n the second episode of a two-part series, math professor Anna Stokke sits down with Dr. Brian Poncy, a school psychology professor at Oklahoma State University, who specializes in math interventions. His extensive research on basic fact fluency led to the development of a free math program called M.I.N.D, aimed at improving numeracy and computational skills. They begin by discussing five compelling reasons that fluency is crucial. Brian shares his research on dosage, which addresses the frequency and duration of practice for math skills. Anna asks Brian to define conceptual understanding, and they explore its relationship with procedural skill. They also discuss explicit timing and address concerns about anxiety. Brian emphasizes the importance of data-driven decision-making and more. A key takeaway from these two episodes is that achieving fluency with basic facts requires daily practice—every school day, not just once a week or every other day. The specifics are covered in this episode. As Brian emphasizes, basic fact fluency results in significant effects with minimal investment in instructional time. These two episodes shine a light on the challenges many children face with math and highlight research-backed methods to improve math education.

n this first episode of a two-part series, math professor Anna Stokke sits down with Dr. Brian Poncy, a school psychology professor at Oklahoma State University, who specializes in math interventions. His extensive research on basic fact fluency led to the development of a free math program called M.I.N.D, aimed at improving numeracy and computational skills. In the episode, Brian stresses that we have a basic fact crisis where many students struggle with basic fact fluency, affecting their overall math proficiency. They discuss his research and effective strategies for teaching basic facts and computational skills. The conversation begins with a description of the instructional hierarchy, a tool for identifying a student's learning stage and selecting suitable tasks, with an accompanying infographic available on the episode resource page. Anna asks Brian to define some key terms such as fluency, automaticity and mastery. They discuss the impact of his free program, M.I.N.D, particularly its implementation in a low-performing school. They also cover research on decomposition strategies and emphasize the importance of data collection to inform instruction. Throughout the episode, Brian shares strategies used in the M.I.N.D program, revealing his deep passion for helping children learn math. These two episodes shine a light on the challenges many children face with math and highlight research-backed methods to improve math education.

Dr Poncy and Duhon discuss the Measures and Interventions for Numeracy Development (MIND) program and how it can be used to prevent, promote, and remedy math computation skills.

Presentation description: It is imperative that educators systematically assess and link patterns in student responding to empirically validated intervention components. This session will outline how to use the Instructional Hierarchy to guide matching assessment data to specific interventions. Objectives/Skills Knowledge: Participants will be able to describe the 4 stages of the Instructional Hierarchy and match specific instructional components to each stage, the role of a well-defined & measurable skill sequence when selecting interventions, and how to troubleshoot with students who fail to make adequate progress. Agenda: Introduce the Instructional Hierarchy, identify essentials to support assessment & interventions, discuss ways to trouble shoot treatment non responders.

Presentation description: Teachers need intervention materials that are free, accessible, & research based. This session will present the Measures & Interventions for Numeracy Development (M.I.N.D), a set of open source materials that educators can use to increase computation skills. Participants will leave the session with the ability to access materials and use these to support the development of students’ computation skills. Objectives/Skills Knowledge: Participants will know how to assess and match intervention materials to student need, how to incorporate cover, copy, compare and explicit timing procedures in a fully differentiated group setting, and how to assess progress using the M.I.N.D. materials Agenda: Introduce the M.I.N.D. website, show how to navigate and access materials, and discuss how to use the M.I.N.D. to support a multi-tiered system of supports in math.