materials and Prohibited Submission 53G-10-103, R277-628 | Does Not Violate Law | NA | NA | May Violate Law | ||
| Prohibited discriminatory practices 53G-2-103-5, 53B-1-118 and 67-27-107 | Does Not Violate Law | NA | NA | May Violate Law | ||
| Maintaining constitutional freedom in the public schools. 53G-10-202 | Does Not Violate Law | NA | NA | May Violate Law | ||
| Free from advertising, e-commerce, or political interest | Contains none of the listed items. | NA | NA | Contains one or more of the listed items. | ||
Focus and Coherence (Non-Negotiable)
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Non-negotiable materials must focus coherently on the Major Work of the grade in a way that is consistent with the progressions in the standards. 1- Student and teachers using the materials as designed devote the majority of time to the Major Work of the grade. 2- Supporting Work enhances focus and coherence simultaneously by also engaging students in the Major Work of the grade. 3- Materials follow the grade-by-grade progressions in the Standards. Content from previous or future grades does not unduly interfere. 4- Lessons that only include mathematics from previous grades are clearly identified. Materials that do not meet the non-negotiable requirements for Focus and Coherence will not be recommended as primary resources. Please continue with the review to determine if the materials may be recommended for supplemental use. | Meets all non-negotiable requirements | NA | NA | Does not meet the non-negotiable requirements. *see narrative for determination of which requirement(s) was not met | ||
| The curriculum is organized around the Major Work with a clear Investigate → Key Concept → Application → Practice routine that keeps instructional time on priority standards. Application opportunities and chapter tasks are tied to the key concepts, strengthening coherence rather than diverting to peripheral content. Supporting Work is used to deepen understanding of the Major Work; just‑in‑time review appears within lessons as needed. The sequence follows the Grade 8 progressions, and any off‑grade skills are limited, clearly labeled (e.g., pre‑course skills, warm‑ups/review), and do not displace grade‑level content. Consistent lesson components and Level 1–3 interventions sustain focus and coherence across the course. | ||||||
Rigor and Balance
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The materials support the development of students’ conceptual understanding of key mathematical concepts, especially where called for in specific standards or cluster headings. | Meets | Partially meets | N/A | Does not meet | ||
| Lessons include activities that prompt students to notice, discuss, and connect ideas (e.g., Investigate tasks), supporting deep understanding of key concepts and multiple representations. | ||||||
| The materials are designed so that students attain the fluencies and procedural skills required by the Standards. | Meets | Partially meets | N/A | Does not meet | ||
| Each lesson provides structured practice for required procedures, including warm-ups, guided practice, and independent items that build fluency aligned to standards. | ||||||
| The materials are designed so that teachers and students spend sufficient time working with applications, without losing focus on the Major Work of each grade. (Are there single and multi-step contextual problems that develop the mathematics of the grade, afford opportunities for practice, and engage students in problem solving?) | Meets | Partially meets | N/A | Does not meet | ||
| Application opportunities appear regularly (e.g., “Connection to Real Life,” chapter performance tasks). The Investigate → Application progression keeps applied work tied tightly to the key concepts and Major Work. | ||||||
Standards for Mathematical Practice
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Materials address the practice standards in such a way as to enrich the Major Work of the grade; practice standards strengthen the focus on Major Work instead of detracting from it, in both teacher and student materials. | Meets | Partially meets | N/A | Does not meet | ||
| The materials explicitly embed the Standards for Mathematical Practice throughout the lesson arc (Investigate → Key Concept → Application → Practice). Students regularly reason, model, and communicate in groups; tasks prompt multiple representations and mathematical discourse. Teacher and student materials align practice standards to the Major Work rather than as add‑ons, so SMPs actively strengthen focus on priority content in every chapter. | ||||||
| Tasks and assessments of student learning are designed to provide evidence of students’ proficiency in the Standards of Mathematical Practice. | Meets | Partially meets | N/A | Does not meet | ||
| Tasks and assessments are designed to elicit SMP proficiency. Chapter “Performance Tasks” with rubrics, frequent quick checks, and “Connection to Real Life” problems require students to explain reasoning, use appropriate tools, and construct viable arguments. Informal checks in Investigate sections capture students’ thinking in context, providing clear evidence that students can apply the practices, not just procedures. | ||||||
| Materials support the Standards’ emphasis on mathematical reasoning. | Meets | Partially meets | N/A | Does not meet | ||
| Materials consistently support mathematical reasoning. Lessons ask students to make conjectures, justify steps, and connect representations during Investigate and discussion prompts; Application items extend this reasoning to real‑life contexts. The structure encourages students to explain the “why” behind procedures and to critique peer reasoning, aligning with the standards’ emphasis on reasoning across the course. | ||||||
Access to the Standards for All Students
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Support for English Language learners and other special populations is thoughtful (evidence-based) and helps those students meet the same Standards (and rigor) as all other students. The language in which problems are posed is carefully considered. | Meets | Partially meets | N/A | Does not meet | ||
| Strengths: The curriculum provides consistent support for English Language Learners (ELLs). Spanish-language materials are easy to access. Every lesson includes ELL notes with prompts, questioning strategies, or problems. Supports reference evidence-based questioning aligned to proficiency levels, career/connection videos portray diverse cultures, and language accommodations maintain grade-level rigor. Limitations: Support beyond Spanish is limited, and prompts for non–Spanish-speaking multilingual learners are often repetitive and surface-level. Guidance by proficiency level can be vague and overlapping (e.g., generic WH-questions across acquisition levels). As a result, teachers must judge usefulness lesson by lesson, leading to inconsistent access and less effective support for multilingual learners beyond Spanish. | ||||||
| Materials provide scaffolding, differentiation, intervention, and support for a broad range of learners with gradual removal of supports, when needed, to allow students to demonstrated their mathematical understanding independently. | Meets | Partially meets | N/A | Does not meet | ||
| Materials offer strong built-in scaffolding and tiered interventions through the online system, with differentiated lessons and varied interaction opportunities. However, when used as designed, teacher flexibility is limited, which may affect how supports are gradually removed to foster independent demonstration of understanding. | ||||||
| Design of lessons incorporates strategies such as using multiple representations, deconstructing/reconstructing the language of problems, providing suggestions for addressing common student difficulties, etc. to ensure grade-level progress for all learners. | Meets | Partially meets | N/A | Does not meet | ||
| Strengths: Lessons require mathematical discourse and connect multiple representations. Access materials aim to reach a broad range of learners; interventions and chapter reviews are provided. Limitations: Supports are largely preset and mirror the core lesson format. The pre-scripted design limits teacher creativity and adaptation, reducing flexibility to address varied misconceptions and to tailor strategies (e.g., language deconstruction) beyond what’s provided. | ||||||
| Ethnic Studies- (Ethnic studies in core standards and curriculum should be a narrowly tailored incorporation of age-appropriate opportunities that naturally arise through education without pretextual effort in courses, programs, or activities where ethnic studies is not a primary focus. The material should incorporate a curriculum of people and cultures that reflect the state’s various demographics without commentary that seeks to violate the neutrality standard established in codes: 53B-1-118, 53G-2-103, 53G-2-104, 53G-2-105, 67-27-107, | In addition to the content outlined in “Adequate,” this material offers multiple evidence-based supplemental resources and opportunities for learning about various forms of cultural philosophies and epistemologies from Utah, the United States, and worldwide. The materials provide cultural backgrounds, contemporary real-life experiences, and contexts that are relevant to local students. Some examples may include people with disabilities, various body types, and ages. | This material demonstrates respect for diverse socio-cultural identities. The material provides opportunities to acknowledge and integrate the histories, cultures, contributions, and perspectives of people from the United States and worldwide. The material accurately represents the cultures, languages, traditions, beliefs, values, and customs of people from diverse backgrounds through a variety of texts, examples, scenarios, imagery, and applications. | The material has limited themes of social and cultural histories within the United States and globally. The material provides limited examples of inclusive or cultural real-life experiences and does not include diverse characters. | The material does not meet the requirements within the ethnic studies core standards and curriculum requirements. (53E-4-204.1). | ||
| Strengths: The materials respectfully represent diverse socio‑cultural identities through career-connection videos and inclusive imagery/language options, broadening who students see doing mathematics while maintaining content neutrality. When used, these resources naturally acknowledge people from varied backgrounds and show mathematics used in diverse workplaces and regions without making ethnic studies the primary focus. Limitations: Diversity is framed mainly as representation rather than integrating mathematical histories, culturally rooted approaches, or multiple ways of reasoning. These elements are supplemental and easy to skip, so lessons rarely explore where mathematical ideas or methods originate across cultures or how mathematics can connect perspectives worldwide. | ||||||
| Shared Values and Character Traits | The material extends beyond the content outlined in "Adequate", it includes elements that connect Utahns to the world. The material offers multiple evidence-based supplemental resources and opportunities for cultivating character traits in students. The material offers multiple evidence-based supplemental resources and opportunities for cultivating character traits in students. Some examples may include characters with a variety of personalities, education, income, occupation, or behaviors that illustrate character traits. | The material focuses on the shared values of diverse people and communities, the common elements that unite Utahns, and displays some character traits in its imagery and content. It aims to cultivate character traits in students, such as courage, leadership, intelligence, integrity, honesty, respect, morality, civility, duty, honor, and service, along with principles found in the Constitution. | The material lacks a sense of shared values or common elements that unite Utahns. Furthermore, the material has limited resources addressing civic and character education. | The material does not meet the requirements within the ethnic studies core standards and curriculum requirements (53E-4-204.1) and civic and character education. (53G-10-204) | ||
| Strengths: The program supports shared values through SEL Connection notes, collaborative discourse, and routine emphasis on mathematical practices and problem solving. These features encourage traits like perseverance, respect, responsibility, and teamwork, and connect classroom work to common goals and community life without departing from core math content or neutrality. Limitations: Character development is mostly indirect and episodic (brief SEL prompts, career spotlights) rather than embedded in sustained tasks, reflection, or discussion. Traits such as leadership, service, civility, and duty are referenced implicitly but not consistently cultivated across lessons, making impact uneven and easy to overlook. | ||||||
Assessment
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Multiple measurements of individual student progress occur at regular intervals ensuring success of all students. | Meets | Partially meets | N/A | Does not meet | ||
| Strengths: The program uses multiple measures at regular points, including pre-built and scheduled curriculum-based assessments, frequent quick checks/quiz items during chapters, formative ideas, and end-of-chapter summatives. Teachers have many ways to track progress over time. Limitations: Most assessments are pre-created and can feel abundant but inflexible, leaving limited room for teacher-designed checks. The volume and preset formats may overwhelm choice and constrain creativity, making it harder to tailor assessments to individual student needs. | ||||||
| Assessments measure what students understand and can do through well designed mathematical tasks and applications. | Meets | Partially meets | N/A | Does not meet | ||
| Strengths: Core assessments clearly measure whether students know and can do the targeted standards, even when items are decontextualized with limited application. Chapters include “Performance Tasks” with rubrics to assess application, and informal checks appear in “Investigate” and “Connect to real-life” sections. Limitations: It isn’t consistently clear that the main assessments emphasize rich tasks or real-world applications; many items feel generic. While there are many choices, they can lack a personal, engaging touch, which may limit how well assessments capture students’ ability to use mathematics in authentic contexts. | ||||||
UTAH STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
250 East 500 South
Salt Lake City, UT 84111-3204
Phone: 801.538.7807