Math Helpers Program Brings Lower and Upper School Students Together

Our campus provides many unique opportunities for Lower School students to interact with Upper School students – from formal events like the opening convocation to fun-filled traditions like FallFest to all-school gatherings like the Wrap-In. These opportunities also take place in the classroom, through programs like Math Helpers.  
 
Led by Upper School teacher Greg Faulhaber, the program matches Upper School students with Lower School classrooms during math time. The Upper School volunteers assist in various ways – some play games, some spend one-on-one time reviewing advanced concepts, and others work with students who might need extra help with a math concept.  

"We love the program. I think it's incredible that our students get the chance to work with older students in small groups and that the Upper School students choose to spend their free bell helping our younger learners,” says Renee Pavlisko, second grade teacher. “Role models make the difference. The opportunity to work with our younger students helps to kindle the individual potential that our high school students might not even realize they have until the moment appears.”  

Renee's students echo her sentiments.  

"I love to do math with the older students," says Tali Simmons. 

"When they help us do math, I always learn a lot and have lots of fun," says Kamron Coleman. 

Jared McFee's fourth grade class also utilizes the Math Helpers program. For him seeing his students’ attitudes about math change has been the most astounding part.  

"Each time an Upper School student helps out in my class, we sit in a circle in the Cozy Corner so we can go around and introduce ourselves and say how we each feel about math," says McFee. "In just a few short weeks, students' attitudes about math have gone from ‘I hate math’ to ‘math is fun when I understand it.’” 

Some of his students admitted that they like math more after they spend time with the math helpers.  

"Working with Upper School students is helpful. Now I understand long division and what to do," says Harper Habig. 

"Working with the older kids is fun because they can help us get better at math," says Michael Bradford.  

But the benefit is not just for the younger students. Faulhaber put this program together to benefit both divisions.  

"It's a good reminder to the older kids that the younger ones often have eyes on them and are taking in how they act and behave," says Faulhaber. "It's also helping the students practice communication and scheduling skills. I send out the schedule and work with the Lower School teachers, but if an Upper School student has to cancel or rearrange their time, it is up to them to communicate with the teachers.” 

Faulhaber says another benefit is that the older students get the opportunity to see the "a-ha moments" he gets to in his classroom daily. 

"I decided to volunteer to be a math helper because I would have loved working with an Upper School student when I was in the Lower School,” says Emma Kate Schnieber, `24. “I didn't enjoy math when I was younger, so having someone come down to work with us and play games would have made it much more fun.”  

The program includes about 30 math helpers and 10 Lower School classrooms. In general, the Upper School students go to the Lower School for 20-30 minutes during one of their free bells. But for the math helpers, giving up a free bell to go to the Lower School is not a sacrifice, it is something they happily volunteer to do.  

“I can still remember how I looked at Upper School students when I was in Lower School. I was fascinated by them; they were my role models,” says Carolina Cavalieri `23. “Now that I’m older, I wanted to be a role model for the Lower School kids and show them the importance of math and the beauty of learning new things.” 

Because of the success of the Math Helpers program, the Upper School and Lower School are considering launching a similar program for reading.  

"These Upper School students are modeling our character virtues during every visit to our classroom," says Pavlisko. "Compassion for the student who might need more help, integrity when playing games, responsibility for taking time out of their schedule to visit us, respect for each student and their skills, and courage to walk into our classroom unaware as to what the activity is going to be but knowing they are ready to create success!"